The Adriatic Affair: A Maritime Hit-and-Run off the Coast of Nantucket

After more than eight years of research, shipwreck hunter Jennifer Sellitti has delivered the first and definitive account of the sinking of Le Lyonnais and the hunt for Captain Jonathan Durham.

The American sailing vessel Adriatic collided with the French steamship Le Lyonnais on November 2, 1856, off the coast of Nantucket in what can best be described as a maritime hit—and—run. Adriatic’s captain, Jonathan Durham, rendered no aid and left the passenger steamship to fend for herself. 114...