Category Archives: Shipwreck’s
Local divers hoping to confirm their discovery is in fact the Revenge
Navy boat, Woods Hole staff to join exploration of Watch Hill shipwreck
Stonington – A Navy research boat and staff from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts accompanied local divers Charlie Buffum and Craig Harger Tuesday to explore what they believe is the 201-year-old wreck of the Oliver Hazard Perry ship the Revenge, which the two men say they have discovered on Watch Hill Reef.
The Navy vessel, led by Buffum’s boat, left the Wadawanuck Club dock in the borough at 8 a.m. on a two-day expedition to survey the wreck site using a sophisticated autonomous underwater vehicle from Woods Hole that is equipped with sonar, a magnetometer and a video camera.
George Schwarz, an underwater archaeologist with the Naval History and Heritage Command, said the goal of the trip is not only to use the AUV to map the wreck site but to possibly expand the site by locating nearby pieces of the ship as well. He said divers would return at a later date to explore the site and a subsequent archaeological investigation would determine whether the vessel is indeed the Revenge.
If it is the Revenge, the location would be deemed a protected U.S. Navy site and no artifacts could be removed.
While the wreck sits on the rocky reef, Schwarz said, it is possible that the ballast could be pinning some of the hull to the bottom. For someone who studies early wooden shipbuilding and nautical archaeology, he added, the prospect of exploring a 201-year-old vessel is very interesting.
Buffum, who owns Cottrell Brewing in Pawcatuck, and Harger, who lives in Colchester, have spent six years looking for the Revenge and exploring the wreck. They said they have been looking forward to the trip that could confirm that the ship is in fact the Revenge.
“It’s been a long time coming but it’s been a fun process. We hoped to do this in the warmer months but we’ll take what we can get. The people from Woods Hole said the robot doesn’t care how cold it is,” said Buffum, whose brewery recently released Perry’s Revenge Ale to celebrate the discovery.
Still, Tuesday’s calm, clear conditions offered excellent visibility for the group, especially since the wreck sits in just 10 feet of water.
“We’re just tour guides,” said Harger. “We’ll show them where it is. We have as much experience on that reef as anyone, we dive it so much.”
So far they have found six cannons as well as an anchor. But because the wreck could belong to the Navy, the two men have not salvaged any items.
The Revenge was a 14-gun schooner that sank on the reef off Watch Hill on Jan. 8, 1811, while surveying southern New England harbors, including New London.
Perry faced a court martial over the wreck but eventually was exonerated, and blame then fell on the ship’s pilot. Because of the incident, however, the formerly fast-rising captain could not get command of a ship battling the British along the Eastern seaboard. He had to settle for the less glamorous position of commanding a fleet of warships in the Great Lakes.
Under Perry’s command in 1813, that fleet defeated the British in the Battle of Lake Erie, a major naval confrontation during the War of 1812.
Aboard Perry’s ship, the USS Lawrence in Lake Erie, was a battle flag bearing the now-famous saying, “Don’t give up the ship.” The battle is seen as a turning point in the war and helped change the course of U.S. history.
In his post-battle report to his superiors, Perry wrote another saying that is now famous: “We have met the enemy and they are ours.”
Related articles
- Researchers probe 200-year-old shipwreck off R.I. (goerie.com)
- Researchers probe 200-year-old shipwreck off RI (sfgate.com)
- Scuba divers urge public to help identify 19th century shipwreck (uwtreasures.wordpress.com)
USA: Sub Sea Research Locates Port Nicholson Shipwreck
Sub Sea Research LLC, a Portland Maine based company located the worlds richest shipwreck, a WWII British Freighter carrying a secret cargo of 71 tons of Platinum sunk by a German U-Boat off the coast of Cape Cod.
Sub Sea Research (SSR) spent months searching for the elusive ship, the Port Nicholson, torpedoed by German U-boat U87, June 1942. It took two torpedoes and about 7 hours to sink her. U-87 also fired at the troop ship the “Cherokee,” quickly sinking her with a heavy loss of lives.
The Port Nicholson is a steel-hulled, 481 ft. merchant ship, coal fired freighter built in 1918 at the Tynes & Wear shipyard. She was carrying two special envoy USSR agents overseeing the delivery of a very important Lend-Lease payment from the USSR to USA. She along with 4 other commercial vessels were being escorted by an unusually high number of military ships. The normal ratio at the time was near 1:10 or less but this convoy ratio was 6:5. Maybe it was the fact they were delivering 1,707,000 oz. troy, in 400 oz. bars of platinum. Strangely the two USSR special envoy individuals quickly disappeared after being rescued and brought to American shores. They were not de-briefed like all the other survivors were.
