To Scuttle and Run: The Institute of Maritime History’s Search for Lord Dunmore’s Floating City of 1776

Author(s): David P. Howe; P. Brendan Burke

Year: 2017

Summary

Since 2008 the Institute for Maritime History (IMH) has supported a research project at the confluence of the St. Marys and Potomac rivers. This area is the suspected locus of Lord Dunmore’s scuttled fleet from 1776. As the last British colonial governor of Virginia, Dunmore fled the colony with a flotilla of loyalists, soldiers, and sailors. Aboard the civilian fleet, guarded by Royal Navy sloops and a frigate, Dunmore unsuccessfully attempted to restore order to an unravelling colony. After his floating city suffered numerous defeats at the hands of Virginia rebels, Dunmore ventured up the Potomac River in a cruise of reprisal, culminating in his departure from the colonies for good. Hastily gathering a flotilla for the voyage, as many as 23 vessels were scuttled for want of seaworthiness or crew. IMH continues to search for the scuttled fleet and this paper outlines the historical background, field methods, and results.

Cite this Record

To Scuttle and Run: The Institute of Maritime History’s Search for Lord Dunmore’s Floating City of 1776. David P. Howe, P. Brendan Burke. Presented at Society for Historical Archaeology, Fort Worth, TX. 2017 ( tDAR id: 435623)

Keywords

Temporal Keywords
18th Century

Spatial Coverage

min long: -129.199; min lat: 24.495 ; max long: -66.973; max lat: 49.359 ;

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 348