Monday, August 22, 2011

Double Shipwreck in South Carolina by Caleb Miller

South Carolina is already known for a particularly famous wreck. The Hunley was the first submarine to sink a ship and its wreck was raised on live TV. However, this state also is the site of two ships lying at the exact same spot as the other. The SS Georgiana was a Confederate ship that tried to get into Charleston on March 19, 1863 during the American Civil War. Federal ships attacked it and the ship was scuttled and burned by her crew in shallow waters, who than promptly abandoned it. On August 31, 1864 the Confederate blockade runner Mary Bowers tried to run the Federal blockade into Charleston. She ran right into the wreck of the Georgiana, which tore into her hull. The crew and passengers abandoned ship. The Mary Bowers sank to rest right on top of the Georgiana, where she remains to this day. E. Lee Spence discovered the two ships in 1965. Due to the shallow water, skin divers are capable of reaching the site easily. Multiple artifacts much have been recovered from the two shipwrecks. These two shipwrecks are a great example of how the sea is full of history.



For more information on these and other shipwrecks- check out the Sea Research Society Web page http://www.searesearchsociety.com/category/shipwrecks/

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