SSR first discovered the Port Nicholson in 600-800 feet of water off Cape Cod in 2008. In 2009 SSR obtained legal recognition from the US Courts as the legal owner and salvager of the ship.
SSR researchers corresponded with individuals manning the ships and even spoke with another U-boat captain who was in the same area. They have talked with survivors and relatives of the men of the Port Nicholson and the Cherokee. One Yarmouth, MA author has written a book and is waiting for “the last chapter” of raising the valuable cargo of the Port Nicholson. These researchers also found declassified documents verifying the cargo as well as the debriefing of the sinking.
According to SSR research, the Port Nicholson and four other ships were being escorted by six military ships in a convoy from Halifax to New York. The Port Nicholson is documented to be carrying ~1,707,000 troy ounces of platinum. It may also contain $165M of copper, zinc and war stores. Greg Brooks, one of two SSR founders, said his team has already recovered several identifying and critical artifacts. He has verified that “it is without a doubt the Port Nicholson”.
Late in the summer of 2011, after 100’s of hours of ROV video, they have seen what appear to be bullion boxes containing 4 bars, each being 400 troy ounces of precious metal. “We have seen boxes indicative of those used to store and ship this type of bullion in 1942. Our video clearly shows the box and our inspection class remotely operated vehicles (ROV) could not lift it due to its weight of about 130 lbs.”
A similar discovery occurred in 1981 when the HMS Edinburgh was discovered in the Barents Sea. It too carried a USSR Lend-lease payment. This wreck, in 800 feet of water, took almost three years to salvage in 1981 (Salvage of the Century) and contained $100M of gold (1981 prices). Richard Wharton, one of the original salvagers, provided SSR with photos and dimensions of the wooden boxes from the HMS Edinburg containing the gold bullion bars. These wooden bullion boxes were the same type shipped within six weeks of the Port Nicholson. According to Brooks, “We used our manipulator arm to scale our box dimensions. They appear close and almost exactly match the boxes salvaged in 1981. Mr. Wharton’s photos are almost identical to the boxes we have seen on our wreck. We nudged and pushed the boxes with maximum thrust from our ROV. We have verified these boxes have unusually high mass as one would expect for bullion. What is different from the Edinburgh boxes and unique to ours is that ours are very well preserved and do not easily come apart. Things are very well preserved. We even flipped the pages in a book and the pages remained intact. That was amazing to see.”
“We have been working and planning the site since 2009. Our current equipment is just not enough to handle the 2-5 knot currents, mostly zero visibility and the excessive ocean conditions at the site. It takes us 10 hours from Boston Harbor to get to the site. And, conditions such as these leave few and very small windows of onsite time each year in which we can safely work on the site. We certainly underestimated the conditions and maybe over estimated our capacity even with the 214 ft. M/S Sea Hunter and a 95 ft. ship M/S Son Worshipper fully equipped with a sub, ROVs, 125 ton crane, claw and sonar gear.
Photos taken from the HMCS Nanaimo at the time of the sinking show the Port Nicholson bow straight up in the air. She went down straight and slammed to the bottom vertically, stern first at about 30 mph and is now lying on her starboard side. This position, along with the numerous metal, wires, pipes, booms, debris as well as 70 years accumulation of fishing net snags makes access extremely difficult from the deck side. “The holds are not upright and we certainly are not simply going down into the holds with a lift and pulling up the cargo. We may have to cut into the hull to gain access and that is complicated and requires a different tool set. The ship carried war stores thus requiring even greater caution and safety procedures.”
“There is nothing more frustrating for each of our crew, as well as our financial supporters, to see, touch and feel the bullion box and not be able to quickly and simply retrieve it. There is nobody on this earth who wants to bring up that box more than me. We’ve been at it a while now.”
While the ship, M/S Sea Hunter is capable of remaining on-site in almost any weather, SSR has exhausted the capability of the ROV and support equipment. SSR is now entertaining private support from special technical and financial organizations. The operation needs to re-capitalize so that SSR can order or retain a heavy duty state of the art work class ROV, fully outfitted with the tool set to complete the salvage and bring a bar on deck. This specialized equipment costs about $2.5M, requires well trained support crews and is capable of lifting heavy loads and has a long build/lease lead time of up to 20 weeks.
“Many marine technology firms are very interested in helping and being part of such an exciting treasure salvage project right in Boston’s back yard. They want to share in this once in life time adventure. And, it has a rich local and national history with a high degree of intrigue.”
“We have spoken with some interesting individuals and some family investment groups who are bored with traditional opportunities. They are certainly tired of the significant swings and losses occurring in the market today. They are most intrigued with the unique sense of history and adventure the Port Nicholson treasure simply from the excitement factor.
“Who wouldn’t want to be a treasure hunter, have a real piece of history (1942 platinum) and be able to say ‘I am a real treasure hunter’. It is every kid’s dream to be a treasure hunter and some adults dream of it too!”
