Absolum Williams: Black Crewman of The Hunley
Special | 50sVideo has Closed Captions
Learn about the lone Black crewman of the ill-fated Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley!
Did you know that a Black man once served on the ill-fated Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley? Absolum Williams, a sailor from the ironclad vessel C.S.S. Palmetto State volunteered to serve on the H.L. Hunley's first crew, commanded by Lieutenant John Payne of the Confederate Navy. Williams perished in a diving accident on August 29, 1863, and now rests in Charleston's Magnolia Cemetery.
Absolum Williams: Black Crewman of The Hunley
Special | 50sVideo has Closed Captions
Did you know that a Black man once served on the ill-fated Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley? Absolum Williams, a sailor from the ironclad vessel C.S.S. Palmetto State volunteered to serve on the H.L. Hunley's first crew, commanded by Lieutenant John Payne of the Confederate Navy. Williams perished in a diving accident on August 29, 1863, and now rests in Charleston's Magnolia Cemetery.
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Hunley?
Lieutenant John Payne of the Confederate Navy was chosen as the Hunley#s first commander, and he needed volunteers to man the Whether it was out of boredom or curiosity for this #fish-boat#, Absolum Williams, a Black sailor from the ironclad C.S.S.
Palmetto State was one of the men who stepped forward.
A diving accident on August 29th, 1863 claimed the lives of five crew members, including Williams.
The bodies of this first crew we e discovered buried underneath The Citadel's Johnson-Hagood Football Stadium in 1999, and were re-interred at Charleston's Magnolia Cemetery to rest alongside the other Hunley crews.
