The Hanging of Captain Nathaniel Gordon of the Slave Ship Erie — February 21, 1862

Posted on by February 21, 2025

A repost in honor of Black History Month.

On this day,  February 21, 1862, 163 years ago, Nathaniel Gordon, captain of the slave ship, Erie, was executed by hanging in New York City. Under the Piracy Law of 1820, slave trading was considered to be an act of piracy punishable by death. He was the only slave trader ever to be tried, convicted, and executed in American history.

Captain Gordon, originally from Portland, Maine was 36.  In a detestable trade, Captain Gordan was among the worst. When he was apprehended by the USS Mohican 50 miles off the Congo in 1860, the Erie, a ship of 500 tons, had 897 Africans crammed aboard. Of these, 563 were children. Captain Gordan preferred children because they were smaller and were less able to attempt to take over the ship.

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Celebrating DEI & Black History Month — Harriet Tubman & the Great Combahee Ferry Raid

Posted on by February 20, 2025

Last week, the New York Times reported that Harriet Tubman posters, origami paper cranes and rainbows have been disappearing from the halls of the American schools at NATO headquarters in Belgium, a response to the Trump administration’s rollbacks of diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

Teachers were worried that they would be seen as signs of Black, Japanese and gay culture — and thus run afoul of the new rules from Washington. The rush to comply with the administration’s directives intensified after educators learned that the wife of Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth planned to visit their campus.

There is something deeply shameful about denying the children of our military personnel the opportunity to learn about our history. Erasing the life of Harriet Tubman is particularly egregious as she was the first female to lead a combat regiment when she spearheaded a Union riverboat raid during the Civil War.

In honor of Harriet Tubman, Black History Month, and the American values of diversity, equity, and inclusion, here is an updated repost about the Great Combahee Ferry Raid. 

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Historic Passenger Liner SS United States Finally Departs Philadelphia on Its Last Voyage

Posted on by February 19, 2025

[tribulant_slideshow gallery_id=8] 
 
SS United States, the largest and fastest transatlantic passenger liner ever built in America, was towed this morning from the dock in Philadelphia where it has been moored for nearly three decades, on the first leg of its final voyage.  The historic ocean liner’s next stop is Mobile, Alabama, where it will be prepared for a new role, to become the world’s largest artificial reef, off the coast of Destin-Fort Walton Beach in the Gulf of Mexico.

“Today, the nation’s sole surviving ocean liner will glide down the Delaware River to begin the next chapter in her uniquely American story,” said Susan Gibbs, president of the SS United States Conservancy and granddaughter of the ship’s designer, William Francis Gibbs, in statement just before ship left.

In the fall of 2024, Okaloosa County bought the ship to sink her to create an artificial reef off the Florida Panhandle. Since then, the ship’s departure has been delayed by bad weather, lawsuits over dockage fees, and the Coast Guard concerns over the ship’s structural integrity.

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Leo’s Row : Russian NHS Doctor Hits Halfway Mark in Transatlantic Row for Ukraine

Posted on by February 18, 2025

Dr Leo Krivskiy, a doctor with the UK’s National Health Service, is rowing 2,630 nautical miles solo across the Atlantic to raise money for medics in Ukraine in a 6m (20ft) ocean rowing boat called Happy Socks.

The BBC reports that he has reached the midway point. The Moscow-born consultant anesthetist at Southampton General Hospital is 1,210 nautical miles from the finish in Barbados and says that he had not seen a ship for more than three weeks. He set off from Gran Canaria on Boxing Day and has currently raised more than £23,000.

He said he was averaging about 30 miles per day but trade winds were making life rough on board with large waves, “it’s a slow journey, it’s a slog but physically I’m holding up”.

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Close Encounters of the Humpback Kind — Gulping & Spitting Out Swimmers, Surfers, & Kayakers

Posted on by February 17, 2025

A video of a humpback whale gulping up and spitting out a kayaker has gone viral over the last week.  Adrián Simancas was kayaking with his father, Dell Simancas, in the Strait of Magellan, off Chile’s southernmost Patagonia region, when a humpback whale suddenly surfaced, trapping the young man and his yellow kayak in its mouth for a few seconds before letting him go. 

