Not just another piece of wood.

[bigkid4]

I met an interesting older man the other day and he showed me these pieces of wood he recovered many years ago about a year apart washed up in the river after storms. The first piece he found was about six feet long and then a year later after another storm he found the bigger piece. The bigger piece is around 18 feet long and how he ever moved it over 100 yards across a sandbar and loaded it into a small aluminum boat I will never know but that is his story. His thought on the pieces are that they are from the Spanish ship the Fortuna. The Fortuna raided a small English settlement on the river in 1749 and when it was driven away there was a big explosion on the ship and it sank in the river. Now to the point of this post can anyone tell me from the construction of these pieces if in fact they could be from the Fortuna or are they more likely from one of many Civil War Blockade runner wrecks in the river? The larger piece has a slight V shape to it that has around a foot of rise from the center to the end. The center has a slight notch or flat spot where it was laid on the keel. There are lots of wood dowels and only a few square Iron spikes. Thanks for any help you could give me on this. Funny thing he said when he pulled into the boat ramp to load his boat on the trailer someone ask him why he had a piling in his boat. He told them that he had always heard that the fishing was better around pilings.

 

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[ScubaDude]

I'm fairly familiar with the Fortuna, it would really depend on where he found it in the river. There are a significant number of wrecks up and down the river, including several near the Fortuna, and Brunswick Town. As far as the timbers in the pictures, yes the treenails are from the right period or earlier perhaps, but the iron spikes could be newer. What isn't known is what your contact's landscape timbers are from, they could be from a lot of things other than a 1748 Spanish boat. Further tests could help determine it's origins. Bear in mind the river was first explored by Europeans as early as 1526 and has seen considerable traffic and many casualties since. Timbers aren't necessarily the best tool for identifying a site.

The locals of Brunswick Town did a fairly good job of salvaging the ship back in the day, what they missed likely passed through a dredge sometime in the 1960's or 70's. The proceeds from the 1700's salvage were used as reparations to the town, and to build a church in Wilmington.

http://www.ecva.org/congregations/features/st_james_wilmington/st_james_wilmington.pdf

You might consider suggesting your contact call NC's Underwater Archaeology Branch at Fort Fisher. They may have some interest or helpful information. The timbers could be from something they are unaware of, or they may likely could assist in figuring out what your guy actually has. They have worked the area in the past.

People always want and portray things to be important, especially if it is from something romantic and exciting like a Spanish shipwreck. It may be, or it may not be just another piece of wood. Hard to say from two pieces of wood with little else to go on.

 

[bigkid4]

Thanks for your input Scubadude and thanks for the link. I knew about the painting but hadn’t seen it. I will pass on the info to him. I knew that there was no possibility of a positive ID from my pictures and the only thing I really hoped to learn was if in fact the construction of the piece fit the construction that existed on the Fortuna. Thanks again for your reply.

 

[pcolaboy]

Is it just me or do some portions of the timbers appear to have burned? I don't see black soot but I do see the tell tale sign of burning from the checker board pattern that develops on partially burned wood. Scrape away a bit of the surface near the peg and see if there is a charred layer underneath.

 

[FISHEYE]

The bottom pic,the wood beam on the left has been burnt.it wasnt on fire very long,maybe 30-45 min.It looks just like the burnt wood on a 60 foot wooden houseboat my brother bought and restored.