My Hunley Pilgrimage

Leaving Chattanooga at 2:30 p.m. on Monday, August 9, I began the long trip to Charleston. As I drove thoughts crowded my mind about the war, about the loss of brave men, and about how, so many years later the war remains a part of many people's lives including mine.

I found my father's hotel room and settled in for the night. The next morning we got up early, had breakfast at that great Southern institution - Waffle House, and made our way to Patriot's Point.

When we arrived at Patriot's Point Naval Museum, a long line was already forming. Finally the gates opened and the line began to move. People were surging by to reach the deck of the U.S.S. Yorktown , but many of us stayed behind to watch a television tuned to a local channel. In front of me a man had his video camera pointed at the screen. While the newscasters chattered on about delays, the equipment and the weather, a woman in full 19th century mourning dress set up her camp stool to watch the drama unfold on screen.

Finally the newscasters passed the word that the cables were moving, and several minutes later the recovery cradle broke the surface. The crowd cheered and then grew silent as the names of her lost crew were read, one by one.

Joining the crowd, we headed from the ticket area across a causeway to the Yorktown and explored the displays inside her cavernous hanger deck. After an hour or so, we head up to the flight deck.

Standing at the stern of the Yorktown , I could see the flags of Fort Sumter straight ahead in the distance. To the left, was Sullivan's Island, and Morris Inlet. Boats could been seen gathering at the inlet. One in particular had a large Confederate flag on display.

Even from such a distance, we could make out hundreds if not thousands of people standing in the water at the tip of Sullivan's Island waiting to catch a glimpse of the Hunley. Time ticked slowly by as 10 a.m. time -- the announced time for the Hunley to pass by came and went. Finally about two hours later, musket fire in the distance signaled that the recovery barge bearing the Hunley had reached Sullivan's Island. We followed the flotilla sailed past Fort Sumter towards the Battery, then turned to the right and made its way up the ship channel past the Yorktown .

As the barge drew closer, the deck of the Yorktown shook as cannons were fired in salute. A firing party fired volleys in salute as well. Four reenacters, in full uniform parted the crowd just in front of me, as nine women representing the lost men's families came one-by-one to the railing and threw flowers into the Cooper River. Traffic stopped on the Cooper River bridge as the flotilla sailed up river towards the Lasch Conservation Center at the former Charleston Naval Yard.

To complete our Hunley pilgrimage, we visited Magnolia Cemetary where the Hunley's crews are buried. It was a fitting end to a once in a lifetime chance to see a Confederate submarine - the first submarine to sink an enemy ship in combat, return from her watery grave.

The photographs below are just a few of those I took during the course of the day. Hopefully they will give you a feel for what this historic day was like.

An honor guard drills prior to the Hunley's arrival.
Photo By John Lamb, Copyright 2000

A "widow" looks for signs of the recovery barge's arrival.
Photo By John Lamb, Copyright 2000

A reenactor and a "widow" wait to cast flowers into the Cooper River.
Photo By John Lamb, Copyright 2000

Flowers are tossed into the Cooper River in honor of the Hunley's crew.
Photo By John Lamb, Copyright 2000

Reenactors stand at attention as Hunley passes.
Photo By John Lamb, Copyright 2000

Traffic on the Cooper River Bridge ground to a halt as the Hunley passed.
Photo By John Lamb, Copyright 2000

The Hunley Returns HomeTuesday, August 10, 2000

The Hunley Returns Home
Tuesday, August 10, 2000