The quote by Brendan Foley of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution was pure marketing genius. He said that the Antikythera wreck is “the Titanic of the ancient world.” The Titanic is, after all, the rock star of ship wrecks. No doubt what Foley … Continue reading
Category Archives: Ships
The story is regrettably familiar. A historic vessel, unable to find a suitable berth, is forced to move elsewhere. Yesterday, Chip Reynolds, Director of the New Netherland Museum and Captain of the replica ship, Half Moon, announced the museum’s intentions to … Continue reading
Just over 60 yeas ago, on September 30, 1954, USS Nautilus, the world’s first nuclear powered submarine was commissioned in New London, Connecticut. Following commissioning she continued trials and testing, until she put to sea for the first time on January … Continue reading
The hospital ship Jubilee Hope was recently christened by the Princess Royal, in Tanzania on Lake Victoria. The 160 ton ship will provide health services to 150 remote island communities with 400,000 people on the large inland lake. She will be … Continue reading
Last May we posted that marine archaeologist Barry Clifford had announced that he believed that he had located the wreck of Christopher Columbus’ ship Santa Maria which ran aground and sank on Christmas Day 1492 off Haiti near Cap-Haitien. UNESCO has now … Continue reading
A waka, a 600 year voyaging canoe, was recently found on the New Zealand’s South Island’s West Coast. The results of a study by University of Auckland researchers appeared recently in the US Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The waka, … Continue reading
In September, we posted about the discovery of one of two missing ships from the Franklin Expedition of 1845. The two missing ships, HMS Erebus and HMS Terror were both originally built as bomb ships. As bomb ships they were … Continue reading
This isn’t supposed to happen. The Hapag-Lloyd 8,749-teu MV Colombo Express and the 8,112-teu MV Maersk Tanjong collided today at the northern end of Egypt’s Suez Canal, near Port Said. No casualties were reported. MV Colombo Express suffered a 20-meter dent on her … Continue reading
The schooner yacht Wanderer was built in 1857 for Colonel John D. Johnson, a New Orleans sugar baron. At just over 100 feet long, she was luxurious, sleek and extremely fast, reportedly capable of sailing at 20 knots. The Wanderer is … Continue reading
The main mast on the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry was stepped in a dockside ceremony on Wednesday at the Hinckley Company in Portsmouth, R.I. The 200′ tall ship is the first full-rigged ocean-going ship to be built in the United States in … Continue reading
Seventy five years ago this month, the Donaldson Line passenger liner SS Athenia became the first British ship to be sunk by a German U-boat in World War II. The 13,465 gross ton liner sailed from Glasgow bound Montreal. On September 3, 1939, only … Continue reading
A great video to start the week by Gale Browning aboard the Pride of Baltimore II . The Pride of Baltimore II is a replica of an 1812-era Baltimore Clipper topsail schooner built in 1988 in Baltimore harbor to be a … Continue reading
The topsail schooner Clipper City set sail from Manhattan yesterday on a “Craft Beer Tasting Cruise,” which ran somewhat longer than expected. The steel ship grounded in New York harbor, south of the Statue of Liberty. Apparently many of the … Continue reading
The passenger steamer SS Columbia is heading toward New York! The goal is to restore the historic steamer, built in 1902, and to put her in service on the Hudson River. SS Columbia is the oldest surviving passenger steamship in … Continue reading
Odyssey Marine Exploration Inc. recently wrapped up recovery efforts on the wreck of the SS Central America for the year. In last five months, they have recovered more than 15,500 gold and silver coins, 45 gold bars and hundreds of nuggets, … Continue reading
After close to two decades of construction, the frigate Hermione is finally under sail. In 1997, a group of historical and tall ship enthusiasts formed the Association Hermione-La Fayette and set about building a replica of the French frigate, Hermione, which carried Gilbert … Continue reading
On September 14th, 1914, one hundred years ago today, off the Brazilian island of Trindale, one of the stranger naval battles of World War I was fought between two converted passenger liners, one of which was disguised to look like … Continue reading
At around 6AM, 200 years ago today, the British Royal Navy began a fearsome bombardment of Fort McHenry at the mouth of Baltimore harbor. The British had attempted to take Baltimore by both land and sea. The British army attack … Continue reading
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is increasing the size of the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary in Lake Huron from 448 square miles to 4,300 square miles, doubling the number the number of shipwrecks protected to 200. Located in … Continue reading
We may always associate September 11th with the tragic attacks of 2001. September 11th of 1814, however, 200 years ago today, saw a significant naval victory by the young American Navy at the Battle of Plattsburgh that may have changed … Continue reading