Hidden in Plain Sight: Monitoring Shipwrecks in the Atlantic Waters of St. Augustine, Florida

Summary

The preservation of submerged heritage in Northeast Florida benefits from poor diving conditions and a lack of awareness of submerged site locations in the region. Overshadowed by the well-known treasure wrecks along Florida’s Treasure Coast and the Florida Keys, the northeastern portion of the state still maintains some of the oldest shipwrecks in North America. As part of the First Coast Maritime Archaeology Project, archaeologists from the Lighthouse Archaeological Maritime Program, the research arm of the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum, have periodically monitored shipwrecks near St. Augustine to study wreck conditions, exposure, degradation, and looting activities. Since 2007, regularly acquired sidescan sonar data has provided an additional technique for comprehensively monitoring and recording local wrecks. This paper presents selected findings from eight years of monitoring shipwrecks near the Nation’s Oldest Port.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Practicing Maritime Cultural Resource Management: Directives for Assessment, Active Conservation in situ, Partial Excavations, and Public Stewardship   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2016

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 837