| 1492 | | 3 Aug:
Columbus sets sail to find a western route to Asia. GLIAH |
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| | 12 Oct:
Christopher Columbus makes landfall in what is now the Bahamas.GLIoAH LoC |
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| 1493 | | 15 Mar:
Christopher Columbus arrives back in Spain after his first voyage to the New World.GLIAH NYCParks |
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| 1497 | | 2 May:
John Cabot sets sail from England on his first successful voyage to North America.CBC CMoH |
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| | 24 Jun:
John Cabot discovers Newfoundland.NNDB CBC |
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| 1513 | | 22 Apr:
Ponce de León is credited with discovering the Gulf Stream.KH CR |
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| 1519 | | 10 Aug:
Magellan sets sail from Seville on a journey around the world.Fordham SIMag |
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| 1534 | | 20 Apr:
Jacques Cartier sets sail from France on his first exploration of the New World.PC LoC |
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| 1535 | | 19 May:
French explorer Jacques Cartier sets sail for North America.MM&P CMoH |
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| 1577 | | 13 Dec:
Francis Drake sets out from Plymouth, England in the Golden Hind on a mission to raid Spanish holdings on the Pacific coast of the New World and explore the Pacific Ocean, returning 3 years later as the first British explorer to circumnavigate the earth.History.com LOC |
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| 1580 | | 26 Sep:
Sir Francis Drake returns to England completing his circumnavigation of the World.LoC History.com |
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| 1588 | | 29 Jul:
The Spanish Armada is defeated.CBS-PC tNI |
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| 1602 | |
| | 28 May:
Bartholomew Gosnold establishes a settlement at Cuttyhunk Island.HoMV GoogleBooks |
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| 1603 | |
| | 15 Mar:
Samuel de Champlain sets sail from France aboard the Bonne-Renommée on his first voyage to North America. MM&P OHT |
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| 1606 | | 19 Dec:
Three vessels - Susan Constant, of 100 tons, Capt Christopher Newport; Godspeed, of forty tons, Capt Bartholomew Gosnold; and Discovery, twenty tons, Capt John Ratcliffe - with 105 emigrants sail from the Downs, England destined for Virginia in the New World.LR MM |
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| 1609 | | 11 Sep:
Henry Hudson enters New York Bay in search of the Northwest Passage.IA NYSA |
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| 1620 | |
The earliest human-powered submarine is conceived and built.gizmag |
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| 1621 | |
| 1624 | |
| 1630 | |
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| 1630/1 | |
| 1631 | |
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| 1632 | |
| | 23 Jul:
300 French colonists set sail for the new world.AdB Academic |
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| 1635 | | 25 Aug:
The Great Colonial Hurricane plows through New England destroying anything in its path.NEHS HS |
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| 1664 | | 27 Aug:
Four English warships arrive in Nieuw-Amsterdam to claim the colony under the orders of James, Duke of York.13 WDL |
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| 1692 | | 7 Jun:
The pirate haven of Port Royal, Jamaica is destroyed in a massive earthquake and subsequent tsunami, portions sinking beneath the sea.UNESCO B B C |
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| 1700 | | 26 Jan:
A magnitude 9.0 earthquake strikes off the west coast of North America producing a huge tsunami that sweeps across the Pacific.NRCan USGS |
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| 1715 | |
| | 31 Jul:
A hurricane sinks a fleet of treasure ships returning to Spain.CW IRMag |
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| 1716 | |
| 1718 | |
| 1734 | | 1 Apr:
The first lighthouse in Canada begins operation.LLS CCN |
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| 1755 | |
| 1775 | |
| 1776 | | 3 Apr:
Congress gives to commanders of private ships the authority to capture British ships and cargo.LoC CTDA |
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| | 7 Apr:
The American warship Lexington captures the first British warship of the American Revolution, the HMS Edward.RW DoD |
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| | 7 Sep:
David Bushnell's invention, American Turtle, the first combat submarine, is deployed against the H.M.S. Eagle in New York harbor.USSNautilus Archaeology |
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| 1778 | |
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| 1779 | |
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| | 23 Sep:
Capt. John Paul Jones, considered the father of the United States Navy, on board the Bonhomme Richard, defeats the H.M.S. Serapis off the coast of England.OTF MM&P |
