Feb. 7, 2023

Remember the Men of the Maine

On 15 February 1898, the battleship Maine exploded while visiting Havana, Cuba. The loss of the ship would drive the United States and Spain to war within a few months. However, the global significance of the disaster should not overshadow the lives lost and the many wounded. 253 men died in the explosion, and another seven died of injuries over

Feb. 7, 2023

Why did the USS Maine explode?

Few U.S. ships are as well remembered as the battleship Maine. Unlike Constitution, Monitor, or Enterprise, though, the ship is not famous for its wartime record, long career, or remarkable innovation. Rather, Maine is remembered for exploding in Havana harbor on 15 February 1898. The death of 260 crewmen and officers would be tragedy enough, but

Feb. 15, 2015

Navy and America Remember the Maine through Artifacts

It was a call to arms not unlike "Remember the Alamo" 62 years earlier. While that Texas bravado has endured the decades, memory may falter on a similar outcry: "Remember the Maine!" Or at least why it should be remembered at all. Unlike the Alamo, in Texas during its fight for independence in 1836, the Maine in this instance was not the state, but