MSilvia
Contributor
Some interesting notes from the minutes of the Massachusetts Board of Underwater Archeological Resources meeting of Sept 26, 2002:
Victor (Mastone) reported that he had participated with a research crew from the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary in the relocating of the famed steamer Portland. The expedition was conducted from the RV Connecticut at the end of July and was based on coordinates supplied to NOAA from Arne Carr and John Fish who discovered the wreck in the late 1980s.
The Stellwagen expedition deployed an ROV and side scan sonar to collect images of the wreck in order confirm the wrecks identity. Victor stated that although the entire superstructure of the vessel is missing, the wreck appears to be in remarkably good condition with the A-frame, walking beam and twin smoke stacks still standing. He noted a tremendous amount of preservation including an nearly intact rudder that appears to be hard to port possibly due to some type of impact or that the vessel was attempting to turn at the time of its loss. He theorized that the vessel likely foundered and eventually flooded forcing it to the bottom. He noted on the side scan image that the wreckage is sitting flat on the bottom, the bow appears slightly bent, the paddle wheels is in place, and that the smoke stacks are vertical similar to the wreck of the steamer Larchmont in Rhode Island. Victor state that if there were any accommodations below decks, they were likely those of the crew. New evidence suggests that the crew was largely comprised of African American sailors. He added that there is also a tremendous amount of deck and hull planking intact.
The wreck site is home to some very large cod and as a result, is littered with gill nets. Victor noted that at one point in imaging of the wreck, the ROV became entangled in one of these nets requiring a considerable amount of time to extract. Due to the popularity of this shipwreck, NOAA has asked that information concerning its location be kept to a minimum in order to protect the site from unauthorized visits.
Concerning the Boards involvement in the project, Victor stated that there has been some discussion of creating an historic district around this site and others that have been discovered on the bank. Though the site is in federal waters, a district could be extended into state waters. He noted that the site is certainly National Register eligible and that NOAA will be working on a nomination. Ed Bell asked if NOAA would be making the nomination directly. Victor replied that it is his understanding that the nomination would be put together by NOAA, but that it would likely be reviewed by the state. Richard Murray asked how much communication there had been between the Board and NOAA regarding the search for the wreck. Victor replied that there had been some discussion over the past several months regarding survey work in addition to his being invited to take part in the expedition in July.
Victor stated that there a several other wrecks of interest in the sanctuary and that NOAA is planning to investigate some of these in the near future. Ed Bell asked Victor why NOAA seems to have a new interest in identifying and preserving cultural resources. Victor responded that the agency would like to establish a submerged cultural resources department similar to that of the National Park Service. He stated that at a focus group meeting sponsored by NOAAs Office of Ocean Exploration, which he attended last March, archaeology was identified as a top priority in getting people interested in ocean and its resources. He added that the agencys attention to underwater archaeological resources is encouraging and he hopes that it continues.
Victor (Mastone) reported that he had participated with a research crew from the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary in the relocating of the famed steamer Portland. The expedition was conducted from the RV Connecticut at the end of July and was based on coordinates supplied to NOAA from Arne Carr and John Fish who discovered the wreck in the late 1980s.
The Stellwagen expedition deployed an ROV and side scan sonar to collect images of the wreck in order confirm the wrecks identity. Victor stated that although the entire superstructure of the vessel is missing, the wreck appears to be in remarkably good condition with the A-frame, walking beam and twin smoke stacks still standing. He noted a tremendous amount of preservation including an nearly intact rudder that appears to be hard to port possibly due to some type of impact or that the vessel was attempting to turn at the time of its loss. He theorized that the vessel likely foundered and eventually flooded forcing it to the bottom. He noted on the side scan image that the wreckage is sitting flat on the bottom, the bow appears slightly bent, the paddle wheels is in place, and that the smoke stacks are vertical similar to the wreck of the steamer Larchmont in Rhode Island. Victor state that if there were any accommodations below decks, they were likely those of the crew. New evidence suggests that the crew was largely comprised of African American sailors. He added that there is also a tremendous amount of deck and hull planking intact.
The wreck site is home to some very large cod and as a result, is littered with gill nets. Victor noted that at one point in imaging of the wreck, the ROV became entangled in one of these nets requiring a considerable amount of time to extract. Due to the popularity of this shipwreck, NOAA has asked that information concerning its location be kept to a minimum in order to protect the site from unauthorized visits.
Concerning the Boards involvement in the project, Victor stated that there has been some discussion of creating an historic district around this site and others that have been discovered on the bank. Though the site is in federal waters, a district could be extended into state waters. He noted that the site is certainly National Register eligible and that NOAA will be working on a nomination. Ed Bell asked if NOAA would be making the nomination directly. Victor replied that it is his understanding that the nomination would be put together by NOAA, but that it would likely be reviewed by the state. Richard Murray asked how much communication there had been between the Board and NOAA regarding the search for the wreck. Victor replied that there had been some discussion over the past several months regarding survey work in addition to his being invited to take part in the expedition in July.
Victor stated that there a several other wrecks of interest in the sanctuary and that NOAA is planning to investigate some of these in the near future. Ed Bell asked Victor why NOAA seems to have a new interest in identifying and preserving cultural resources. Victor responded that the agency would like to establish a submerged cultural resources department similar to that of the National Park Service. He stated that at a focus group meeting sponsored by NOAAs Office of Ocean Exploration, which he attended last March, archaeology was identified as a top priority in getting people interested in ocean and its resources. He added that the agencys attention to underwater archaeological resources is encouraging and he hopes that it continues.