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| 1797 | | 21 Oct:
USS Constitution, "Old Ironsides", is launched.MassMoments UCM |
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| 1812 | | 19 Aug:
USS Constitution captures HMS Guerriere in a battle off the coast of Nova Scotia earning the nickname "Old Ironsides".USNavy MM |
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| 1819 | | 22 May:
The first steam powered vessel to cross the Atlantic, the S.S. Savannah, "put to sea with steam and sails" on a historic trip that would take her to England, Sweden and Russia with stops in Norway and Denmark before returning home.AAQ NSSavannah |
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| 1820 | | 20 Nov:
The whaling ship Essex is rammed and sunk by a sperm whale 2,000 miles off the west coast of South America, inspiring the novel Moby Dick by Herman Melville.W I R E D |
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| 1831 | | 27 Dec:
The H.M.S. Beagle, with a crew of seventy-three men, sets sail out of Plymouth, England. On board is a young naturalist named Charles Darwin. SA |
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| 1843 | | 19 Jul:
The SS Great Britain, the first iron-hulled, propeller-driven ship to cross the Atlantic, is launched in Bristol, England.Nature ASME |
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| 1851 | | 22 Aug:
The yacht America wins the first America's Cup.LoC NYYC |
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| 1860 | | 29 Jun:
The final stone is laid completing the Minot's Ledge Lighthouse, still in use today.US-L H2G2 |
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| 1861 | |
| 1862 | | 9 Mar:
The first naval engagement between ironclad ships, the USS Monitor fights the CSS Virginia to a draw.ACW NPS |
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| 1864 | | 17 Feb:
The Confederacy H. L. Hunley sinks the USS Housatonic and becomes the first submarine in the world to sink an enemy ship.ACW Hunley |
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| 1866 | | 27 Jul:
Cyrus W. Field finally succeeds in laying the first working trans-Atlantic Telegraph cable from Ireland to Newfoundland.N&LH PBS |
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| 1869 | |
| 1883 | | 27 Aug:
Krakatoa blows its top, making the loudest noise ever heard, then collapses into a caldera.Nautilus NOAA |
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| 1885 | | 17 Jun:
The Statue of Liberty arrives in New York Harbor on board the French Navy ship Isère.NPS IBTimes |
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| 1898 | | 15 Feb:
"Remember the Maine!" The U.S.S. Maine explodes in Havana harbor after striking a mine. 260 sailors are lost leading to the Spanish-American War.SIMag LoC |
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| | 25 Apr:
Spanish-American War: War is formally declared between the United States and Spain.LoC PBS |
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| 1900 | | 11 Apr:
The U. S. Navy acquires its first modern submarine, the Holland, designed by Irish immigrant John P. Holland, propelled by gasoline while on the surface and by electricity when submerged.LoC DoD |
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| 1903 | | 18 Jan:
The first two-way transatlantic wireless communication occurs.CapeCod TRC |
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| 1906 | | 3 Nov:
The distress signal S.O.S. becomes the worldwide standard at the 2nd International Radiotelegraphic Convention.SIMag GA&C |
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| 1910 | | 28 Mar:
Engineer Henri Fabre takes off in the Canard, the first airplane to lift off from water under its own power.SI W I R E D |
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| 1912 | |
| | 15 Apr:
The RMS Titanic sinks after striking an iceberg. tGLIoAH |
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| 1914 | |
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| 1915 | | 7 May:
The RMS Lusitania is sunk by a German U-boat.1stWW LoC |
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| 1919 | |
| 1921 | | 21 Jul:
Brigadier General William "Billy" Mitchell demonstrates the ability of aircraft to sink enemy warships.CoF SI |
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| 1922 | |
| 1933 | | 25 Feb:
The USS Ranger, the first purpose-built aircraft carrier, is launched at Newport News, Virginia.NI&SHM USNavy |
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| 1934 | | 15 Aug:
Otis Barton and William Beebe make the first deep sea dive in their Bathysphere.NOAA APS |
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| 1938 | |
| 1939 | | 28 Jun:
Pan Am's Dixie Clipper makes its inaugural passenger flight from New York to Europe.CFB Airways |
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| 1940 | |
| 1941 | | 7 Dec:
The forces of the Japanese Empire attack the U. S. Fleet while it lies at anchor at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.USNavy NPS |
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| 1942 | | 18 Apr:
Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle leads an air raid against Tokyo and other Japanese cities in retaliation for the attack on Pearl Harbor.USNavy SIMag |
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| | 9 Sep:
A submarine-based Japanese seaplane fire bombs the Oregon forest.SitOS USDA |
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| 1944 | | 6 Jun:
D-Day - allied forces begin the invasion of continental Europe.USArmy IWM |
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| | 21 Oct:
The first individual kamikaze attack occurs when a Japanese plane attacks HMAS Australia off Leyte Island.RDunn NHSA |
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| | 25 Oct:
Kamikaze are used en masse for the first time against Allied forces in the Battle of Leyte Gulf.NNAM AFMag |
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| | 12 Nov:
Avro Lancasters of the British Royal Air Force sink the German battleship Tirpitz off Håkøya Island near Tromsø, Norway.KBismarck BCM |
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| 1945 | |
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| | 5 Dec:
U. S. Navy Flight 19, consisting of 5 Grumman TBM Avenger torpedo bombers, disappears in the Bermuda Triangle off the coast of Florida, never to be seen again.Navy NASFM |
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| 1947 | | 28 Apr:
Thor Heyerdahl and Kon-Tiki set sail from Peru on a course for French Polynesia.SIMag K-TBC |
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| | 7 Aug:
After 101 days, Thor Heyerdahl completes his voyage with Kon-Tiki.MLP AO |
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| 1954 | |
| 1955 | | 19 Aug:
Hurricane Diane becomes the first storm to top $1 billion in damages in the U. S..NEHS NWS |
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| 1956 | | 25 Jul:
The Stockholm rams the Andrea Doria about 50 miles south of Nantucket.MassMoments CIMM |
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| | 25 Sep:
The first transatlantic telephone is opened for business.CBC A-C |
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| 1957 | | 27 Sep:
Capelinhos Volcano - a volcano begins erupting off the west coast of Faial, Azores lasting 13 months, causing an economic disaster and forcing a mass migration to the United States.PAJ PM |
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| 1959 | | 8 Jun:
Missile Mail - 3,000 pieces of mail are delivered by a cruise missile fired from a U. S. Navy submarine.W I R E D SI |
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| 1960 | | 23 Jan:
The bathyscaphe Trieste takes the world\'s deepest dive into the Marianas Trench off the coast of Guam setting a record that stands for 40 years.NHHC EarthSky |
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| | 24 Sep:
The first nuclear powered aircraft carrier, USS Enterprise, is launched in Newport News, Virginia.USNavy VNEC |
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| 1962 | | 6 May:
A ballistic missile with a live nuclear warhead is fired from a U. S. submarine for the first time.npr AHF |
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| | 20 Aug:
The first nuclear-powered commercial ship, NS Savannah begins its maiden voyage.SSMaritime NSSavannah |
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| 1963 | | 10 Apr:
USS Thresher is lost with all hands during deep diving tests.USNavy AL |
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| 1964 | | 27 Mar:
A great earthquake strikes Anchorage, Alaska.USGS Earth |
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| 1968 | | 23 Jan:
North Korea attacks and seizes the USS Pueblo in international waters, holding the crew captive for 11 months.NHHC SIMag |
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| 1970 | | 2 Dec:
The Environmental Protection Agency begins operation.EPA NF |
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| 1989 | | 24 Mar:
The Exxon Valdez runs aground on the Alaskan coast creating one of the worst environmental disasters.AK EPA |
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| 1991 | | 30 Oct:
The "Perfect Storm" hits the North Atlantic.NPS Weather |
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| 2004 | | 26 Dec:
A magnitude 9.1 earthquake strikes off the coast of Sumatra generating a deadly tsunami.NOAA SA |
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| 2005 | |
| 2012 | | 29 Oct:
Hurricane Sandy becomes Superstorm Sandy after moving up the east coast of the U. S. and takes a left turn towards shore that devastates many of the communities along the mid-Atlantic, especially New York and New Jersey.NASA LiveScience |
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| 2017 | | 25 Aug:
Hurricane Harvey makes landfall in Houston, Texas and drops between 40 and 61 inches of rain across the area.HHMag Weather |
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| | 20 Sep:
Destructive Hurricane Maria, with winds as high as 175mph, makes landfall in Puerto Rico.NASA Weather |
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at sea
