2014.03.26 - Seafarer E-155 Recovery Permit Application

7/25/2019 2014.03.26 - Seafarer E-155 Recovery Permit Application

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E-155 Recovery Permit Application

Recovery Permit Application

For E-155 Southern Section

South Brevard County, Florida

Prepared for the Florida Bureau of Archaeological Research

Tallahassee, Florida

By

James J. Sinclair, MA

Project Archaeologist

Seafarer Exploration Corp. March 2014


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Table of Contents

LIST OF FIGURES _______________________________________________________________ 3

ABSTRACT ____________________________________________________________________ 4

E-155D CONTRACT LOCATION ____________________________________________________ 5

SUPPLEMENTAL RESEARCH DESIGN _______________________________________________ 7

ENVIRONMENTAL SETTING ______________________________________________________ 7

MODERN ENVIRONMENT/GEOMORPHOLOGY AND GEOLOGY OF THE BREVARD SHORELIN __ 7

PALEOENVIRONMENT __________________________________________________________ 8

CULTURAL SETTING ____________________________________________________________ 8

PREHISTORIC OVERVIEW ________________________________________________________ 8

EARLY ARCHAIC PERIOD (10,000-7000 B.P.) _________________________________________ 9

MIDDLE ARCHAIC PERIOD (7000-5000 B.P.) ________________________________________ 10

LATE ARCHAIC PERIOD (5000-2500 B.P.) ___________________________________________ 11

POST-ARCHAIC PERIOD (2500-500 B.P.) ___________________________________________ 12

CONTACT PERIOD _____________________________________________________________ 14

HISTORICAL OVERVIEW ________________________________________________________ 15

EARLY SPANISH EXPLORATION __________________________________________________ 15

THE BRITIS PERIOD AND THE SECOND SPANIS PERIOD _______________________________ 16

THE TERRITORIAL PERIOD ______________________________________________________ 17

STATEHOOD AND THE CIVIL WAR ________________________________________________ 17

THE LATE NINETEENTH CENTURY ________________________________________________ 18

THE TWENTIETH CENTURY ______________________________________________________ 20

BREVARD COUNTY HISTORIC SHIPWRECKS ________________________________________ 21

ARCHIVAL RESEARCH __________________________________________________________ 26

THE 1715 SPANISH PLATE FLEET _________________________________________________ 26

SURVEY OF E-155D SOUTHERN SECTION __________________________________________ 31

PREVIOUS ACTIVITIES _________________________________________________________ 49

METHODOLOGY ______________________________________________________________ 54


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RESULTS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA _________________________________________ 56

REFERENCES CITED ____________________________________________________________ 61

INTERPRETATION OF DATA ____________________________________________________ 112

Classes of Artifacts________________________________________________________ 117

Ships Construction Elements__________________________________________________ 117

Armament _________________________________________________________________ 118

Cargo___________________________________________________________________ 121

Ceramics________________________________________________________________ 121

Personal Items ___________________________________________________________ 122

Silver Platters__________________________________________________________________ 122

Conclusion_________________________________________________________________ 124

Sand Tempered Plain Pot Sherd________________________________________________ 125

BOAT & EQUIPMENT ______________________________________________________ 127

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1. Brevard County, FL, location ............................................................................................ 5

Figure 2 E-155 Contract Area .......................................................................................................... 6

Figure 3. Page of manifest from the Santisima Trinidad y Nuestra Seora de la Concepcin listing

FDon Joseph Espinosa de los Monterod as having consigne 257 cowhides and a crate of prsents

(AGI Consulados, 854) ................................................................................................................... 29

Figure 4. Page (detail) of manifest from the Santisima Trinidad y Nuestra Seora de la

Concepcin (AGI Consulados 854) ................................................................................................. 30

Figure 5. Signature page (detail{ of the Santisima Trinidad y Nuestra Seora de la Concepcinsmanifest (AGI Consulados 854) ..................................................................................................... 31

Figure 6. E-155 Prioritized anomalies ............................................................................................ 33

Figure 7. E-155 Prioritized anomalies, Area 1 ............................................................................... 34




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Figure 10. E-155 Prioritized anomalies, Area 4 ............................................................................. 37






Figure 16. E-155 Prioritized anomalies, Area 10 ........................................................................... 43






Figure 22. he 2010-2012 survey vessel during 2010 remote sensing operations ......................... 49

