A Brief History On December 12, 1862, the United States ship, USS Cairo, an iron-clad gunboat of the City-class, was sunk in the Yazoo River by a remotely detonated Confederate “torpedo,” what naval mines were called back then. The Cairo became the first ship ever sunk by a remote control mine. (The Cairo was named after the city of Cairo, Illinois.) Digging Deeper Commissioned on January 25, 1862, Cairo was at first an Army gunboat, 175 feet long and 51 feet wide, protected by 2 ½ inches of plate armor, with a maximum thickness of 3 ½ inches of railway…
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A Brief History On December 1, 1768, the Danish ship Fredensborg sank in a storm off the coast of Norway on her return trip from a death filled delivery of slaves to St. Croix in the Caribbean. Today, we list 10 Infamous Ships that either served an evil purpose or were particularly unlucky, and are remembered today with less than fond memories. (Note: the RMS Titanic and SS Edmund Fitzgerald are TOO obvious!) Digging Deeper 1. Fredensborg, Denmark/Norway. Originally named Cron Prindz Christian after the heir apparent to the throne of Norway/Denmark, her last cargo of slaves was picked up at…
A Brief History On November 21, 1916, in the waters of the Aegean Sea near the Island of Kea, the British hospital ship HMHS Britannic struck a naval mine and sank, becoming the largest vessel sunk during World War I. A sister ship of the RMS Titanic and the third ship in the Olympic Class of ocean liner, Britannic is the largest ship on the floor of the sea (being slightly larger than the Titanic). Digging Deeper Incredibly, although Britannic sank quickly, only 55 minutes after striking the mine, only 30 people lost their lives of the 1065 that had…
A Brief History On November 15, 1969, the Cold War in the icy waters of the Barents Sea became very real when the US submarine USS Gato collided with the Soviet submarine K-19. Lucky for both crews, neither sub sank and no lives were lost. Throughout history, ships have found ways to run into each other or other objects, sometimes on purpose, but usually by accident. Today we list 5 of these unfortunate occurrences. Digging Deeper 1. USS Gato vs. USSR K-19, 1969. While both ships were patrolling the arctic waters of the Barents Sea North of Scandinavia and Murmansk, the…
A Brief History On November 3, 1911, one of the most iconic American companies was founded when Louis Chevrolet teamed up with former General Motors William Durant to form the Chevrolet Motor Car Company. Chevrolet went on to become the bedrock division of General Motors (GM) and has rivaled or even supplanted the Ford Motor Company as the most identifiably American car company. Digging Deeper Louis Chevrolet, the man who’s name the company has borne for over 100 years, was a Swiss race car driver, mechanic, and engineer that emigrated to Montreal, Canada, in 1900 at the age of 22. …