Students At Old Saybrook HS Rebuild First Submarine
By Tom Kertes

It’s no secret that educators in schools across the country are desperate for ways to kindle their students’ interest with new and innovative lessons. But few can match the extraordinary project led by Scott Schoonmaker, the Principal at Old Saybrook High School, Connecticut. “We will build an authentic life-size, working replica of the Turtle, the first submarine ever used in warfare,” Schoonmaker said.

In 1776, General George Washington, was determined to find some way to drive the English fleet out of New York Harbor. Washington enlisted the help of Yale graduate David Bushnell, who came up with the idea of building a one-man submarine. That submarine, called the Turtle, was designed to dive under the invading vessels and attach a bomb to the underside of the command ship.

While the attack was not entirely successful – Bushnell could not attach the bomb — the subsequent explosion did have a major psychological impact on the British and had a notable influence on the outcome of the war.

But why rebuild the Turtle over 200 years later? The town of Old Saybrook shares a special connection with Bushnell’s invention. Located on Long Island Sound next to the Connecticut River, Old Saybrook High School is surrounded by water on three sides. More importantly, Bushnell once lived in the town and, in fact, his descendants attend the school
to this day.

“That is why Fred Frese, the boat-maker who built the first Turtle replica in 1977, called me with the idea,” Schoonmaker said. “As it was also a special anniversary of the submarine’s original creation, I naturally grabbed onto it like it was manna from heaven.”

Schoonmaker immediately seized the opportunity to build a complex and engaging curriculum that revolved around the Turtle replica. The students will not only deal with the construction and testing process but they will also get a flavor of the events and psychology of the Revolutionary War. In addition, they will have the opportunity to confront the same math, science, and geometry problems Bushnell struggled with 225 years earlier.

“We also plan to stick with a boat-making curriculum once we’re done,” Schoonmaker said. “Next we plan to build kayaks and canoes, and learn of their history and the reasons for their existence.”

Approximately 150 students in grades 9-12 will be involved in the Turtle project, which will last over a period of about six months. The on-going construction, the re-creation of the original underwater attack, and the rest of the educational program will be broadcast, in real time, by web-cam to students across the country. “Along with major corporations like Coca Cola and Toyota, one of our other sponsors is the History Channel,” Schoonmaker said. “So
don’t be surprised if you see a TV special on our project one day very soon as well.”

The Turtle project is set to launch in about two months and should last throughout the spring semester. “I’m looking forward to this,” Shoonmaker said. “But, even more important, I haven’t seen the kids get this excited about something school-related in a long, long time.”#

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