Maritime History News

Elliott Bay Design Group (EBDG) Designs New York’s First Hybrid-Electric FerryWatch the full interview with David Turner, Projects Manager, Elliott Bay Design Group, on the technical highlights of the HARBOR CHARGER on Maritime Reporter TV:On August 12, 2025, The Trust for Governors Island unveiled the HARBOR CHARGER, New York State’s first hybrid-electric passenger vehicle ferry. Designed by Elliott Bay Design Group (EBDG) and constructed at Conrad Shipyard, the vessel represents a defining moment in New York’s maritime history.

On April 30, 2025, a barge pushed by a Carver Companies tugboat made contact with the historic Hudson-Athens Lighthouse, damaging the dock and the stairs to the building.The Hudson-Athens Lighthouse, a vital aid to navigation and a symbol of the region’s maritime history, sits in the middle of the Hudson River between the City of Hudson and the Village of Athens. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was recently named one of the “11 Most Endangered Historic Places in America” by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.No injuries were reported in the collision…

The Fascinated by Shipwrecks Podcast, hosted by Kathy A. Smith,  is dedicated to the People & the Science of Maritime Archaeology.The Adriatic Affair: Finding the 1856 Le Lyonnais Wreck“Of the people on the ship, 114 died and only 18 survived. Those that did lived through extraordinary conditions in the North Atlantic. Storms. Dehydration. Starvation. Bitter, freezing temperatures until they were eventually rescued by a passing ship.” - Jennifer SellittiOn November 2, 1856, the French passenger steamship…

Unlocking new levels of multibeam performance with Norwegian Subsea MRUMotion Reference Units (MRUs) are crucial in bathymetric survey technology, providing precise motion compensation data to ensure reliable and accurate seafloor mapping. For users like Captain Sid Hynes, a seasoned mariner exploring Newfoundland’s shipwreck-rich waters, the Norwegian Subsea MRU has redefined what is possible, delivering exceptional performance even in incredibly challenging conditions.The ChallengeAlong with his son…

The Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) today celebrated a record-breaking passenger count at Flynn Cruiseport Boston this year with just over 480,000 passengers, a 29 percent passenger increase over last year.Flynn Cruiseport welcomed a total 167 cruise ships this season –18 more ships and a 12 percent increase over 2023. The Authority also announced a $100 million investment in the Cruiseport, including $60 million for shore power, a significant step forward for sustainable maritime practices at the Port of Boston…

Oceans worldwide hold untold riches hidden beneath the waves. Now treasure hunters are using  cutting-edge technology to explore them, discovering some of history's most treasured sunken finds from Caribbean waters to Arctic depths rewriting maritime history and uncovering fortunes lost at sea.According to estimates by marine archaeologists and treasure hunting experts, the value of treasure lying beneath the waves could range anywhere between $60 billion to over $100 billion.

The Lloyd’s Register Foundation’s Heritage and Education Centre (HEC) is calling on businesses and individuals to donate maritime archival materials and artifacts, as it prepares to make its extensive maritime collection publicly accessible.In 2023, the HEC completed a major digitization project that preserved and catalogued over 1.15 million records in its historic Ship Plan and Survey Report Collection. These records, spanning from the 1830s to the 1970s, detail the design, construction…

A barge wreck found in September last year has been confirmed as the earliest known shipwreck discovered to date in Western Australia's Swan River, the WA Museum said. The barge was identified as one that lost in 1882 while carrying limestone from Fremantle to Perth.The State Government's release of detailed 3D multibeam surveys of the Swan River riverbed played a crucial role in the initial discovery of the wreck, which was first identified by Maritime Archaeology Association WA President Patrick Morrison and his colleagues Jess Green and Ian McCann.Following this discovery in 2023…

Amogy held a renaming ceremony for NH3 Kraken, a 57-year-old tug the company is converting to run on its cleaner-burning ammonia-to-power technology.The 105-foot-long tug, which is undergoing conversion work at Feeney Shipyard in Kingston, N.Y., is scheduled to make its maiden voyage on a tributary of the Hudson River later this summer. The vessel is the first globally fitted with the innovative, carbon-free power system, developed by Amogy to reduce emissions from hard to abate…

CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, has helped confirm the resting place of motor vessel (MV) Noongah, a 71-metre coastal freighter lost at sea in 1969 in one of the nation’s worst post-war maritime disasters.MV Noongah was travelling between Newcastle and Townsville carrying steel when it encountered a storm and sank in heavy seas on 25 August 1969.The loss of MV Noongah led to one of the largest searches for survivors in Australian maritime history, involving navy and merchant vessels…

Boston celebrated its maritime heritage in June by welcoming tall ships from around the world into Boston Harbor for the celebratory event, Sail Boston. Thousands of people visited the magnificent vessels at anchor to learn about Boston’s rich maritime history.I saw the tall ships with representatives from the New England Seafarers Mission (NESM). Founded in the 1880s by the Swedish Covenant Church, the NESM today serves seafarers in Providence, Rhode Island and Boston, Massachusetts.

