The Lake Austin and the Bob Hall Pier Wreck: A Study of Beached Shipwrecks Along Mustang and North Padre Islands, Texas

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "Paper / Report Submission (General Sessions)", at the 2023 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

Historic maritime activity along the Texas coast is extensive; Europeans have navigated the region the last ca. 500 years since initial Spanish exploration in the early 1500s. During this period, exploration, maritime shipping, fishing, shipbuilding, and tourism activities increased relative to coastal and port development. Notable shipwrecks discovered in Texas include the Padre Island Spanish fleet shipwrecks of 1554, and the French shipwreck La Belle found in Matagorda Bay. However, hundreds of documented and oftentimes undiscovered shipwrecks lie within state waters and along Texas beaches. This paper discusses some of the documented shipwreck discoveries and local wreck lore on Mustang Island and North Padre Island including the Bob Hall Pier Wreck which was found by local shipwreck hunters after Hurricane Beulah in 1967. Also discussed is the Lake Austin wreck which was discovered on the beach of Port Aransas in 1966 and later burned as a potential navigation hazard.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• SHA 2023 General Sessions   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2023

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Contact(s): Nicole Haddow