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Travel through every room at the Museum in search of artifacts. You can pick up a scavenger hunt form at the front desk and join in the fun. Your reward? A surprise gift and exciting knowledge about lifesaving, piracy, shipwrecks, and unusual objects that wash ashore! Free and enjoyed by al
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MINI VIDEOS
Witness underwater shipwreck imagery and take in Eastern North Carolina heritage viewing our daily mini videos created by the University of North Carolina Coastal Studies Institute.
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BATTLE OF THE ATLANTIC EXPEDITION 2010: EXPLORING
DIXIE ARROW |
The videos run continuously in our Film Room except when we are hosting special presentations or preparing for special events.
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Shoal Survivors is a local kids' club that focuses on the mission statement of the Museum to preserve, protect, and present the maritime history and culture of the North Carolina Outer Banks. The club is comprised of elementary school children ranging in age from kindergarten to sixth grade. The goal of the club is to introduce local children to their maritime history, which also had national and global impacts. Introduction comes in the form of hands-on activities chosen to relate bits of maritime history and culture
, instill a sense of ownership in the participants, help children feel comfortable in a Museum setting, foster a sense of community and individual creativity while building self-esteem. The club gives island children an activity in an otherwise remote area with few evening activities at their disposal.
An evening includes the hands-on activity and dinner. The club is free.
This years dates are: January 12, February 9, March 9, April 13, October 12, November 9, 2018. Friday evenings 5:30 - 6:30 p.m. For additional information call the Museum at: 252-986-0720 and ask for Mary Ellen Riddle.
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SCUBA DIVING CARIBSEA WRECK PART ONE
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On March 11, 1942 the freighter, Caribsea was sailing from Santiago, Cuba to Norfolk, VA., when she was torpedoed by the U-158 on the starboard side. Within three minutes, the ship sank. The crew was unable to launch lifeboats and jumped overboard. Only seven of the twenty-eight member crew managed to cling to wreckage and survive
the ten hours in the water before they were picked up by the freighter SS
Norlindo
.
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| SCUBA DIVING CARIBSEA WRECK PART TWO (videos courtesy Oleg Kaplun) |
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On March 16, 1942 the tanker MV
Australia, carrying 110,000 barrels of oil from Texas to Connecticut was torpedoed at Diamond Shoals. She was hit by a single torpedo in the starboard side of the engine room. Four duty personnel were killed. All remaining crewman made it safely aboard lifeboats. Eventually they were rescued by SS
William J. Salmon, a ship passing by the
Australia on a southerly course.
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| (courtesy monitor.noaa.gov) |
On March 26, 1942 Dixie Arrow was hit by three torpedoes from
U-71
within one minute, off Cape Hatteras. Eleven lives were lost. Able-bodied seaman, Oscar G. Chappell, was severely injured but was still alive and at his station in the wheelhouse of the torpedoed Dixie Arrow . Chappell was
able to turn the ship and hold the tanker into the wind, thus driving the flames away and allowing men to jump clear of the sea of burning oil. The flames however came directly back on Chappell. His heroic actions and sacrifice saved his shipmates. A liberty ship was later named in his honor.
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| THIS MONTH IN THE MEEKINS CHANDLERY |
On the Outer Banks, we are fortunate to have some incredible artisans and we are thrilled to be carrying many of the works of art from Windy Island Designs and its creators, Tom and Keven Erickson. You will love their aluminum and wooden jewelry, wooden drawer
pulls and wine stoppers. These will go quickly!
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WE HAD AN INVESTOR OWNED UTILITY
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Dale Burrus talks about the origins of electrical service in Hatteras village.
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WOMAN OF SOMERSET PLACE
Somerset Place is offering a special tour with a focus on the contributions women of Somerset Place made to the development, maintenance, and infrastructure of Somerset Place. The 60 minute tour will be offered at 10 a.m., 12 p.m., and 2 p.m. to commemorate Women's History throughout the week of March 6 through March 10, 2018. The guided tour will include both free and enslaved women residents of Somerset Plantation.
