Shipwreck seekers hope for helpBy Kelly Marshall FullerThe Sun NewsGEORGETOWN - Researchers combing the water in Winyah Bay for the wreck of an ancient Spanish galleon hope to hire a state geologist to help with the search.
The geologist could help pinpoint the exact location of the 1526 shoreline on North Island, said Christopher Amer, state underwater archaeologist for the maritime division of the S.C. Department of Archaeology and Anthropology.
Locating the shoreline will narrow down the possible location for the Capitana, a large vessel that carried some of the earliest Spanish settlers to Georgetown County. The briefly settled colony has not been located.
"We want to get the geologist to determine where we want to look," Amer said.
Amer's search for the lost vessel began last fall, but shut down in the face of equipment problems and advancing hurricanes. It was the first search for the Capitana since the ship struck a sandbar and went down near North Island in 1526.
Amer hopes to resume the search by this summer if money can be raised to pay for the archaeologist, he said. If not, some money remains from last year's unfinished work, he said.
About $6,000 in private funds paid for the first search for the Capitana.
Amer has spoken to local Rotary clubs in Georgetown and Pawleys Island about the need for more funds to look for the Capitana, and he plans to make a presentation in May in Georgetown County to the members of the Archaeological Research Trust.
"To get the geologist here would cost somewhere in the vicinity of about $60,000 spread over two years," Amer said.
Amer's research crew is now working in Port Royal Sound, near Charleston, trying to locate two sunken whaling ships that were once used to repair Union vessels during the Civil War.
At least one of the vessels has been found, Amer said.
The vessel was threatened by the construction of a dock at Port Royal, Amer said.
"The state has has stewardship of the wreck," he said. "We more or less manage them for the Navy."
The geologist could help pinpoint the exact location of the 1526 shoreline on North Island, said Christopher Amer, state underwater archaeologist for the maritime division of the S.C. Department of Archaeology and Anthropology.
Locating the shoreline will narrow down the possible location for the Capitana, a large vessel that carried some of the earliest Spanish settlers to Georgetown County. The briefly settled colony has not been located.
"We want to get the geologist to determine where we want to look," Amer said.
Amer's search for the lost vessel began last fall, but shut down in the face of equipment problems and advancing hurricanes. It was the first search for the Capitana since the ship struck a sandbar and went down near North Island in 1526.
Amer hopes to resume the search by this summer if money can be raised to pay for the archaeologist, he said. If not, some money remains from last year's unfinished work, he said.
About $6,000 in private funds paid for the first search for the Capitana.
Amer has spoken to local Rotary clubs in Georgetown and Pawleys Island about the need for more funds to look for the Capitana, and he plans to make a presentation in May in Georgetown County to the members of the Archaeological Research Trust.
"To get the geologist here would cost somewhere in the vicinity of about $60,000 spread over two years," Amer said.
Amer's research crew is now working in Port Royal Sound, near Charleston, trying to locate two sunken whaling ships that were once used to repair Union vessels during the Civil War.
At least one of the vessels has been found, Amer said.
The vessel was threatened by the construction of a dock at Port Royal, Amer said.
"The state has has stewardship of the wreck," he said. "We more or less manage them for the Navy."
