Contact: Nathan Richards (Maritime Heritage Program, UNC-Coastal Studies Institute)
Phone: 252.475.5453
Email: richardsn@ecu.edu
19 May 2014
SHIPWRECK TIMBERS UNDERGO RECORDING AND CONSERVATION
Shipwreck timbers discovered by Waterlily residents in Currituck Sound will be undergoing recording, analysis, and conservation in a joint project between the UNC Coastal Studies Institute’s Maritime Heritage and East Carolina University’s Maritime Studies Program.
The collection of 18 individual timbers were reported to UNC Coastal Studies Program Head, Dr. Nathan Richards and subsequently evaluated by CSI personnel and ECU graduate students. The timbers were evaluated with the permission of the North Carolina Underwater Archaeology Branch, and following their inspection have been registered as a part of a new shipwreck site (Site# CKS0009). Permission to proceed with analysis at UNC CSI and conservation at ECU has been granted by written agreement with the Underwater Archaeology Branch of the NC Office of State Archaeology.
Little is presently known about the timbers. Current assumptions are that they are all probably from the same ship, exhibit construction features reminiscent of the late-1700s or early-1800s flat-bottomed watercraft construction, and at some point were burned. Further detailed examination may tell us more about the function of the vessel and could shed light on the Currituck Sound’s maritime history. Critically, local residents had maintained the timbers in a waterlogged state following their discovery, ensuring that fragile archaeological information was preserved for study, and that they could potentially undergo stabilization and future conservation.
Since their discovery the timbers have been moved to holding area at UNC CSI (Wanchese, Roanoke Island). Two of the timbers have been recorded and sent to Greenville for use in a dendrochronology workshop coordinated by East Carolina University’s Maritime Studies Association (in conjunction with the Program in Maritime Studies and the University of Arizona). Following sampling Maritime Studies Director and conservator Dr. Bradley Rodgers commenced the process of their conservation. The remaining timbers will be recorded by Dr. Richards with the help of students and community volunteers in June before they are also transported to ECU for conservation treatment. The community volunteers involved in this project are graduates of a public maritime archaeology initiative run jointly by UNC CSI and ECU in North Carolina (see www.facebook.com/nasncva).
Shipwreck timbers found embedded in the submerged bottomlands of North Carolina and sunk within three-miles of the coastline are the property of the people of North Carolina and are managed by North Carolina’s Department of Cultural Resources. The Department of Cultural Resources is the custodian of shipwrecks, vessels, cargoes, tackle, and underwater archaeological artifacts to which the State has title under G.S. 121-22.
The recording project showcases the partnership between the State of North Carolina, the UNC Coastal Studies Institute, East Carolina, and the public in endeavoring to study and preserve the state’s maritime heritage.
