One for the Chesey Guys

Jan 1, 2006
7,039
Slickcraft 26 Sailfish
There is a local boating magazine Long Island Boating World which had an article regarding the USS Scorpion which was scuttled in the Patuxent River during the War of 1812. The jest of it is the flotilla was caught by the British up in the shallows of the river in June 1914 and having no escape was scuttled. Some of our members may have additional information on this and I would be interested in any local color about it. Questions that arise are how far up the river did this happen? How deep is the water? I'm wondering how the wreck(s) could be undiscovered in shallow water? I know they were burned and over time they settle into the mud, it just hard to see why they were undiscovered for so long. This article said they are going to make some sort of dam around the wreck and excavate the area dry. Any details? Is there a museum which will display information about any of this?
 
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May 27, 2004
1,964
Hunter 30_74-83 Ponce Inlet FL
The 'gist' of your story is that an 'June 1814' sinking went undiscovered?
 
Jan 1, 2006
7,039
Slickcraft 26 Sailfish
Pretty much. In a shallow river didn't some fisherman snag on it, someone see it on a fish finder, some commercial fisher bring up a piece of it, some sailboat clunk on it? It was only one of a dozen or so "Ships" that were scuttled that day. There must be some local yore about the event. 200 years?
 

Ariel

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Feb 1, 2006
279
Pearson 36-2 Houston, TX / Rock Hall, MD
There is a US submarine built in the 1920's that is sunk in the Patuxent River off Solomons, MD. This occurred in the 1940's and it is in about 100 feet of water. I am not aware of any from the war of 1812.

Dave
 
Jan 22, 2008
8,050
Beneteau 323 Annapolis MD
Not the submarine one, but if you google Potomac Ghost Fleet you'll get alot of similar articles. Mallows Bay.
 
Apr 8, 2011
768
Hunter 40 Deale, MD
Wikipedia says the Scorpion from the War of 1812 was a sloop rigged floating artillery battery, not a submarine, and it was abandoned and burned in the Patuxent river where kappykaplan says it was. The hulks of the Scorpion and other members of its abandoned fleet remained visible for almost a century, eventually covered over by silt. The site was rediscovered in 1979 by marine research divers, but the article doesn't mention what effort to recover is going on.


Mallows Bay is a different site, near Quantico, VA on the Potomac. I used to sail a Precision 18 out of Quantico and Mallows bay was a neat place to take the boat, which with the centerboard up drew 18". There's still the hulks of 230 WWI transport ships rotting there where they were left. Cool place to kayak as well. I will say that while many hulks are visible, they barely look like ships anymore, and most have rotted into the silt.
 
Sep 29, 2008
1,928
Catalina 310 #185 Quantico
Not the submarine one, but if you google Potomac Ghost Fleet you'll get alot of similar articles. Mallows Bay.
The Marina on Quantico Marine Corps Base is close to Mallows Bay. There is a proposal to make it a national monument. There is also a sunken German U-boat near Ragged Point.
 
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