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The Ash Wednesday Storm of 1962 occurred on March 6-8, 1962 along the
mid-Atlantic
coast of the
United States
. Also known as the Great March Storm of 1962, it was considered by the
by the Dolan-Davis scale for classification of Atlantic Nor'easters. it was one of the ten worst storms in the United States in the 20th century. (Wikipedia)
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OUR COAST'S HISTORY
A WORLD WAR II OUTER BANKS SPY |
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DIXIE ARROW AFTER IT WAS TORPEDOED
(courtesy Outer Banks History Center)
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BY ED BECKLY
(courtesy Island Free Press and the Coastal Review)
World War II was hell, and those who remember it are few. However, some local folks still recall the horror of corpses washing ashore, deafening firebombs in the sea, mangled ship parts and sticky oil a-muck on the beach - and the paranoia of bad men stealing wartime secrets in Outer Bankers' backyards.
In the early 1940s, Outer Bankers went to bed worrying if German spies might come ashore in the dark of night from their submarines, or U-boats, hidden behind the waves. Today, we can find no WWII espionage reports from the National Archives or FBI focusing on North Carolina, although there is a local story of an apparent German spy in Buxton that authorities eventually captured.
Carol White Dillon, 89, of Buxton recollects it was 1940 when the man with the German accent came to visit the parents of a childhood friend, before the U.S. entered the war.
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JOIN US FOR AN EXCITING SPRING! NEW FACES, NEW PROJECTS, NEW STORIES!
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SAVE THE DATE
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| U-701 courtesy Marc Corbett |
Graveyard of the Atlantic Underwater Heritage Symposium
April 7, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
The Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum presents the 5th Underwater Heritage Symposium on April 7, 2018. In this day-long event, professional divers and underwater archaeologists team up to offer presentations on diving experiences, underwater photography, history of the U-boat war off the coast, and shipwrecks. Hear their stories based on firsthand experience, and discover the amazing history present off our coast.
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Flare gun and brass can for flare gun from M.V. Australia signaling and disaster
In mid-March 1942, MV Australia was traveling through U-boat patrolled waters on her way to deliver 110,000 barrels of oil from Port Arthur, Texas, to New Haven, Connecticut.
Multiple ships were torpedoed in the area the day before. Capt. Martin Ader followed the coast, traveling close to Ocracoke Inlet. Australia zigzagged through fog around Diamond Shoals before becoming the target of U-332. She blew a hole in Australia's starboard side, killing four people.
The Coast Guard received the SOS. The ship was abandoned. The 36 men were picked up from their lifeboats by
William J.
Sa
lman. Each month the Museum reveals an artifact from its collection that's not usually on display. Enjoy the opportunity to "view" authentic history, and discover its special story in the Collections Storage Window in the Burrus Couch Midgett Gallery.
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DUBLIN LAWYER (A NORTH CAROLINA VERSION)
When everyone else is pulling out their crock pots and having the same old corned beef and cabbage, go rogue and serve this yummy dish instead. Although frequently made with lobster, think North Carolina shrimp instead and you will be ready for a great evening celebrating St. Patrick's Day. This is terrific with a glass of irish whisky or any Irish beer and a piece of soda bread for dunking.
Bring on "The Quiet Man" and "Darby O'Gill"!
Ingredients
- ¼ c. salted butter
- 1 lb raw jumbo shrimp, peeled
- ⅓ c. Irish whiskey
- ⅓ c. heavy cream
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a large saute pan. When the butter starts to foam, add the shrimp and quickly turn until the shrimp starts to color. Set the whiskey on fire, add the burning whiskey, then add the cream.
- Serves 2 hungry people for dinner, or 3 people as part of a larger meal or 4 as an appetizer.
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| HISTORY OF WOMAN'S HISTORY MONTH |
(courtesy NWHM)
Women's History Month is in March. It pays tribute to the often unrecognized women throughout history and their invaluable contributions to the arts, sciences and society.
Women's History Month began as a Women's History Week, originally held the week of March 7, 1982. In 1987, Congress changed the week to a full month of commemoration. The president declares the commemoration annually. Many countries, including the United States, also celebrate International Women's Day on March 8, which began in 1911.
