Delve into the
Mysteryof the Historic Hunley
VISIT THE HUNLEY Warren Lasch Conservation Center 1250 Supply St., North Charleston, SC
I
n 1864, the H. L. Hunley became the world’s first successful combat submarine with the sinking of the USS Housatonic. Then, the history-making vessel and her crew vanished, slipping into the history books as a great mystery. For more than a century, treasure hunters and history buffs searched in vain for the submarine. In 1995, an expedition led by Clive Cussler’s National Underwater Maritime Agency finally located the lost submarine and her eight-man crew. But it would be several more years before the Hunley was meticulously extracted from the sea. On Aug. 8, 2000, she was gently lifted from her ocean grave near Sullivan’s Island and delivered to the Warren Lasch Conservation Center for study, excavation and preservation. Since then, scientists working to save the legendry submarine have made fascinating discoveries about that period in history and the Hunley’s eight-man crew. Bringing the Hunley back to land was a major engineering feat, and news of the discovery traveled quickly around the world. The Hunley Commission and Friends of the Hunley, a 28 TRAVELERofCharleston.com SPRING 2022
HOURS Saturday: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. TICKETS Adults $18; Children 6-12 $10 available online at Hunley.org or at the entrance gate
nonprofit group charged with raising funds in support of the vessel, led the effort with the U.S. Navy. The Warren Lasch Conservation Center is a high-tech lab specifically designed to conserve the vessel and unlock the mystery of her disappearance. The Hunley proved to be a time capsule, holding a wide array of artifacts offering clues to life during the American Civil War. The submarine and the hundreds of artifacts found onboard continue to undergo preservation work while archaeologists use the historical clues they found to piece together those final moments. The Hunley’s journey through time has been marked by innovation, courage and tragedy. Her against-all-odds tale has spanned the centuries and is one of the greatest maritime mysteries in recent history. Visit hunley.org for a detailed timeline, videos and information on the science behind preserving this important artifact.