Figure 23. Geometrics G882 Magnetometer, EdgeTech 4200FS Side scan sonar deployment .... 50

Figure 24. Data Acquisition computers in survey vessel ............................................................... 50

Figure 25. Survey data acquisition screen showing side scan imagery data, sensors and

magnetometer data ...................................................................................................................... 51

Figure 26. Side scan sonar imagery mosaic of sonar data collected overlaid onto nautical chart ofarea 1 ............................................................................................................................................. 53

Figure 27. 3D Magnetometer data representation of data collected with G882 magnetometer 53

Figure 28. . Magnetometer data collected during 2010 survey of E-155...................................... 56

Figure 29. Magnetometer data collected during 2010 survey of E-155D ..................................... 57

Figure 30. . Magnetometer & Side Scan Sonar target distribution data collected during survey of

E-155D ........................................................................................................................................... 58

Figure 31. Inscription on silver plate (courtesy of the Florida Bureau of Archaeological Research).

....................................................................................................................................................... 59

ABSTRACTSeafarer Exploration Corp. conducted an historic assessment, terrestrial, and submerged

cultural resources investigation relative to a suspected early 18th-century shipwreck


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located off Melbourne Beach and Indialantic, Brevard County, Florida in an effort to

locate, identify, and assess the potential significance of cultural resources within the

project area E-155D. More specifically the investigation included archival research,

terrestrial cultural resources overview, and a remote sensing survey of BLOCK 1 of E-

155D, in an effort to locate associated shipwreck material, analysis and interpretation of

remote sensing data, followed by report preparation to meet the Florida Bureau ofArchaeological Researchs (FBAR) requirements.

E-155D CONTRACT LOCATION

Starting at a point hereafter referred to as the Point of Beginning and located along the

mean low water line of the Atlantic Ocean at Latitude 28 02.420 North and Longitude 80

32.600 West. Thence run North to a point at Latitude 28 05.300 North and Longitude

80 31.750 West;Thence run west to a point at Latitude 28 05.300 North and Longitude

80 33.050 WestThence run northerly at a distance of .7 of a nautical mile offshore from

the mean low water line approximately 13 nautical miles to a point located at Latitude 28

18.000, North and Longitude 80 35.660 West;Thence run West in a line to a point

located along the mean low water line at Latitude 28 18.000 North and Longitude 80

36.400 West;Thence run southerly, following the sinuosity of the mean low water line

to the Point of Beginning. E-155D is located within the County of Brevard in the State of

Florida. More specifically, it is closely associated with the Melbourne-Satellite Beach

area of Brevard County.

FIGURE 1.BREVARD COUNTY,FL,LOCATION


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FIGURE 2E-155CONTRACT AREA


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SUPPLEMENTAL RESEARCH DESIGNIn 2013 both permitting and contractual issues were resolved to allow further

investigation of this site. The 2012 season was completed following ten (10) years of

exploration, with a remote sensing survey (magnetometer & side scan sonar) of the

southern area of E-155D at closer lane spacing than the previous magnetometerinvestigation of the whole Area of E-155 Contract that was completed in 2004 at the time

when the shipwreck or shipwrecks was/were discovered. The decision to resurvey was

deemed necessary due to subcontractor changes, some technical database problems with

the magnetometer survey performed from 2000 to 2004, better technology presently

available. Following FBAR review of the present report and relevant data from this past

two-years surveys, Seafarer Exploration Corp. is requesting to be granted a recovery

permit for the southern portion of E-155 Contract area where the 1715 Plate Fleet-related

artifacts were found.

ENVIRONMENTAL SETTING

The Mid-Reach of the Brevard County Shore Protection Project is located on the east

coast of Florida south of Cape Canaveral. The Mid-Reach extends from the south end of

Patrick Air Force Base to just north of Indialantic; BLOCK 1 of E-155D Contract Area is

located south of the of the southernmost portion of the Mid-Reach. The length of the

Mid-Reach is approximately 12.5 km (7.78 miles) long. The Mid-Reach incorporates

three municipalities (Satellite Beach (including South Patrick), Indian Harbour Beach,

and Melbourne (including Eau Gallie Beach, and Indialantic) and portions of

unincorporated Brevard County.

