Offshore Wrecks

Great.

After I dredge up an old Loran chart, plot the thing, and cross check the lat lon because the Loran chart doesn't have great wreck info, I come here to post my accomplishment, and probably advertise that I'm a bit of a hoarder and what do I find?

You couldn't even give it a day, could you. :mad:

On the plus side, NOAA has a converter, which I know isn't that precise, but now I can convert the old man's notebooks a little more easily.
 
Great.

After I dredge up an old Loran chart, plot the thing, and cross check the lat lon because the Loran chart doesn't have great wreck info, I come here to post my accomplishment, and probably advertise that I'm a bit of a hoarder and what do I find?

You couldn't even give it a day, could you. :mad:

On the plus side, NOAA has a converter, which I know isn't that precise, but now I can convert the old man's notebooks a little more easily.
Speaking of the old LORAN C charts, remember this, the old Carmark Sportfishing chart?
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This was our go-to back in the day.
 
Matty I still stare endlessly at that chart!
LOL, I do the same thing. I love studying all the contours, and developing a plan.

In this photo on the right you will see the “regular size” chart, and to the left a much larger one. I had our art department at Conair blow it up, and laminate it. It has both sides, both inshore and offshore. I kept one, and gave one to Larry to use for his seminars. It has been rolled up for quite a while and was difficult to straighten out to lay flat.
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There's some decent paper charts that we used to use for actual navigation in tubes somewhere in the garage, but this is what I was able to grab.

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You can tell by the dust it's been stuck to the wall for a long time. Another thing, now a relic that was a near miracle in its time.
 
Captain Seagull.....lol

They used to have a booth at the NY Boat show.......now they're obsolete.
Captain Seagull is still around. In addition to having some of their older charts for the Long Island area, I have some of their charts for down here in the Gulf of Mexico. I like to study them in the comfort of my easy chair, making a plan for the next day’s fishing.

 
Many people are not aware of how close WW1 and WW2 came to the American shores. Off the east coast of the U.S. alone more 200 ships became causalities of German U-boats in WW2. In at least one instance Geman soldiers came ashore from a U-boat off Long Island to wreak terror, and havac here in the country. But that story for another day.

This is one of those WW1 causalities,

U.S.S. San Diego

She was originally launched in San Francisco in 1904 as the CALIFORNIA. Three years later she was commissioned as part of the U.S Fleet, and by 1914 was renamed the SAN DIEGO. She was a heavily armed cruiser measureing over 500’ and a beam of 70’.

Shortly after the start of WW1 she was ordered over to the Atlantic where she was to escort the many convoys of American ships making the treacherous journey to Europe through the U-Boat infested waters of the Atlantic. She fullfilled all her missions without incident.

On July 18, 1918 her luck would change. As was the order of the time she was running a zig-zag course for NY as this would make it a more difficult target for the German fleet. Unfortunately, this course of action does nothing to avoid hitting German mines. Shortly before high noon that day in what was an otherwise almost “Bluebird” weather day, she experienced a massive explosion on her port side. 30 minutes later she would go down to bottom off Fire Island in about 100’-110’ of H2O. Subsequent investigations have not positivly identified what exactly sunk her. They have narrowed it down to three possibilities……. A German mine, a U.S. mine placed to deter U-Boats, or a torpedo. The final death count was 6 souls.

She lays on the bottom as a turtle wreck, upside down. After she went down U.S Forces had assumed she was struck by a U-boat, and from the sky they could she the outline of the upside down hull and thought it was the U-Boat. They bombed her relentlessly and much damage was done to the hull.

Today she supports a wide range of marine life including many sharks, and sometimes tunas. I have shark fished her on several occasions. Very often however you will find dive boats anchored above her, and I didn’t think chuming up the waters while diver’s were down would be a good idea so went hunting else where .
IMG_0868.webp
 
Many people are not aware of how close WW1 and WW2 came to the American shores. Off the east coast of the U.S. alone more 200 ships became causalities of German U-boats in WW2. In at least one instance Geman soldiers came ashore from a U-boat off Long Island to wreak terror, and havac here in the country. But that story for another day.

This is one of those WW1 causalities,

U.S.S. San Diego

She was originally launched in San Francisco in 1904 as the CALIFORNIA. Three years later she was commissioned as part of the U.S Fleet, and by 1914 was renamed the SAN DIEGO. She was a heavily armed cruiser measureing over 500’ and a beam of 70’.

Shortly after the start of WW1 she was ordered over to the Atlantic where she was to escort the many convoys of American ships making the treacherous journey to Europe through the U-Boat infested waters of the Atlantic. She fullfilled all her missions without incident.

On July 18, 1918 her luck would change. As was the order of the time she was running a zig-zag course for NY as this would make it a more difficult target for the German fleet. Unfortunately, this course of action does nothing to avoid hitting German mines. Shortly before high noon that day in what was an otherwise almost “Bluebird” weather day, she experienced a massive explosion on her port side. 30 minutes later she would go down to bottom off Fire Island in about 100’-110’ of H2O. Subsequent investigations have not positivly identified what exactly sunk her. They have narrowed it down to three possibilities……. A German mine, a U.S. mine placed to deter U-Boats, or a torpedo. The final death count was 6 souls.

She lays on the bottom as a turtle wreck, upside down. After she went down U.S Forces had assumed she was struck by a U-boat, and from the sky they could she the outline of the upside down hull and thought it was the U-Boat. They bombed her relentlessly and much damage was done to the hull.

