Florida State University
Research in Underwater Archaeology

In March 1998 a concerned citizen, Barry Green, contacted the State Underwater Archaeologist Dr. Roger Smith about some shipwrecks he knew of in Black Creek, off the St. John's River in Clay County, Florida. To his knowledge, archaeologists were not aware of and had never investigated these shipwrecks. Local legend provided a variety of identifications for these shipwrecks; ranging from Spanish colonial vessels sunk in battle to Civil War-era barges scuttled intentionally.

The project participants, including informant Barry Green who had traveled from Atlanta to join the expedition, succeeded in re-locating one of the historic wooden-hulled wrecks, overgrown with vegetation, in the shallow water along the bank of the river. The hull was only barely submerged, and a few inches of the bow was actually exposed above waterline. Student divers entered the water to record the principal dimensions of the intact vessel, including length, breadth, and measurements of frame timbers. Wood remains, almost certainly those of another shipwreck, were noted beyond this individual vessel; due to time contraints, however, only this single wreck was investigated.

The vessel, obscured from view by aquatic plant growth, was surprisingly large with a total length of over 170 feet. Its wooden hull, fastened with iron spikes, is about 25 feet in breadth in the midships area. As Black Creek is a deep river, it often saw traffic by large vessels such as this one. In addition to several iron spikes or nails, which were recovered, several artifacts were observed, including the iron strapping illustrated here.

In addition to the diver investigation, a remote sensing sweep was conducted with the side-scan sonar. Although the shallow water prevented imaging from inside the hull, one side of the vessel can be clearly seen in the sonar image. The picture here has been enhanced, with a yellow line reconstructing the edges of the hull not seen by the sonar unit. The side-scan image confirmed the size and hull shape of the vessel as determined by the student divers.

This project demonstrated a successful cooperative effort between the state Bureau of Archaeological Research, the University, and a citizen concerned with the underwater cultural resources of Florida. After this brief investigation, it is believed that this hull is most likely the remains of a 19th century sailing or steam-propelled vessel. Further field research would certainly help in identifying the function and date of this vessel. Very little time, for example, was spent actually inside the hull , which would likely reveal any cargo remains or, if the ship was a steamer, engine components. This site may yet reveal its secrets on a future student-generated field project.