Friends of the Hunley issued the following press release Thursday.
New York Times best-selling author and Friends of the Hunley board member Clive Cussler passed away Tuesday at his home in Arizona. The world recognizes him as a famous author but in Charleston, South Carolina he is also known for leading the National Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA) expedition that found the legendary submarine Hunley.
The finding made worldwide news and led to a chain of events that resulted in the raising of the Hunley as well as an unprecedented excavation effort that found many 19th century artifacts and the remains of the eight-man crew.
Today the South Carolina Senate passed a resolution honoring his life, his contribution to literature, and maritime discovery and preservation. The resolution can be found here.
Kellen Butler, Friends of the Hunley Executive Director, said, “Clive was the heart and soul of this project. His commitment to maritime history was contagious and he had a deep love for the team he worked with to find the Hunley. My fondest memory is from the day the Hunley was raised in 2000. At that time, I was a television journalist and was interviewing him on the press boat. He told me he wanted to be with his friends on the NUMA boat and not with the media. Right before the submarine came out of the ocean, he suddenly jumped off the double-decker boat and swam to his friends to toast the historic day. You never knew what to expect with him, which was part of his charm.”