Various government agencies pay tribute to the month each year, including the Library of Congress, the National Endowment of the Arts, the U.S. Holocaust Museum and the National Park Services.
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On March 12, 1944, an all-white team from Duke University's medical school faced off against an all-black team from what is now North Carolina Central University, the Eagles, in a secret, interracial basketball game.
At the time, strict segregation laws criminalized racial interaction and fostered a dangerous environment for those who violated them, prompting the participants to take extreme caution in planning and attending the event. Coaches kept school administrators in the dark and barred the doors to the Eagles' gym.
The two teams played cautiously at first, worried that a foul might morph into a fight. But, by the second half, the jitters subsided, and the teams focused on just playing the game. When the clock ran down, the Eagles, who had lost only one game that season, emerged victorious. The final score was 88-44.
The two teams then mixed their squads and played a second game. One Duke player told his family "we sure had fun and I especially had a good time, for most of the fellows playing with me were Southerners. . . . And when the evening was over, most of them had changed their views quite a lot." (courtesy NCDCR)
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View amazing artifacts, including the original Cape Hatteras Lighthouse Fresnel lens and a discussion of Billy Mitchell's connection to Hatteras.
Immerse yourself in shipwreck and maritime history:
Lighthouse Lens
The Enigma Machine from U-85
The Ghost Ship Carroll A. Deering
The Civil War on Hatteras
Restored Flag from USS Monticello
Ship to Shore
Artifacts from USS Monitor
The Submarine, Alligator
The War of 1812
Vintage Diving Equipment
Sport Fishing on Hatteras
Blackbeard's Queen Anne's Revenge
Discover Hatteras Island's fascinating connection to Titanic
Restored Monomoy Surfboat
and much more...
COMING THIS SUMMER:
BLACKBEARD 300
AND
THE MIRLO CENTENNIAL
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I
n the night of March 4th, 1869, Alliance met her demise near Hatteras Inlet, N.C. She was originally built in 1853 as Caledonia. She was commissioned on September 19, 1859 as Mohawk, with orders to patrol the north coast of Cuba for the suppression of the Slave Trade. Over the next fourteen months she captured four slavers, the most notable being Wildfire with five hundred thirty Africans on board.
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WRECK OF
E.M. CLARK BY DAN CROWELL
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On March 18, 1942,
E. M. Clark
was hit by two torpedoes and sunk, about twenty-two miles south-west of Diamond Shoal Lighted Buoy. She was proceeding completely blacked out in moderately rough sea. Thunderstorms in the area had generated enough light to silhouette her.
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AMERICAN RED CROSS AID CARGO BEING LOADED ABOARD THE GREEK FREIGHTER,
KASSANDRA LOULOUDIS |
On March 19, 1942 Kassandra Louloudis was attacked while going to the assistance of another torpedoed
tanker, Acme.
Acme was saved butLiberator, also
in the convoy of vessels, went down. The wreckage lies very close to Australia, sunk just days before by the same U-boat. Five duty personnel were killed in the blast. On the same night, Esso Baltimore, managed to go undetected by the attackers.
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| (image courtesy Kevin Duffus) |
On March 29, 1942,
City of New York
, an American passenger ship was hit by a torpedo forty miles southeast of Cape Hatteras. A baby boy was safely delivered on a lifeboat. Survivors were picked up by US destroyer, Roper. In honor, the baby boy was given the middle name of Roper.
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| THIS MONTH IN OBX HISTORY |
MARCH 14, 1967
FISHING NETS SNARE LARGE BOMB
The trawler
Crisway, fishing with a crew off Cape Hatteras, made a potentially deadly catch when it snagged a five hundred pound
bomb in its fishing nets. Although initial plans were to deactivate the bomb, after a four hour inspection by navy officials, the four foot explosive device was declared unsafe for diffusing. It was towed farther out to sea and cut from the fishing net by navy explosive experts, The ordnance was thought to have been dropped by an airplane. Tension was high on the fishing vessel as the crew remained on board for the thirty hour ordeal. (courtesy On This Day
in OBX History-Sarah Dowling)
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