As the sun began to set on the ramparts of Battery Marshall that cold night of February 17, 1864, Confederate soldiers and curious onlookers watched as final adjustments were made to the submarine's torpedo barbed metal head. With the ever-tightening Union blockade, the citizens of Charleston were hopeful that the blockade could be broken by this curious torpedo boat.

The crew of the vessel grew anxious as the sun disappeared over the marshes behind Sullivan's Island.

As the captain rolled a gold coin between his fingers, he fixed his eyes beyond the Breach Inlet on the blockader that they would be attacking later that quiet, bone-chilling cold clear night. With a full moon above the calm seas of the Atlantic, the captain lowered himself through the forward hatch of the iron vessel, fitted with cranks geared to her propeller, which would be turned by the crew of eight. A candle was lit illuminating the way for the captain's men to find their places at the crankshaft.

As the craft left the crowded dock, the captain turned her bow toward the blockading fleet.

The sinking of an enemy ship soon followed.

The captain signaled the soldiers at Battery Marshall with two blue lights letting them know the mission was successful and to light the shore beacon at Breach Inlet. The soldiers anxiously waited for their safe return in vain. The vessel, captain, and crew disappeared into the sea that cold winter night without a trace.

History was made that night during the Civil War. Naval warfare would never be the same. This Confederate submarine, H.L. Hunley, was the first to ever sink an enemy ship.

The commander was Lieutenant George E. Dixon, an army engineer on detached duty from the 21st Alabama Volunteers. The Union warship that Dixon and his crew sank was the Housatonic.

The Legend

One of the many mysteries that shroud the Hunley is the legend of Dixon's gold coin. The legend told the story of a gold coin he received from his girlfriend, Queenie Bennett, as a good luck charm when he left to go to war. According to the legend, Dixon always kept the coin with him in his trousers pocket. He often rolled it between his fingers dreaming of the day he would be reunited with his sweetheart.

In 1862, Dixon was shot during the Battle of Shiloh. Again, according to legend, his life was saved when the bullet struck the gold coin in his trousers pocket. The impact of bullet was said to have bent the gold coin leaving the bullet embedded in it. Dixon's good luck charm saved his life.

The Coin

For over a century, this story was thought of as merely a romantic tale. With the discovery of the Hunley in 1995, would the gold coin be found?

In 2001, while the Hunley was being excavated, the gold coin was found next to the remains of Dixon. It was bell shaped from the impact of the Yankee bullet with traces of lead from the bullet on the coin. The coin was an 1860 $20 gold piece made at the Philadelphia mint.

James B. Longacre designed the coin. It weighs 33.436 grams and is composed of .900 gold and .100 copper. The diameter is 34 mm and it has a reeded edge. The net weight is .96750 ounces of pure gold. The obverse depicts the Liberty Coronet type design. The reverse shows an eagle and does not have the motto "In God We Trust." It had been sanded and inscribed with four lines of cursive script with the following words: Shiloh, April 6, 1862, My Life Preserver, G.E.D.

The Hunley project's Senior Archaeologist Maria Jacobsen found the coin. After the discovery, she said, "Some people may think this is a stroke of luck, but perhaps it's something else. They tell me that Lt. Dixon was a lady's man, perhaps he winked at us yesterday to remind us that he still is." To learn more about the Hunley and its recovery, or to view Lt. Dixon's gold coin, visit Friends of the Hunley.