• VISIT
    • Weekend Tours
    • School Tours
    • Group Tours
    • Directions
  • HISTORY
    • Overview
    • Timeline
    • The Civil War
    • Naval Innovation
    • The Hunley is Born
    • The Hunley’s Sinkings
    • History is Made
    • The Search and Recovery
    • The Burial
  • SCIENCE
    • Overview
    • Timeline
    • Excavation
    • Artifacts
    • Facial Reconstructions
    • Conservation
  • THE MYSTERY
    • Overview
    • Evidence
    • Theories
  • NEWS
  • ABOUT US
    • Overview
    • Contact Us
    • Press Releases
  • SHOP
  • DONATE
    • DONATE
    • RENEW MEMBERSHIP
  • BUY TICKETS
The Friends of The HunleyThe Friends of The Hunley
  • VISIT
    • Weekend Tours
    • School Tours
    • Group Tours
    • Directions
  • HISTORY
    • Overview
    • Timeline
    • The Civil War
    • Naval Innovation
    • The Hunley is Born
    • The Hunley’s Sinkings
    • History is Made
    • The Search and Recovery
    • The Burial
  • SCIENCE
    • Overview
    • Timeline
    • Excavation
    • Artifacts
    • Facial Reconstructions
    • Conservation
  • THE MYSTERY
    • Overview
    • Evidence
    • Theories
  • NEWS
  • ABOUT US
    • Overview
    • Contact Us
    • Press Releases
  • SHOP
  • DONATE
    • DONATE
    • RENEW MEMBERSHIP
  • BUY TICKETS

SCI­ENCE OVER­VIEW

After being lost at sea for over a century, the H. L. Hunley was finally located in 1995 and then raised on August 8, 2000.  She was transported to the Warren Lasch Conservation Center and immediately placed in a large, 75,000-gallon steel tank filled with chilled, fresh water.  Since then an unprecedented and delicate scientific process has unfolded to excavate and conserve the submarine.

The excavation and analysis of the Hunley continues to provide many clues for archaeologists, conservators, anthropologists, and historians as they seek to understand the events leading to the loss of the submarine and her crew, an event that also marked the beginnings of submarine naval combat.

During excavation, the Hunley proved to be a truly unique time capsule, holding the remains of the eight-man crew and a wide array of fascinating artifacts from the 19th century.  At the same time, conservators began an unprecedented and challenging preservation process that is still underway today. 

Next: Science Timeline

Contact Info

  • Friends of the Hunley
  • 1250 Supply St, Charleston, SC 29405
  • 843-743-4865
  • info@hunley.org

Hunley Project Updates

  • Artifacts Belonging to Doomed 19th Century Submarine Captain Conserved
  • Hunley Launches New Visitor Experience & Fully Reopens After Closing Due to the Coronavirus
  • A Grateful World Says Goodbye to Clive Cussler
  • Golden Treasures from the Past
  • Lost Hunley Crew’s Air Circulation System May Not Have Been Functioning the Night the Submarine Vanished

Friends of the Hunley • P.O. Box 21600, Charleston, SC 29413 • 1250 Supply Street, North Charleston, SC 29405 • Copyright © 2023 Friends of the Hunley.