Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs

Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs

A maritime history podcast. Dive deep into the captivating world of shipwrecks, maritime disasters, and seafaring legends. Each episode unravels the true stories behind history’s most infamous shipwrecks, from legendary vessels lost to the depths to modern-day maritime mysteries. Join host Rich Napolitano as he explores the history, science, and human stories behind these sunken relics—perfect for history buffs, sailors, divers, ocean lovers, and adventure seekers alike. Set sail with us on a voyage through time, where the past meets the sea. Follow Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs and embark on a journey through the forgotten chapters of maritime history! 🌊⚓ Subscribe to the Officer's Club on Patreon for ad-free listening and bonus content! Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs is a proud member of the Into History podcast channel. Original theme music by Sean Sigfried.

Episodes

The Sinking of RMS Lusitania - Part 2

September 2, 2025 • 44 mins
On May 7th, 1915, RMS Lusitania was hit with a single torpedo from German submarine U-20, commanded by Walther Schweiger. A second explosion rocked the ship after the initial torpedo, which is still a source of controversy today. Of the known 1,960 on board, 1,197 people lost their lives, including 94 children. The sinking triggered worldwide outrage and accusations of war crimes. To donate to the Joe Mazraani Memorial Fund to ...
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The Sinking of RMS Lusitania - Part 1

August 26, 2025 • 39 mins
The tragic sinking of the RMS Lusitania in 1915 was a pivotal maritime disaster of World War I that claimed almost 1200 lives after a German U-boat torpedo struck the British ocean liner off the coast of Ireland. Part 1 of this 2 part series discusses the history of the Lusitiania as a luxury liner, political tensions as World War 1 began, and the events of the Lustiania's final voyage up until it was struck by a torpedo. Written...
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The Exxon Valdez Disaster

August 12, 2025 • 42 mins
Just after midnight on March 24, 1989, the oil tanker Exxon Valdez ran aground on Bligh Reef, in Prince William Sound, Alaska. Over 10 million gallons of crude oil spilled into the waters, killing hundreds of thousands of animals, and devastating the fragile ecosystem. This episode provides a detailed account of how this accident happened, and its ramifications. Written, edited, and produced by Rich Napolitano. All episodes can be...
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The Adriatic: A Civil War Era Ship Uncovered

July 29, 2025 • 49 mins
In 1864, the American packet ship Adriatic was on voyage from London to New York when it was captured and burned by the notorious Confederate raider CSS Tennessee. The passengers and crew were taken prisoner, but the ship fell out of memory. In 2016, Captains John Noonan and John Bricker, and their team of divers discovered the old sailing vessel, along with some of its artifacts. John Noonan and John Bricker join me as guests t...
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Flotsam & Jetsam: Artifacts, Stories, and Conspiracies of the Morro Castle

July 22, 2025 • 66 mins
Rich chats with Deb Whitcraft, of the New Jersey Maritime Museum, which houses the world's largest collection of artifacts and memorabilia related to the Morro Castle. https://njmaritimemuseum.org/ This bonus Flotsam & Jetsam episode is available for everyone. To hear more, please subscribe to the Officer's Club on Patreon, or subscribe to the Into History Podcast Channel. Written, edited, and produced by Rich Napolitano. Orig...
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The Inferno of the Morro Castle

July 15, 2025 • 51 mins
The Morro Castle shipwreck of 1934 was a tragic maritime disaster involving a luxury passenger liner operated by the Ward Line. On September 8, 1934, while en route from Havana to New York, the ship caught fire off the coast of New Jersey near Asbury Park, resulting in the deaths of 137 passengers and crew. The fire, which was later suspected to be an act of arson, spread rapidly due to strong winds and flammable materials onboard,...
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Discovering the Shipwrecks of Lake Ontario

July 8, 2025 • 50 mins
In 2025, a team of eight students, scientists, and engineers from the University of Rhode Island conducted the first survey of known shipwrecks in the Lake Ontario National Marine Sanctuary. Using URI’s new, state-of-the-art remotely operated vehicle, named “Rhody”, the student-led team documented 17 shipwrecks. Having embarked from Oswego, New York, aboard the research vessel Lake Guardian, which is owned and operated by the Envi...
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King Henry VIII's Lost Warship: The Mary Rose

June 24, 2025 • 45 mins
The Mary Rose was a warship of the Tudor era of the English monarchy, built in 1510 during the reign of King Henry VIII. The hulking ship was the king's favorite for many years, until it inexplicably sank in Portsmouth Harbour in 1545 as it sailed out to meet the invading French fleet. Over 400 years later, the Mary Rose was raised and its artifacts preserved. My guest is author and historian Richard M. Jones. Written, edited, an...
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Listener Appreciation Week: The Wreck That Crashed the Stock Market

June 20, 2025 • 8 mins
Listener Appreciation Week Day 5 When the SS Central America sank off the coast of South Carolina in 1857, it went down with millions of dollars worth of gold from California. The loss of the badly needed gold caused a run on the banks, and a financial crisis called the Panic of 1857. As a thank you to all Shipwreck and Sea Dogs listeners, I am bringing you a bonus mini-episode each day this week. As another bonus, all merchandi...
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Listener Appreciation Week: The Pourquoi Pas and Roald Amundsen

