Battle Off Nags Head

The WW II Battle Off Nags Head, NC of April 14th, 1942 will be the subject of a great evening presentation on Thursday, June 16th, 2005 at 7:00 PM in the Panel Room of the 1767 Chowan County Courthouse.

Diagram of the U-85

Jim W. Bunch, diver, historian, and author of the books Diving the U-85 and A Shadow in the Sea will be the guest speaker. The evening will be sponsored by the Shepard-Pruden Memorial Library with a grant from the North Carolina Humanities Council.

Jim Bunch

Mr. Bunch , an Eastern North Carolina native, will present a startling lecture and powerpoint presentation of historical and underwater photographs on the history of the German U-85, his over 500 dives to its wreck, his remarkable recovery of the famous German Navy Enigma decoding machine from inside the wreck, and the artifact’s ongoing restoration at the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum in Hatteras.

The Famous Nazi Enigma Machine (Not the one from the U-85)

The U-85, one of several German U-Boats sunk in battle just off the North Carolina coast during WWII, lies in 100 feet of water only thirteen miles directly off Nags Head. Some of the photographs published by Mr. Bunch are credited to Edenton’s own underwater photographer, Michael A. deCamp.

Map Showing Location of U-85

This summer night’s presentation is free to the public. Please contact Rosalie Miller, S-P Librarian (252) 482-4112 or Peter Rascoe, E-C Special Projects (252) 482-8431 for further information.