The Washington herald., 1914-02-17

Fifty years ago today the Federal wal
steamer Housatonic, large and nearly
new vessel, was destroyed by torpedo
launched by a submerged boat. outside
the bar at Charleston.
The destruction of the Housatonic Is
notable in the naval annals of the wal
both for the revolutionary character OF
the craft which delivered the blow thai
sunk the vessel and for the supreme
heroismfof the crew that manned her.
The torpedo boat went down beside
the ship it had mortally wounded with
out leaving any cIew to the fate OF the
men within il. Not until after the war;
when a diver found the torpedo boat In
the sand beside the wreck OF the Hou-
satonic, was il possible to say what be-
came of the men who had given their
lives to sink an enemy's ship.
on the evening of February II the Hou-
satonic was anchored outside the bar at
Charleston, about five and one-hah miles
from the ruins of Fort Sumter, on her
usual station on the blockade.
There was but little wind and sea; the
sky was cloudIess and the moon was
shining brightly. The vessel had the
usual lookouts stationed at different
points on deck.
About S:45 the officer of the deck dis
covered a slight disturbance Of the water,
about 100 yards from the ship, In the
direction Of tine beach. A quartermaster
examined it with his glass and pro-
nounced it a school Of fish.
Closer scrutiny showed that the dis
turbancc was caused by an object that
looked like a plank approaching the YES
sci at a steady rate Of speed. and aimed
directly at the starboard side. An alarm
was at once given. The crew was called
TO quarters. An effort was made to slip
the anchor chain and back the ship away
from the approaching object, which was
now believed to be a submerged boat.
ships stern shattered.
Three minutes after the sub marine boat
had been first sighted it struck the side
of the ship. \ tremendous crash in
stantly followed. The entire stern Of
the Housatonic appeared to have been
blown away Timbers and a shower of
heavy spGnters were thrown into the air.
A torrent of water rushed into the shat
tered hull. In a few seconds the sorely
manned ship began to settle by the stern
and to disappear beneath the water.
The crew endeavored to launch the
boats, but all ON the port side, which
sank first, had been swamped. and most
Of those on the starboard side had been
crushed by the explosion.
A few boats were launched and manned.
but most of the seamen saved themselves
by ascending the rigging. As the water
was but twenty-eight feet deep, the hull
of the vessel as she rested on the bottom
was barely submerged.
All but five were rescued, and il was
supposed that these had been killed or
mortaIly wounded in the explosion. Capt.
Charles w. Pickering, commander of
the Housatonic, was on the quarter
deck at the time the ship was blown
up. He was so seriously bruised as to
be unable to make a report OF the acci-
dent
A diver. who examined the wreck, re-
ported that the captains quarters were
entirely demolished, and that the whole
stern part of the ship had been crushed.
The HousatUniC was rated as a steam
sloop of ]. 100 tons burden. She carried a
battery of thirteen heavy guns. was but
eighteen months old and had a crew Of
l60 men.
She was not the first of the blockading
fleet against which an attempt had been
made by submerged torpedo boat. A
torpedo had been exploded against the
side Of the ironclad frigate New Iron
sides Of Charleston Bar, on October 5,
1868. doing considerable damage, but not
sinking the ship
Inventor Dies in Boat.
The boat that had attacked the New