I have raised the subject of SL-7’s as museum ships before in a cursory fashion, but lunch with John Riddle, a retired Sea-Lander, convinced us that it deserves a bit more consideration.Based on prior columns it should be clear I am extremely cagey about museum ships. Ships are significant historic object, but due to their size they are often impossible to maintain as historical objects. Moreover, we maritime types tend to become sentimental about historic vessels and then discover…

In the grand tradition of American innovation, we've long been masters of the maritime domain, building advanced ships for our Navy, the preeminent force in the world. But times have changed, and seas are more treacherous than they used to be. With this, there are ample opportunities for innovators to launch a new era of shipbuilding for the 21st Century.When people think of American shipbuilding, they often look to U.S. shipyards’ historic shipbuilding in World War II. Production lines pushed out almost 3,000 Liberty Ships crewed by talented Merchant Mariners.

U.S.-based Patriot Maritime announced it has appointed Mark Handin as president, replacing Lance Bardo who will retire at the end of June.Handin joins Patriot after a 27+ year career in various management, executive and corporate officer roles within Tidewater Marine and the A.P. Moller-Maersk group.Handin will hold overall responsibility for the performance of the companies’ owned and managed vessels under Patriot Contract Services. LLC., and its American Ship Management, LLC subsidiary.

The German animal welfare organization Animal Welfare Foundation and the French environmental organization Robin des Bois have published a report on the safety risks associated with livestock carriers trading from the European Union. This snapshot of the fleet follows one produced by the organizations three years ago.Currently, 64 livestock carriers are permitted to load European animals on EU-ports to then export them to third countries. The report states that nearly half of…

Shipbuilder Chantier Naval Forillon in Gaspé, Quebec has received an order to build a new Near-Shore Fishery Research Vessel (NSFRV) for the Canadian Coast Guard.Expected to join the Canadian Coast Guard fleet as early as 2027, the new vessel will be the agency's first-ever diesel-electric hybrid vessel with a battery energy storage system, designed to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels.Announced last week by Diane Lebouthillier, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard…

Cruise operator Hurtigruten Norway has unveiled early concept plans for its first zero-emission ship.Initially announced in March 2022, under project name ‘Sea Zero,’ the ship is being touted as "the world’s most energy-efficient cruise ship". Tasked with developing energy-efficient and carbon-neutral technology solutions, Hurtigruten Norway and its consortium of 12 maritime partners and research institute SINTEF shared key findings following its first year of research."When we initially announced the ‘Sea Zero’ project over a year ago…

Australia's Defence Minister Richard Marles said on Saturday that the wreck of a Japanese merchant ship, sunk in World War Two with 864 Australian soldiers on board, had been found in the South China Sea, ending a tragic chapter of the country's history.Marles said the SS Montevideo Maru, an unmarked prisoner of war transport vessel missing since being sunk off the Philippines' coast in July 1942, had been discovered northwest of Luzon island.The ship was torpedoed en route from what is now Papua New Guinea to China's Hainan by a U.S. submarine, unaware of the POWs onboard.

Bellingham, Wash. shipbuilder All American Marine (AAM) announced it has delivered a new research and hydrographic survey vessel for NV5-Geodynamics. The vessel was sea-trialed on Bellingham Bay, prior to shipping via cargo ship to its homeport of Beaufort, N.C.Built to service the growing offshore wind market as well as accomplish many other scientific survey missions, Shackleford is a 73- by 26.7-foot semi-displacement aluminum catamaran developed by Nic de Waal of Teknicraft Design in Auckland, New Zealand.

Researchers from NOAA, the state of Michigan, and Ocean Exploration Trust discovered an intact shipwreck resting hundreds of feet below the surface of Lake Huron. Located within NOAA's Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary, the shipwreck has been identified as the sailing ship Ironton. Well preserved by the cold freshwater of the Great Lakes for over a century, the 191-ft. Ironton rests upright with its three masts still standing."Using this cutting-edge technology, we have not only located a pristine shipwreck lost for over a century…

Climate change advocates and seafarers recently gathered for a small conference at the Hudson Valley Maritime Museum in Kingston, N.Y., to discuss the shipping industry’s struggle to achieve sustainability and environmental compliance.The setting, the hamlet of Rondout, N.Y. (within Kingston), holds significance as it was, ironically, a Hudson River port once considered the largest coal port in the world (yes, the world). In 1828, the opening of the Delaware and Hudson Canal enabled coal to be delivered from Pennsylvania to New York City.

For many, the ocean is life. It provides transportation, work, commerce, food, recreation—tales as old as time and shared by people across the globe. These stories are lived day to day, passed down between generations, and shared with the public through various media. Maritime museums assume responsibility to share these histories while honoring the communities shaped ocean exploration and commerce. In a decade where ocean health and climatic events have become a primary focus…

Of all the rivers in the world, the St. Lawrence River is undeniably one of the most challenging for mariners.This water highway is at some spots as narrow as a large river and, at others, as wide as a small sea. It has played a vital role over the last three centuries as an important artery for trade, communication, transportation and settlement. And since 1959, the year the St. Lawrence Seaway was inaugurated, it has been a gateway to the heart of the continent.The first European explorers who sailed the St. Lawrence discovered it was not easy to master: it was long, but never calm.