On this day, 146 years ago, Lt. George Dixon (CSA) and his crew stepped into the submarine, the H.L. Hunley. Constructed in 1863, the Hunley was the latest in a line of so-far failed submarines; the Pioneer, the American Diver, and finally the Hunley. This device had killed most of its first crew and all of its second, including Horace Hunley, the man who financed it. It was extremely dangerous, earning the nickname, "The Iron Coffin." Dixon and crew knew that they would likely be killed, and yet they set out anyway. Their target was the USS Housatonic, a blockading Yankee sloop-of-war positioned off Charleston Harbor. They successfully rammed the mine into the sloop, backed away, and detonated the bomb directly under the magazine, sinking the Housatonic. That night, the Hunley itself disappeared, going on what mariners call "Eternal Patrol." For 131 years, no one knew where it was, but finally, in 1995, a small diving crew financed by author Clive Cussler found the location, and on August 8, 2000, the Hunley finally came back into Charleston Harbor after 136 years of patrol. All 8 members of its crew were found inside, and the submarine is safe inside the Warren Lasch Conservation Center on the old Charleston Navy yard.
Too few today know the incredible story of this submarine, yet its crew was, without a doubt, made of some of the bravest men ever to walk the earth. They are the very image of the courage and self-sacrifice that kept the South fighting through all those long years of war.
When you think of Southern heroes, do not limit yourself to Stonewall, Lee, and Jeb, but remember also the soldiers and sailors themselves. Hunley crew, I salute you!
Too few today know the incredible story of this submarine, yet its crew was, without a doubt, made of some of the bravest men ever to walk the earth. They are the very image of the courage and self-sacrifice that kept the South fighting through all those long years of war.
When you think of Southern heroes, do not limit yourself to Stonewall, Lee, and Jeb, but remember also the soldiers and sailors themselves. Hunley crew, I salute you!
