Simon Lake's submarine "Argonaut" went hundreds of miles down the Eastern Seaboard in 1898 during a Nor-Easter that sunk over 200 ships. Jules Verne, author of "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" sent a cablegram to Simon Lake congratulating him on the" first successful open sea voyage in a submarine boat", and making his dream a reality.
In 1893 Four out of five Naval Admirals wanted Simon Lake's submarine to be built for the US Navy. But Lake did not submit required monetary bid to secure the contract. The Naval board requested to bring Simon Lake back for a bid to build it, but this was not allowed by 'higher ups" with political power. His competitor secured the contract for a submarine that never properly functioned and was abandoned.