Southern Subs

The issuance of Confederate letters of marque sparked development of the predecessor to the first Southern submarine, CSS Hunley. Shortly after the Confederate Congress solicited applications for letters of marque, two marine engineers and machinists from New Orleans, James R. McClintock and Baxter Watson, decided to build a submarine and operate it against the Union blockade at the mouth of the Mississippi River. Motivated both by patriotism and profit, the two men began construction of the boat in late 1861. At that time no submarine had ever sunk an enemy warship in combat, although David Bushnell's Turtle had almost succeeded in doing so during the Revolutionary War. And about 20 years later, Robert Fulton's demonstrations of his Nautilus submarine suggested that undersea vessels could become lethal instruments of war.

The new submarine, named H.L. Hunley in honor of her remaining chief financial backer and principal designer, was forced to use manual power. A shaft passed down the center of the boat, connecting to a single propeller. Eight men sat on the starboard side of the boat and turned the shaft via cranks at the command of the captain. Depth was controlled by two lateral fins connected to a transverse shaft operated by the skipper. Hunley had two entry and escape hatches with 8-inch coamings containing glass ports -- the only means of seeing out of the boat after the hatches were closed, since the submarine had no periscope.