“All we have left to do is get the right equipment to bring up the bars we have seen. 2012 is our year to make this all come to fruition!”
Sub Sea Research LLC (SSR), a Maine company founded in 1994, maintains a fleet of ships and scientific exploration equipment to engage in research, conservation, development and exploration activities around the world aimed at finding, recovering or preserving underwater shipwrecks of special historical and cultural significance.
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- Odyssey Confirms Identity and Location of SS Gairsoppa Shipwreck (Ireland)
- Astrakhan Shipyard Builds Project 22870 Salvage Ship for Russian Navy
- SCTA Starts Salvage Wreckage Works at Qunfudah Port (Saudi Arabia)
- Odyssey Discovers Second Silver Cargo Shipwreck Offshore Ireland
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- The Largest Treasure Find Ever – How Nazi’s Found and Sunk The British Treasury Ship Gairsoppa (gcaptain.com)
- Shipwreck Hunters Find Millenium Falcon Shaped Object On Sea Floor [Video] (inquisitr.com)
- Treasure hunters say Irish waters have valuable wrecks – Irish Times (news.google.com)
- Silver worth $18 million found on bottom of North Atlantic; ship carrying treasure sunk by torpedo in 1917 – @nytimes (nytimes.com)
Historic Hydrographic Shipwreck Discovery
17/01/2011
Almost 200 years to the day after her sinking, a couple of Connecticut, USA, scuba divers revealed they had discovered the remains of what appears to be the USS Revenge. At the time of her demise the Revenge was performing important hydrographic survey work in the shallow waters of Long Island Sound. Shrouded in thick fog on that cold winter morning the schooner ran aground on a reef near Watch Hill, Rhode Island.
When the ship went down in January 1811 she was captained by Oliver Hazard Perry, who later become a celebrated war hero. Perry gained notoriety for his bravery during the Battle of Lake Erie in the War of 1812. Perry became famous for his proclamation, “we have met the enemy, and he is ours”. He is also renowned for flying a flag emblazoned with the words, “don’t give up the ship”, which is a symbol still in use by the US Navy today.
Perry was court martialled for the sinking, but exonerated during trial when blame was fixed on the ship’s pilot who had assured the captain he was quite familiar with local waters. Perry’s reputation was tarnished by the incident, but later redeemed by the courage he demonstrated in the Lake Erie battle. When the ship he commanded was severely hit and taking on water, the captain jumped in a lifeboat with several surviving crew members, rowed to the nearby Niagra, and fought on to victory.
Recreational scuba diver Charles Buffum had always dreamed of finding a “shipwreck”. When Charlie’s mother gave him a book titled, “Shipwrecks on the Shores of Westerly”, his dream moved one step closer to reality. While reading about maritime disasters in local waters, Charlie learned about the wreck of the USS Revenge. Fascinated by the story, he called his friend and diving partner Craig Harger and asked if he’d be interested in searching for a shipwreck. Harger jumped at the chance. The pair enlisted the help of another buddy, Mike Fournier to assist in the operation. Their first step was to acquire a metal detector. After picking up a JW Fishers Pulse 8X detector, the trio loaded their gear into Charlie’s 20 foot boat and set off for Rhode Island. From the book’s description of the grounding, they had a good idea where to begin their search. When the boat finally reached the Watch Hill reef, the guys suited up in record time. They hit the water with great anticipation and began the hunt. After two dives their enthusiasm began to ebb, like the heat from the bodies in the cold New England water. They decided to make one more dive before calling it a day. Sweeping the bottom with the Pulse 8X, they swam through the thick kelp surrounding the shallow reef. Suddenly the detector’s audio began to wail. Craig’s eyes bugged in his mask as he peered down at a small cannon lying on the ocean floor. In subsequent dives the team went on to find more cannon, a large anchor, and other metal objects.
The divers later determined the small cannon first discovered was a carronade, a type of cannon developed in the late 18th century. Lighter and shorter than a long gun, the carronade could be used on upper decks, and more could be mounted. This gun was well-suited to the broadside battles fought by sailing ships of the day. The lower muzzle velocity of the weapon’s round shot was intended to create many deadly flying wood splinters when striking a vessel.
The men have contacted the Naval History and Heritage Command, the office that oversees the salvage of Navy ships. They hope to convince the Navy to salvage the remains, or relinquish the rights so they can raise the money needed to do it themselves. Their intent is to have the artefacts preserved and displayed at the historical society.
Related articles
- Researchers probe 200-year-old shipwreck off R.I. (goerie.com)
- Researchers probe 200-year-old shipwreck off RI (sfgate.com)
- USA: Sub Sea Research Locates Port Nicholson Shipwreck (mb50.wordpress.com)
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