MODERN ENVIRONMENT/GEOMORPHOLOGY AND

GEOLOGY OF THE BREVARD SHORELIN

The beaches of Brevard County have experienced variable erosion over the past several

decades. The Mid-Reach has not been re-nourished however due to the presence of near

shore rock. This rock, sometimes referred to as reef rock or live rock are exposures

of the Anastasia Formation. The Anastasia Formation is composed of, a mixture of shell

fragments and quartz grains bound together by calcium carbonate cement (Lovejoy1998:7). Live Rock is the name given to the reefs of tube building polycheate worms

(Phragmatopoma lapidosa) on top of the exposed Anastasia Formation (Barile et al.

2001). The reefs have been extensively mapped throughout the Mid-Reach and vary in

width from 300 feet in the north to sporadic patches in the south. The reefs effect on

shoreline erosion is also variable. As a whole, between 1972-2005, the Mid-Reach has


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exhibited an erosional pattern losing an average of .2 feet per year (USACE 2007).

Erosion near the plotted location of E-155D to the south has averaged 7.8 feet since 1968.

Hurricanes have also contributed and sped up the erosion rates over time. In response to

the 2004 hurricane season, emergency dune restoration was carried out by Brevard

County in 2005 in the Mid-Reach resulting in the placement of over 300,000 cubic yardsof sand and the re-sculpting of dunes throughout the north portion of E-155D project area

(USACE 2007). Behind there-sculpted dunes, sea walls and other coastal construction

has altered the natural dune system throughout the project area.

PALEOENVIRONMENT

Prior to 5000 before present (B.P.) the environment of central Florida was considerably

different from today. In general, water resources were more limited and sea level was

lower than today, although fluctuations in both the water table and sea level did occur.Xeric vegetation dominated, particularly along the upland ridge systems. By 5000 B.P.,

modern wetland habitats had become established and upland vegetation achieved its

present configuration (Watts and Hansen 1988). At this time, the Indian River paleo-

lagoon was re-flooded by sea level transgression, which rose to modern levels from a low

of about 100 m below present at about 18,000 B.P. (Bader and Parkinson 1990). Prior to

5000 B.P., the lagoon was a dry, linear depression where quartz sand, similar to that

which comprises the Atlantic Coastal Ridge, accumulated (Bader and Parkinson

1990:210).

CULTURAL SETTING

PREHISTORIC OVERVIEW

Paleoindian Period (12,000-10,000 B.P.)

Prehistoric native peoples entered Florida at least 12,000 years ago. While there is

abundant archaeological evidence for an early occupation of northern and central Florida

(Milanich 1994), there is only limited evidence for people inhabiting southeast Florida at

this early time. Discoveries of human skeletal remains near Vero Beach in 1915 andMelbourne in 1925 were presumed to be of early origin because of their inferred

association with extinct Pleistocene mammals (Gidley and Loomis 1926; Sellards 1916,

1917). Analysis of the Vero Beach finds by Hrdlika(1918, 1922) concluded that the

human remains were intrusive into Pleistocene deposits. However, more recent analyses

of the skeletal remains (Stewart 1946) and a comparison of the geological context of

those finds with similar discoveries in southwest Florida (Cockrell and Murphy 1978),


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indicate that the original interpretations may have been correct. To date, the Helen Blazes

site (8BR27) is the only archaeological site in the immediate vicinity to be associated

with this time period. Due to changes in hydrology, (e.g., rising sea levels, increased

rainfall and subsequent increase in ground and artesian water) it is probable that

Paleoindian Period settlement or activity areas were close to, or adjacent to, water

sources that may not exist or be accessible in a modern climate (e.g., inundated sites orlands that have been altered as a result of alluvial or aeolian deposition).

EARLY ARCHAIC PERIOD (10,000-7000 B.P.)

The beginning of the archaic period coincides with the onset of the Holocene at

approximately 10,000 B.P. This period can be divided into two horizons, based on

differences in stone tool types: Side-Notched, or Bolen (10,000-9000 B.P.) and Stemmed,

or Kirk (9000-8000 B.P.). Both horizons are well represented in northern and central

Florida (Milanich 1994). The earliest firm evidence for human occupation in southeastFlorida dates to about 10,000-9500 B.P. At the Cutler site in Miami, side-notched stone

projectile points, called Bolen points, were recovered in association with animal bones

and a hearth feature (Carr 1986). Based on radiocarbon dates from a cultural stratum

believed to be associated with the Bolen points, the Cutler site is believed to date to

around 9600 B.P. At this time, south Florida was just emerging from a period that was

much drier than at present (Brooks 1974; Gleason et al. 1974). Lake Okeechobee and the

