On this day in 1797, Old Ironsides is launched! “Old Ironsides” is the nickname that was given to the USS Constitution, one of the first...

On this day in 1945, the last survivors of the USS Indianapolis are pulled from the Pacific Ocean. They’d been there since a Japanese...

On this day in 1882, a hero is born. George S. Rentz would go on to become the only Navy Chaplain to receive a Navy Cross during World...

On this day in 1915, the excursion boat SS Eastland capsizes in the Chicago River. More than 800 were killed. It was the worst maritime...

On this day in 1794, George Washington appoints six captains for the new United States Navy. One of these men, John Barry, would later be...

On this day in 1918, an American destroyer drops depth charges on a German submarine. But a United States sailor was aboard that vessel!...

On this day in 1968, a nuclear submarine in the United States Navy is missing in action—except no one seemed to realize it. Instead,...

On this day in 1945, Americans destroy a German submarine near Point Judith, Rhode Island. That submarine, U-853, had torpedoed an...

On this day in 1865, the SS Sultana explodes as it steams north up the Mississippi River. The loss was the biggest maritime disaster in...

On this day in 1963, the USS Thresher sinks off the coast of Cape Cod. Sadly, a rescue ship was floating helplessly above the wreckage,...

On this day in 1945, kamikazes plow into American warships near Iwo Jima. One aircraft carrier, the USS Bismarck Sea, was fatally...

On this day in 1939, the crew of the USS Squalus is rescued. The day before, the submarine had sunk to a depth of 240 feet. The rescue...

On this day in 1939, a Sargo-class submarine sinks during a deep dive. No submarine crew had ever been rescued once they’d sunk below 20...

On this day in 1942, a United States Coast Guard cutter sinks a German submarine just off the coast of North Carolina. Dozens of Germans...

During this week in 1776, Patriot galleys battle two British warships on the Delaware River, near Philadelphia. Until this time, much of...

On this day in 1912, RMS Titanic sinks. News of the tragedy shocked the world. How could this happen? The Titanic was one of the premier...

On this day in 1941, HMT Rohna is commissioned. Her demise would be called “World War II’s Secret Tragedy.” More than 1,000 American...

On this day in 1944, survivors of USS Leopold arrive in Ireland. Their ship had been torpedoed late on March 9, and they’d been left in...

On this day in 1944, the last survivor of USS Leopold is pulled from a frigid Atlantic Ocean. Amazingly, 28 men had survived—for hours—in...

On this day in 1917, the destroyer USS Jacob Jones is torpedoed as she travels near the Isles of Scilly. Jacob Jones would be the first...