First Military Sub Was Confederate Vessel
On Feb. 7, 1864, the Hunley, the first military submarine, went into action and sank the Housatonic, a U.S. warship. The Hunley was a small Confederate vessel that carried a single torpedo fixed to its bow. It, too, sank while withdrawing. Early submarines of this type were powered by a six- or eight-man crew turning a crank that drove a propeller.
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