Some underwater video in the newslink.
Cape man finds a sunken treasure - NBC-2.com WBBH News for Fort Myers, Cape Coral & Naples, Florida
Cape man finds a sunken treasure
CAPE CORAL -
Some adventures don't take you far from home. A Cape Coral man has discovered a wooden wreck just feet from land in shallow water.
Now David Carr's discovery has the attention of the Florida Division of Historical Resources.
"There's a ton of history around this area," said Carr as he pointed to nearby mangroves. What he spotted in the water a week ago could add to Southwest Florida's history.
Carr is neither an oceanographer nor archaeologist. He's just a CPA with a little free time.
"After tax season, I told myself I was going to get out every weekend," Carr said.
From Cape Harbor, he drives a pontoon boat for mere minutes and then points to his discovery.
"Over here to your right and left," said Carr. "Also, it's underneath us."
A strange configuration of seaweed first caught his eye.
"It was growing in a straight line, yes," Carr said.
That let him know what he was looking at wasn't natural. Even from above the surface of the water, he could see seven rows of wooden beams stretching a hundred feet.
This shipwreck sits at the mouth of the Caloosahatchee River, near the entrance to Cape Harbor.
It's a big catch for a man that doesn't even fish.
"When I went back to get my anchor up, it had pulled a board up. On one side it was tarred. The other side was all ate out," Carr remembered. The tar tipped him off that he'd discovered a wooden shipwreck.
Carr is worried about boaters damaging the wreck. Divers are not allowed to take anything from a state historical site more than 50 years old.
"This isn't 50 years old," Carr guessed. "It's at minimum 150 years old."
Given reefs, wars and storms, Florida's maritime history is rich with wrecks. Many have been identified. This one has not.
"There's a little chunk of mast over here. Bowsprit is over here," said Carr as he diagramed the wreck on paper.
It's a dream adventure for a man who grew up on nearby Fort Myers Beach.
"You hear about Sanibel Island, pirates, their captives and the shipwrecks out there."
He'd like to see a dock built around this wooden wreck.
"Get the archaeologists out here to uncover it, and then have the public be able to view it," Carr said.
Whether it remains visible is another story.
"It's huge, and it wasn't here three months ago," Carr said.
Thanks to his discovery, Florida's Bureau of Archaeological Research has alerted the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission about the site. The state agency hopes to organize a team to identify the wreck and unlock the ship's history.
Cape man finds a sunken treasure - NBC-2.com WBBH News for Fort Myers, Cape Coral & Naples, Florida
Cape man finds a sunken treasure
CAPE CORAL -
Some adventures don't take you far from home. A Cape Coral man has discovered a wooden wreck just feet from land in shallow water.
Now David Carr's discovery has the attention of the Florida Division of Historical Resources.
"There's a ton of history around this area," said Carr as he pointed to nearby mangroves. What he spotted in the water a week ago could add to Southwest Florida's history.
Carr is neither an oceanographer nor archaeologist. He's just a CPA with a little free time.
"After tax season, I told myself I was going to get out every weekend," Carr said.
From Cape Harbor, he drives a pontoon boat for mere minutes and then points to his discovery.
"Over here to your right and left," said Carr. "Also, it's underneath us."
A strange configuration of seaweed first caught his eye.
"It was growing in a straight line, yes," Carr said.
That let him know what he was looking at wasn't natural. Even from above the surface of the water, he could see seven rows of wooden beams stretching a hundred feet.
This shipwreck sits at the mouth of the Caloosahatchee River, near the entrance to Cape Harbor.
It's a big catch for a man that doesn't even fish.
"When I went back to get my anchor up, it had pulled a board up. On one side it was tarred. The other side was all ate out," Carr remembered. The tar tipped him off that he'd discovered a wooden shipwreck.
Carr is worried about boaters damaging the wreck. Divers are not allowed to take anything from a state historical site more than 50 years old.
"This isn't 50 years old," Carr guessed. "It's at minimum 150 years old."
Given reefs, wars and storms, Florida's maritime history is rich with wrecks. Many have been identified. This one has not.
"There's a little chunk of mast over here. Bowsprit is over here," said Carr as he diagramed the wreck on paper.
It's a dream adventure for a man who grew up on nearby Fort Myers Beach.
"You hear about Sanibel Island, pirates, their captives and the shipwrecks out there."
He'd like to see a dock built around this wooden wreck.
"Get the archaeologists out here to uncover it, and then have the public be able to view it," Carr said.
Whether it remains visible is another story.
"It's huge, and it wasn't here three months ago," Carr said.
Thanks to his discovery, Florida's Bureau of Archaeological Research has alerted the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission about the site. The state agency hopes to organize a team to identify the wreck and unlock the ship's history.
