6 SEPTEMBER 1776 FIRST SUBMARINE The world’s first operational submarine was the brainchild of physician and inventor David Bushnell while a student at Yale College in 1771. During the 1775 British blockade of Boston, he and his brother Ezra gave the idea physical Read More
29 JUNE 1776 BATTLE OF TURTLE GUT INLET The six-gun civilian brig Nancy headed north from St. Thomas and St. Croix. Her Master, Hugh Montgomery, had shipped a cargo that would bring a handsome profit in his homeport of Philadelphia. Nancy Read More
9 DECEMBER 1775 THE BATTLE OF GREAT BRIDGE Modern sailors stationed in the Norfolk area may be familiar with Battlefield Boulevard and Great Bridge, whose story follows. GEN George Washington worried that the British might become lodged in Norfolk, Virginia. Then Read More
24-27 SEPTEMBER 1778 THE LOSS OF RALEIGH On December 13th, 1775, the Continental Congress issued our young nation’s first naval construction authorization, ordering that 13 frigates be built for the Continental Navy. Five of these were to be rated at 32 Read More
19 JULY-17 AUGUST 1779 SALTONSTALL AT PENOBSCOT Four hundred Continental and colonial Marines led the numerically superior American assault, clamoring up the cliff to within 600 yards of the fort. But here they came within range of the three small Read More
19 JULY-17 AUGUST 1779 PENOBSCOT EXPEDITION The land stretching northeast from the Kennebec River in modern Maine (location of Augusta) to New Brunswick was contested by France and England for a century. Then with the British victory in the French Read More
28 NOVEMBER 1775 THE CAPTURE OF NANCY As GEN George Washington watched Boston from the Dorchester Heights during the Fall of 1775, he noted how easily the British kept their forces supplied by sea. While Washington’s army scrounged for food, uniforms, Read More
20 SEPTEMBER 1776 PROVIDENCE vs. MILFORD On 10 May 1776, temporary CAPT John Paul Jones assumed command of the Continental Navy sloop Providence, armed with twelve 4-pounder guns. Jones received his permanent appointment on August 8th and departed the Delaware Capes Read More
7 AUGUST 1782 THE PURPLE HEART The oldest decoration ever awarded to a United States serviceman was the Fidelity Medallion. This award was created by the Continental Congress specifically to recognize the actions of three New York Volunteer militiamen of the Read More
20 APRIL 1779 CONFLICT OF INTEREST Enlisting sailors into wartime service in the earliest days of our Navy was quite a task. Navy life was hard and risky, rewards were few, punishments were harsh and frequent, time away from home was Read More