How a determined scientist cracked the case of the first successful--and disastrous--Submarine attack On the night of February 17, 1864, the tiny Confederate Submarine HL Hunley made its way toward the USS Housatonic just outside Charleston harbor.
And the submarine, the first ever to be successful in combat, di.
The explosion sank the ship, killing many of its crew.
Within a matter of hours, the Union ship\'s stern was blown open in a spray of wood planks.
How a determined scientist cracked the case of the first successful--and disastrous--Submarine attack On the night of February 17, 1864, the tiny Confederate Submarine HL Hunley made its way toward the USS Housatonic just outside Charleston harbor