Lake Harriet's Aspiring Submariner
Strong winds this week swamped at least one boat.
Maybe someone left the porthole open?
One of the earliest submarine designs was, believe it or not, partially sail-powered. Designed by American inventor Robert Fulton in the late 1790's and called the Nautilus, the craft could submerge up to 25 feet, and was designed to drag boxes of explosives alongside enemy ships in order to sink them.
Fulton tried to interest Napoleon and other French revolutionary leaders in the design, but his proposals were rejected. Fulton soon moved back to America to found the first passenger steamship line on the Hudson River.
Jesse Lykken
1:57 pm on Friday, September 14, 2012
Great shot! Interesting story ... had a flashback to Fulton School, where my mama went. Nice work, sir.
James Sanna
3:01 pm on Friday, September 14, 2012
Thanks! I was walking around while waiting for the 9/11 concert to start, and noticed it. I'm a big ol' nerd, so the Nautilus was the second thing that crossed my mind on seeing that boat.
Plus, the sailboats moored by the bandshell always seem to have bad luck. Last year, I remember seeing a 12- or 15-foot one that had capsized and stuck its mast in the mud, and it sat there for months on end.