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

Here is a story well worth retelling. An updated repost from 2012. 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 … Continue reading

Civil Blockade Runner Agnes E. Fry Believed Found Off Oak Island, NC

The Confederate blockade runner Agnes E. Fry is believed to have been located off Oak Island, North Carolina. She is one of three blockade runners lost in the area during the Civil War, but the only ship longer than 200 feet. … Continue reading

Wreck of Steamer Planter Found On South Carolina Coast — Commanded by Robert Smalls

Two years ago, we posted about the the 150th anniversary of the seizure of the Confederate armed transport, CSS Planter, by Robert Smalls, a 23 year old mulatto slave, and eight fellow slaves. Smalls, who had served as the pilot of the … Continue reading

New Research – Civil War Submarine Hunley Possibly Sunk by its Own Explosive

The Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley is credited as the first successful submarine, in that it was the first submarine to sink an enemy warship in combat.  New findings, however, might cause some to reconsider this “success.”  The Hunley may have been sunk … Continue reading

Faces of the USS Monitor – Using Forensic Reconstruction to Identify Unknown Civil War Sailors

When the revolutionary ironclad warship USS Monitor sank off Cape Hatteras, NC during the Civil War, in December of 1862, 16 of her crew of 62 were lost.  One hundred and forty years later, in August of 2002, when the turret of … Continue reading