Dozens of media accounts reported that Adrián had been “swallowed” by the whale.  Fortunately, for all concerned, if the word “swallow” is defined as “cause or allow something to pass down the throat,” the description is impossible. Humpbacks are baleen whales that feed primarily on krill and small fish. The whale’s esophagus is only about 4″ to 5″ in diameter, far too small to swallow a person. 

So how did a kayaker end up in a whale’s mouth?

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Update: USS Harry S. Truman Put into Souda Bay for Repairs After Collision

Posted on by February 16, 2025

USS Harry S. Truman, the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier that collided with the merchant bulk carrier M/V Besiktas-M off the coast of Egypt, put into Souda Bay, Greece, for repairs, US 6th Fleet announced on Sunday.

“While the ship is fully mission capable and the ship conducted flight operations following the collision, pulling into port for emergent repairs will enable the ship to continue deployment as scheduled,” said Capt. Dave Snowden, Harry S. Truman’s commanding officer.

The Navy’s Forward Deployed Regional Maintenance Center will assess the repairs needed to the carrier following the collision.

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Belated Congratulations to Zara Lachlan, First Woman to Row Solo from Mainland Europe to Mainland South America

Posted on by February 15, 2025

We recently posted about Ananya Prasad who completed the 2024-2025 World’s Toughest Row – Atlantic Challenge, a 4,800-km race across the Atlantic Ocean from the Canary Islands to Antigua, in 52 days. Ms Prasad, 34, born in India and raised in the UK, became the first woman of color to row solo and unsupported across any ocean.

We have learned that Ms Prasad was not the only woman breaking records for ocean rowing at the time.  Thanks to Chris Roche for passing along the news.

Zara Lachlan, 21, also from the UK, arrived in French Guiana on February 1, 2025, after rowing for 97 days 9 hours, and 20 minutes across the Atlantic Ocean from Lagos, Portugal. By doing so Ms Lachlan made history as the first female (and youngest person) to row solo, unsupported, and non-stop from mainland Europe to mainland South America. She’s only the second person in history to complete this 6,670-km voyage.

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Celebrating Frederick Douglass on Valentine’s Day — “I Will Take to the Water”

Posted on by February 14, 2025

Happy Valentine’s Day! In honor of both the day and Black History Month, here is an updated repost about Frederick Douglass. But what does Valentine’s Day have to do with Frederick Douglass?  As a slave, Douglass never knew the date of his birth, so he chose to celebrate it every year on February 14th.

Frederick Douglass was born around 1818. From an early age, he developed a close attachment to ships and the sea. His path to freedom led directly through the docks and shipyards of Baltimore, Maryland.

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Aircraft Carrier USS Harry S. Truman Collides with Bulk Carrier in Mediterranean Sea Near Suez Canal

Posted on by February 13, 2025

USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75), flagship of the Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group, collided with M/V Besiktas-M, a 53,00 DWT bulk carrier, on Wednesday evening near Port Said, Egypt, in the Mediterranean Sea, the Navy said Thursday.

The incident occurred near Port Said, Egypt, at approximately 11:46 p.m. local time, Cmdr. Timothy Gorman, U.S. Sixth Fleet spokesperson, said in a brief statement Thursday.

The collision “did not endanger” the Truman, as no injuries or flooding were reported, Gorman said.

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Forty Two Years Ago Today — Remembering the SS Marine Electric

Posted on by February 12, 2025

Forty-two years ago today, on February 12, 1983, the collier SS Marine Electric loaded with 24,800 tons of steam coal, capsized and sank in a storm 30 miles off the coast of Virginia. Thirty-one of the 34 crew members died. While nothing good can be said about the tragic loss of 31 sailors, the aftermath of the Marine Electric sinking led to important improvements in safety in the US shipping industry.

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Remembering Robert Smalls – Former Slave, Pilot of the Planter, First Black Captain in the US Navy & US Congressman

Posted on by February 11, 2025

Here is a story well worth retelling; an updated repost in honor of Black History Month; the remarkable story of Robert Smalls.

