Ezra Lee was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 Colonial soldier, best known for commanding the Turtle

Turtle (submarine)

The Turtle was the world's first submersible with a documented record of use in combat. It was built in Old Saybrook, Connecticut in 1775 by American Patriot David Bushnell as a means of attaching explosive charges to ships in a harbor...

submarine.

Lee was born in Lyme

Lyme, Connecticut

Lyme is a town in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 2,016 at the 2000 census. Lyme and its neighboring town Old Lyme are the namesake for Lyme disease.-Geography:...

, Connecticut

Connecticut

Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...

. In August 1776 he was selected by brother-in-law Brig. General Samuel Holden Parsons

Samuel Holden Parsons

Samuel Holden Parsons was an American lawyer, jurist, and military leader.Parsons was born in Lyme, Connecticut, the son of Jonathan Parsons and Phoebe Parsons...

, also of Lyme, as one of several volunteers to learn to operate the Turtle, an early submarine invented by Saybrook, Connecticut native David Bushnell

David Bushnell

David Bushnell , of Westbrook, Connecticut, was an American inventor during the Revolutionary War. He is credited with creating the first submarine ever used in combat, while studying at Yale University in 1775. He called it the Turtle because of its look in the water...

. When General George Washington

George Washington

George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...

 authorized an attack on British Admiral Richard Howe

Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe

Admiral of the Fleet Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe KG was a British naval officer, notable in particular for his service during the American War of Independence and French Revolutionary Wars. He was the brother of William Howe and George Howe.Howe joined the navy at the age of thirteen and served...

's flagship HMS Eagle

HMS Eagle (1774)

HMS Eagle was a 64-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 2 May 1774 at Rotherhithe.On 7 September 1776, the experimental American submarine Turtle, under the guidance of Army volunteer Sergeant Ezra Lee, attacked HMS Eagle, which was moored off what is today called Liberty...

, then lying in New York harbor, Lee was chosen to operate the "infernal machine".

Governors Island attack

On the night of September 6, 1776, Lee piloted the Turtle up to the Eagle, which was moored off what is today called Governors Island

Governors Island

Governors Island is a island in Upper New York Bay, approximately one-half mile from the southern tip of Manhattan Island and separated from Brooklyn by Buttermilk Channel. It is legally part of the borough of Manhattan in New York City...

, due south of Manhattan. A common misconception was that Lee failed because he could not manage to bore through the copper-sheeted hull. In practice, it has been shown that the thin copper would not have presented any problem to the drill, and that he likely struck a metal rudder support.

A more likely scenario is that Lee's unfamiliarity with the vessel made him unable to keep the Turtle stable enough to work the drill against the Eagle hull. When he attempted another spot in the hull, he was unable to stay beneath the ship, and eventually abandoned the attempt. Governors Island is off the southern vertex of Manhattan, This is the place where the Hudson River and the East River merge. The currents at this point would be strong and complex. The Turtle would only be able to attack ship moored here during the short period of time when the incoming tide balanced the river currents. It is possible that during the attack the tide turned and Lee was unable to compensate. He released the keg of gunpowder when some British in row boats tried to pursue him. The British suspecting some trick gave up the pursuit.

Lee landed safely after remaining several hours in the water, and received the congratulations of Washington, who afterwards employed him on secret service

Secret service

A secret service describes a government agency, or the activities of a government agency, concerned with the gathering of intelligence data. The tasks and powers of a secret service can vary greatly from one country to another. For instance, a country may establish a secret service which has some...

. Lee made a similar attempt a short time afterward with Bushnell's machine in an attempt to destroy a British frigate that lay opposite Bloomingdale, New York, but was discovered and compelled to abandon the enterprise. The submarine was soon after sunk by the British as it sat on its tender vessel, in Fort Lee, New Jersey

Fort Lee, New Jersey

Fort Lee is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 35,345. Located atop the Hudson Palisades, the borough is the western terminus of the George Washington Bridge...

. Years later in a letter to Thomas Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...

, Bushnell reported he had salvaged the Turtle; its final fate is unknown.

After these events, Lee was congratulated by Washington and General Israel Putnam

Israel Putnam

Israel Putnam was an American army general and Freemason who fought with distinction at the Battle of Bunker Hill during the American Revolutionary War...

 and moved into the secret service/special forces. Lee's tombstone is the only one that mentions "in service to Gen.George Washington" of all those who fought in the American Revolution.

Later action

Lee subsequently participated in the battles of Trenton

Battle of Trenton

The Battle of Trenton took place on December 26, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War, after General George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River north of Trenton, New Jersey. The hazardous crossing in adverse weather made it possible for Washington to lead the main body of the...

, Brandywine

Battle of Brandywine

The Battle of Brandywine, also known as the Battle of the Brandywine or the Battle of Brandywine Creek, was fought between the American army of Major General George Washington and the British-Hessian army of General Sir William Howe on September 11, 1777. The British defeated the Americans and...

, and Monmouth

Battle of Monmouth

The Battle of Monmouth was an American Revolutionary War battle fought on June 28, 1778 in Monmouth County, New Jersey. The Continental Army under General George Washington attacked the rear of the British Army column commanded by Lieutenant General Sir Henry Clinton as they left Monmouth Court...

. He had his sword handle shot off and received many bullet holes in his coat at Brandywine.

Lee is buried in the Duck River Cemetery

Duck River Cemetery

The Old Lyme Cemetery, also known as the Duck River Cemetery is the town burying ground of Old Lyme, Connecticut. The oldest surviving grave marker dates from 1676. A tidal stream known as the Duck River and a salt marsh bisect the burying ground....

 in modern day Old Lyme, Connecticut.