June 19, 2025 • 5 mins
Listener Appreciation Week Day 4 Renowned French explorer Jean-Baptiste Charcot explored the polar regions for many years aboard his ship, the Pourquoi Pas. When fellow explorer Roald Amundsen's plane went missing in 1928, Charcot joined the search for the Norwegian. Amundsen himself was searching for the crashed Italian airship, Italia, and its captain Umberto Nobile. As a thank you to all Shipwreck and Sea Dogs listeners, I am...
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Listener Appreciation Week: The Toilet That Sank a German U-Boat

June 18, 2025 • 10 mins
Listener Appreciation Week, Day 3During World War 2, the Germans captured several Dutch submarines, which included an experimental air venting device. The Germans put this to use, and used it on board some of their own U-boats. This led to the creation of a high-pressure, deepwater toilet waste system, and things did not quite go as planned. As a thank you to all Shipwreck and Sea Dogs listeners, I am bringing you a bonus mini-ep...
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Listener Appreciation Week: The Top Secret Mission That Found the Titanic

June 17, 2025 • 6 mins
Listener Appreciation Week, Day 2 Renowned ocean explorer Robert Ballard found the legendary Titanic in 1985, but it was a top-secret mission sponsored by the U.S. Navy that allowed Ballard to make his discovery. As a thank you to all Shipwreck and Sea Dogs listeners, I am bringing you a bonus mini-episode each day this week. As another bonus, all merchandise is 25% OFF during Listener Appreciation Week! Go to ⁠⁠⁠shop.shipwr...
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Listener Appreciation Week: Heroes of Two Shipwrecks

June 16, 2025 • 7 mins
Listener Appreciation Week, Day 1: Heroes of Two Shipwrecks Musicians Moss and Tracy Hills survived the sinking of the Greek cruise ship Oceanos in 1991, and then the Italian ship Achille Lauro in 1994. During both sinkings, the married couple stepped up and provided leadership and assistance to the passengers, and were critical to rescue efforts. As a thank you to all Shipwreck and Sea Dogs listeners, I am bringing you a bonus...
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Announcement: Listener Appreciation Week 2025!

June 12, 2025 • 6 mins
Announcing the first ever Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs Listener Appreciation Week! From June 16 - 20, 2025 a bonus mini-episode will be published each day as a special thank you to listeners. June 16: The Heroes of Two Shipwrecks June 17: The Top Secret Mission That Found the Titanic June 18: The Toilet That Sunk a German U-Boat June 19: The Pourquoi Pas and Roald Amundsen June 20: The Shipwreck That Crashed the Stock Ma...
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The Bounty Mutiny - Part 2

June 3, 2025 • 40 mins
William Bligh makes his miraculous voyage to Timor in the small launch, and Fletcher Christian and his fellow mutineers take the Bounty to the uninhabited Pitcairn Island. Meanwhile, 16 of the Bounty crew remain on Tahiti and are captured by Captain Edward Edwards of HMS Pandora. The Pandora itself wrecks on the Great Barrier Reef, killing 31 crew and 4 of the prisoners. The court martials result in Bligh being exonerated and 3 of ...
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The Bounty Mutiny - Part 1

May 27, 2025 • 33 mins
The legendary story of the Mutiny on the Bounty. In part 1 of this 2-part series, the Bounty departs England for Tahiti to obtain breadfruit. The crew become comfortable on Tahiti and form relations with the women. Commanding Lt. William Bligh becomes increasingly hostile toward his officers, and insults and humiliates them regularly, setting up the muitiny led by Acting Lt. Fletcher Christian. Written, edited, and produced by R...
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History Daily: The Pirate Trials of 1720

May 20, 2025 • 18 mins
This guest episode is from History Daily hosted by Lindsay Graham. November 16, 1720. The trials of notorious pirates Anne Bonny, Mary Read, and John Rackham begin in Spanish Town, Jamaica. A co-production from award-winning podcasters Airship and Noiser. For more information about History Daily, please visit https://www.historydaily.com/ For ad-free episodes of History Daily, shipwrecks and Sea Dogs, and many more fantastic h...
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The HL Hunley: First Submarine to Sink an Enemy Ship

May 13, 2025 • 36 mins
The H.L. Hunley was a submarine built by the Confederate States of America in 1863, during the American Civil War. Two tragic mishaps during testing resulted in the deaths of 13 crewmen in Charleston Harbor, including its namesake, Horace Lawson Hunley. The Hunley was finally put into action in 1864, when it successfully ventured into the Atlantic Ocean, and rammed the USS Housatonic with its spar torpedo, and sank her. The Hunley ...
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The Adriatic Affair: A Maritime Hit and Run

April 29, 2025 • 68 mins
The American sailing vessel Adriatic collided with the French steamship Le Lyonnais on November 2, 1856, off the coast of Nantucket in what can best be described as a maritime hitand-run. Adriatic’s captain, Jonathan Durham, rendered no aid and left the passenger steamship to fend for herself. 114 people died in the collision and in the days that followed. In August of 2024, Jennifer Sellitti, her partner Joe Mazraani, and a tea...
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The Princess Sophia: The Unknown Titanic of the West Coast

April 15, 2025 • 42 mins
The Princess Sophia was a Canadian passenger steamship that tragically sank on October 25, 1918, after striking Vanderbilt Reef in Lynn Canal near Juneau, Alaska. Caught in a severe snowstorm with strong winds and poor visibility, the ship ran aground and was unable to be evacuated due to worsening weather. Despite rescue ships waiting nearby, conditions prevented any safe transfer of passengers. When the storm intensified, the Pri...
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