Archaeologists in Massachusetts have uncovered a new mystery surrounding a historic shipwreck after a closer examination of the remains revealed that they do not match those of a previously identified vessel.
The wreckage, which was exposed along the shore of Nantucket in late September, was initially suspected to be the remains of the Warren Sawyer, a three-masted schooner that sank in 1884. However, state archaeologists have now determined that the remains appear to be a 50-foot-long section of a large merchant vessel dating to the late 19th or early 20th century.
According to David Robinson, director and chief archaeologist of the Massachusetts Board of Underwater Archaeological Resources, several clues led him to question the wreckage's original identification. The ship's wooden ribs were larger than those found in the previously documented remains of the Warren Sawyer, and the types of wood used to construct the vessels were different. Additionally, iron fastenings on the newly discovered wreckage date to after the Warren Sawyer sank in 1884.
Robinson noted that the size of the newly discovered fragment is unusual, and the wreckage may have come from a schooner barge, a type of merchant vessel commonly used to transport cargo along the East Coast during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. However, he cautioned that the identification remains uncertain and that further research is needed to determine the vessel's identity.
The Nantucket wreckage is the first in Massachusetts to receive a tag under a shipwreck monitoring program that allows members of the public to help researchers track remains as they move along the coastline. Robinson emphasized the importance of preserving shipwrecks as pieces of history, saying that each of these wrecks has a story to tell.
NTC Report coverage is based on reporting from the original publisher.
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