[Courtesy of R.K. Skerrett]
"I am fully satisfied [the Hunley] can be used successfully in blowing up one or more of the enemy’s Iron Clads in your harbor."
~ General P. G. T. Beauregard
The third attempt at a combat submarine seemed to be going much better than the previous two. The H. L. Hunley, sometimes known as the “fish-boat,” was designed in Mobile, Alabama. This model was a substantial improvement over the previous designs, which indicates a break in barriers in submarine technology. The Hunley's purpose was to dive below her target and then stab the enemy vessel with its torpedo then back away. The first test mission was a huge success. This success was heard by General Beauregard, who suggested that the ship should be sent to Charleston, South Carolina. There, it would try to sink one of the Union blockade vessels and fracture the Union blockade.
A sketch of the interior view of the H. L. Hunley
[Courtesy of William A. Alexander]
"Constructed largely from wrought-iron boilerplates, the hull of the vessel was approximately 12.2 m (40 ft.) long and 1.3 m (4 ft.) high, with a maximum breadth of 1.1 m (3.5 ft.) amidships. Two hatches or conning towers were placed forward and aft in the central crew compartment, providing access points for the crew and viewing ports for sighting and navigation. The vessel had a crew of eight, with seven men turning the propeller by means of a hand crank and one man acting as captain and navigator (Alexander 1902:1–3)."
~ Michael P. Scafuri, Stephen Weise, Maria Jacobsen, and Benjamin Rennison
Courtesy of Dan Dowdey.
The Hunley set out from Charleston Harbor on the night of February 17, 1864, tasked with the mission of sinking the U. S. S. Housatonic of the Union naval blockade. Lieutenant George E. Dixon and his crew of 7 men set out towards the Housatonic. Once they were near the ship, they started taking fire from the crew of the Housatonic. However, it was too late, and the torpedo packed with 135 pounds of black powder blasted a hole in the hull of the ship, killing 5 crew members. The Housatonic quickly sank but all of the crew managed to hold on to the rigging until the U. S. S. Canandaigua came to rescue them. The fact that the submarine was able to successfully sink a ship shows how it broke barriers in naval warfare. No submarine had ever accomplished such a task previously.