The term is said to derive from Blue Peter, a nautical signal.

The latest letter is also decorated with drawings of what appear to be nautical signal flags, which never appeared on the earlier letters.

I could barely make them out in the dark, but it didn't matter because I was clueless about nautical signals.

Ropes strung from the deck to the yardarm still fly brightly colored nautical signal flags that spell out "Jones Beach State Park.

The Mariners' Museum, a private museum in Newport News, Va., that is the depository for the ship's relics, plans a "camp-in" next month at which families can play with fake weapons, send nautical signals and eat like Monitor sailors.