This week, we're off to Charleston, South Carolina, where at the height of the American Civil War a secret weapon was launched into Charleston Harbor. It wasn't a very good weapon - in fact, it killed three times as many of its own crew members than enemy sailors - but it was an example of cutting-edge wartime technology that wouldn't be attempted again until World War 1. In sinking the Union ship 'Housatonic', the Confedarate ship 'H.L. Hunley' became the world's first successful combat submarine; however, when it failed to surface after this victory, it became a long, weird footnote in naval history, one that's still posing questions today. Join us for a wartime story of privateering, blockades, torpedo boats, cast iron, and some extremely bad luck as we pick apart the story of the builders, crew, and victims of the 'H. L. Hunley'.

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Sources for this episode include:

“The H L Hunley: The Secret Hope of the Confederacy”, by Tom Chaffin, 2010

“Air blast injuries killed the crew of the submarine H.L. Hunley”, by R. Lance et al, Plos One, 2017

“The Amazing (If True) Story of the Submarine Mechanic Who Blew Himself Up Then Surfaced as a Secret Agent for Queen Victoria”, by M. Dash for Smithsonian Magazine, 2014

“The Old South Lives as It Buries a Part of the Past”, by E Barry for the Los Angeles Times, 2004

“In the Waves: My Quest to Solve the Mystery of a Civil War Submarine”, by R. Lance, 2020

Hunley.org