On May 13, 1862, Robert Smalls, a 23-year-old slave, who served as the pilot of the Confederate armed transport, CSS Planter, led eight fellow slaves in an audacious flight to freedom. They seized the CSS Planter, steamed it out past the batteries and forts of Charleston harbor, and turned it over to the Union naval blockade.  Smalls would go on to become the first black captain of a U.S. Navy vessel, a South Carolina State Legislator, a Major General in the South Carolina Militia, a five-term U.S. Congressman, and a U.S. Collector of Customs.  

Harper’s Weekly of June 14, 1862, recounts the escape:
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Seabed 2030 Project — New Arctic Ocean Map a Key Milestone in Global Seafloor Mapping

Posted on by February 10, 2025

It is often said that we know more about the surface of the moon than we do about the ocean floor. The Seabed 2030 Project aims to help rectify this lack of knowledge by mapping the world’s ocean floor by 2030. 

Seabed 2030  recently announced the publication of the latest version of the International Bathymetric Chart of the Arctic Ocean (IBCAO), Version 5.0. This release adds 1.4 million square kilometers of mapping coverage – an area over three times the size of Sweden – to the global seafloor dataset. Seabed 2030 is a collaborative project between the Nippon Foundation and GEBCO. 

The release also highlights the challenges and innovations associated with mapping the Arctic Ocean, where perennial sea-ice cover and extreme conditions have traditionally limited data collection. Overcoming these obstacles has required groundbreaking technology and international collaboration.

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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Under Attack by Musk’s DOGE

Posted on by February 10, 2025

The current regime’s attempt to dismantle the US government has reached NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA is the scientific and regulatory agency charged with forecasting weather, monitoring oceanic and atmospheric conditions, charting the seas, conducting deep-sea exploration, and managing fishing and the protection of marine mammals and endangered species in the US exclusive economic zone. NOAA has long been a target of climate change deniers.

Staffers with Elon Musk’s “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) reportedly entered the headquarters of the NOAA in Silver Spring, Maryland, and the Department of Commerce in Washington DC this week, inciting concerns of downsizing at the agency.

Individuals affiliated with Elon Musk’s DOGE, have reportedly been given access to several internal databases and systems at NOAA, as they search for employees and programs related to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). NOAA Officials claim to have been told to expect up to a 50% reduction in staff as well as a 30% reduction in budget, as the Trump administration continues to search for “cost-cutting opportunities” in departments and agencies across the federal government.

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Black History Month: Absalom Boston, Whaling Ship Captain & Merchant

Posted on by February 7, 2025

Captain Absalom Boston

Over nearly three centuries of whaling, some 175,000 men went to sea in 2,700 ships. Of the 2,500 masters who captained these ships, at least 52 were men of color. In honor of Black History Month, here is an updated repost about Absalom Boston, captain of the whaleship Industry, which sailed in 1822 with an all-black crew. 

Absalom Boston was born in Nantucket in 1785 to Seneca Boston, an African-American ex-slave, and Thankful Micah, a Wampanoag Indian woman. Absalom Boston’s uncle was a slave named Prince Boston, who sailed on a whaling voyage in 1770. At the end of the voyage in 1773, Prince Boston’s white master, William Swain, a prominent Nantucket merchant, demanded that he turn over his earnings. Boston refused. He took Swain to court and with the support of prominent whaleship owner William Rotch, won his earnings and his freedom, becoming the first slave to be set free by a jury verdict.  The impact of the lawsuit effectively ended slavery on Nantucket.

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Black History Month — First Black Liberty Ship Captain, Hugh Mulzac, Says No To Jim Crow

Posted on by February 22, 2026

Hugh Mulzak served as the first Black Liberty ship captain in World War II. When offered the command, he refused to sail with a segregated crew. An updated repost in honor of Black History Month.

Born in 1886 on Union Island in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, he went to sea at 21 and served on British, Norwegian, and American sail and steam-powered ships. After studying at the Swansea Nautical College in South Wales, he earned a mate’s license in 1910. He served as a deck officer on four ships during World War I.

In 1918, he became a naturalized US citizen and in 1920 sat for his Master’s license, earning a perfect score on the test. Despite his experience and qualifications, he was generally only able to find work aboard American ships as a messman or cook. Mulzak has been described as “the most over-qualified ship’s cook in maritime history.”

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