Today she supports a wide range of marine life including many sharks, and sometimes tunas. I have shark fished her on several occasions. Very often however you will find dive boats anchored above her, and I didn’t think chuming up the waters while diver’s were down would be a good idea so went hunting else where .
View attachment 109563
Soon I'll write about the German Spies who came ashore at Amaganasett. I've read about that landing the last 40 years, I read a book that was written by one of the Spies. Spy George Dasch wrote a book in 1959 titled Eight Spies Against America. I have that book. I read several other books that got information from the National Archives and from the U Boat Capt's logbook . U202 was the U Boat that landed at Amagansett, it was sunk June 2, 1943 South of Newfoundland. The Royal Navy interrogated the survivors and one survivor said he was one of the Sailors who rowed the spies to the beach . So much information you never read about. It's taking a while to get all my research together, a lot of details.
Go on You Tube and see The NY at War Parade that was held the same day the Spies Landed . Over 500,000 people marched in that parade, over 2 million spectators. And the 4 German Spies watched the parade! How could they miss it ??? You can see what it was like that June 13th Day in 1942
 
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Many people are not aware of how close WW1 and WW2 came to the American shores. Off the east coast of the U.S. alone more 200 ships became causalities of German U-boats in WW2. In at least one instance Geman soldiers came ashore from a U-boat off Long Island to wreak terror, and havac here in the country. But that story for another day.

This is one of those WW1 causalities,

U.S.S. San Diego

She was originally launched in San Francisco in 1904 as the CALIFORNIA. Three years later she was commissioned as part of the U.S Fleet, and by 1914 was renamed the SAN DIEGO. She was a heavily armed cruiser measureing over 500’ and a beam of 70’.

Shortly after the start of WW1 she was ordered over to the Atlantic where she was to escort the many convoys of American ships making the treacherous journey to Europe through the U-Boat infested waters of the Atlantic. She fullfilled all her missions without incident.

On July 18, 1918 her luck would change. As was the order of the time she was running a zig-zag course for NY as this would make it a more difficult target for the German fleet. Unfortunately, this course of action does nothing to avoid hitting German mines. Shortly before high noon that day in what was an otherwise almost “Bluebird” weather day, she experienced a massive explosion on her port side. 30 minutes later she would go down to bottom off Fire Island in about 100’-110’ of H2O. Subsequent investigations have not positivly identified what exactly sunk her. They have narrowed it down to three possibilities……. A German mine, a U.S. mine placed to deter U-Boats, or a torpedo. The final death count was 6 souls.

She lays on the bottom as a turtle wreck, upside down. After she went down U.S Forces had assumed she was struck by a U-boat, and from the sky they could she the outline of the upside down hull and thought it was the U-Boat. They bombed her relentlessly and much damage was done to the hull.

Today she supports a wide range of marine life including many sharks, and sometimes tunas. I have shark fished her on several occasions. Very often however you will find dive boats anchored above her, and I didn’t think chuming up the waters while diver’s were down would be a good idea so went hunting else where .
View attachment 109563
U156 laid the mine . U156 also took part in the infamous Black Sunday Coastal raid that sank numerous vessels off New Jersey. 35 years ago I was shopping in a Nautical Antique/Museum shop out in Suffolk and they were selling Ammo Clips they recovered from the USS San Diego. Maybe $15 each. Wish I bought them.
U608 sailed right up close to NY Harbor near where Ambrose Tower use to be and laid 10 mines in November 1942. They had to close NY Harbor for 2 days while Minesweepers swept the area. Humphery Bogart said in the movie Action in the North Atlantic that the front was right off Sandy Hook and he was right. You can see that movie on You Tube. They try to make you pay for the movie, but there's another video you can click and the movie is free with commercials. Look for the video with the picture of the ship/an airplane flying by the ship and people standing on the deck.
 
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Soon I'll write about the German Spies who came ashore at Amaganasett. I've read about that landing the last 40 years, I read a book that was written by one of the Spies. Spy George Dasch wrote a book in 1959 titled Eight Spies Against America. I have that book. I read several other books that got information from the National Archives and from the U Boat Capt's logbook . U202 was the U Boat that landed at Amagansett, it was sunk June 2, 1943 South of Newfoundland. The Royal Navy interrogated the survivors and one survivor said he was one of the Sailors who rowed the spies to the beach . So much information you never read about. It's taking a while to get all my research together, a lot of details.
Go on You Tube and see The NY at War Parade that was held the same day the Spies Landed . Over 500,000 people marched in that parade, over 2 million spectators. And the 4 German Spies watched the parade! How could they miss it ??? You can see what it was like that June 13th Day in 1942
Looking forward to your writings about the German spies!!!
 
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Soon I'll write about the German Spies who came ashore at Amaganasett. I've read about that landing the last 40 years, I read a book that was written by one of the Spies. Spy George Dasch wrote a book in 1959 titled Eight Spies Against America. I have that book. I read several other books that got information from the National Archives and from the U Boat Capt's logbook . U202 was the U Boat that landed at Amagansett, it was sunk June 2, 1943 South of Newfoundland. The Royal Navy interrogated the survivors and one survivor said he was one of the Sailors who rowed the spies to the beach . So much information you never read about. It's taking a while to get all my research together, a lot of details.
Go on You Tube and see The NY at War Parade that was held the same day the Spies Landed . Over 500,000 people marched in that parade, over 2 million spectators. And the 4 German Spies watched the parade! How could they miss it ??? You can see what it was like that June 13th Day in 1942
I’ve read that all 4 of the spies had a change of heart about their mission after watching the parade.
 

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