David Bushnell (1742-1824) built the first man-propelled submarine boat with a wooden magazine containing gunpowder and a clock mechanism for igniting it at any particular time. Although he was not successful in his attempts to destroy British ships during the American Revolution, he is recognized as the father of the modern submarine.

David Bushnell was a descendant of Francis Bushnell, an Englishman who joined the New Haven Colony in 1639 and subsequently helped to found Guilford, Connecticut. David was born on his father's farm in Saybrook, Connecticut. The home was located in an extremely secluded portion of the township and here young Bushnell grew up, helping his father with the farm duties, devoting his leisure moments to reading, and shunning all society. When he was twenty-seven his father died, and, as his mother had died some years before, the farm descended to David and his brother. David immediately sold...