Everglades did not exist, sea levels were much lower than at present, surface water was

limited, and extensive grasslands probably existed, which may have attracted mammoth,

bison, and other large grazing mammals. This bleak landscape inhibited intensive human

habitation except perhaps along the coast; however, any coastal sites are probably nowinundated by higher sea levels. By the Early Archaic period, or the time that the Cutler

site was occupied, precipitation had begun to increase in frequency and duration,

resulting in an increase in surface water. In addition, sea levels were rising which

inundated formerly dry land off shore. The large Pleistocene mammals died off and

native peoples in southeast Florida adapted their lifestyles to the hunting and gathering of

more modern species. The Kirk Horizon is not well represented on the lower east coast,

although the mortuary pond at Windover in Brevard County may contain a Kirk

component. Radiocarbon dates associated with human bone or wooden artifacts range

from 8120 70 B.P. to 6980 80 B.P. (Doran 2002), placing it at the terminal end of the

Kirk Horizon as it has been defined throughout the rest of the southeastern United States(Chapman 1985; Sherwood et al. 2004). Three possible Kirk Stemmed projectile points

were associated with the burials. The Windover site provides some of the best

information on Early Archaic burial practices and non-lithic material culture. It is a

wetland cemetery, which, when excavated, revealed the remains of 168 individuals along

with numerous perishable items such as bone pins, awls, incised tubes, shell tools and

beads, an antler weight, wooden stakes, cordage, mats, and fabric. The radiocarbon dates

indicate that the interments were made over a long period of time, and suggest that the


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pond was used repeatedly for interments for more than a millennium. The high degree of

preservation of the bodies, and the lack of any evidence for scavenging of the remains by

animals, suggests that they were placed in the cemetery within a few days or even hours

after death (Dickel 2002). The interments were apparently placed in five or six discrete

groups within the pond, and individual clusters may have been marked by stakes (Dickel

2002:80). The presence of marine shells at the site would seem to support the hypothesisthat these people moved from the coast, which at this time was much farther away from

the site than it is today, to the interior on a relatively regular basis. Analysis of

archaeobotanical remains from the site indicate occupation during the late summer-early

fall (Newsom 2002:208; Tuross et al. 1994:297-298).

MIDDLE ARCHAIC PERIOD (7000-5000 B.P.)

A dramatic increase in precipitation and runoff in south Florida is indicated by peat

deposits in the Everglades that began to form about 6000-5000 BP (McDowell et al.1969). This enabled native peoples to expand into formerly inhospitable locations. Sea

levels reached modern levels and may have exceeded them for short periods (Dorsey

1997; Tanner 1991). Modern estuaries began to form and exploitation of coastal

resources began in earnest, particularly along the northern Atlantic coast (Ste. Claire

1990). The expansion of populations into new locations resulted in a variety of settlement

and subsistence strategies, each adapted to local conditions. Sedentary settlements were

established along productive rivers, such as the St. Johns, or in coastal areas in southwest

and northeast Florida (e.g., Russo 1991; Ste. Claire 1990). In other areas, a more mobile

lifestyle was practiced (Austin 1996, 1997). Locally, sea level rise is indicated by the

deposition of coastal marsh mud in the Indian River lagoon at approximately 6000-5000B.P. (Bader and Parkinson 1990). Yet there is limited archaeological evidence for Middle

Archaic occupation of southeast Florida. Pre-ceramic Archaic sites have been

documented in the interior around Lake Okeechobee (Gleason and Stone 1994; Hale

1989:48, 55-56), and one documented Middle Archaic site has been identified at the

Westridge site on Pine Island Ridge in Broward County (Carr et al. 1992). The Gauthier

site in Brevard County contains a Middle Archaic cemetery (Carr and Jones 1981; Sigler-

Eisenberg 1984). This lack of Middle Archaic sites in southeast Florida may be due in

part to their low archaeological visibility. The lack of any lithic raw materials for tool

production in south Florida forced a greater emphasis on the use of perishable materials

such as wood, bone, and shell. The highly acidic soils of the region would have destroyedthese organic materials, leaving very little behind for archaeologists to discover. The

dependence on perishable materials for much of the material culture of Archaic peoples is

reflected by the abundance of organic artifacts recovered from Windover Pond and the

near absence of lithic artifacts (Dickel 2002).


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LATE ARCHAIC PERIOD (5000-2500 B.P.)

By 5000 B.P., the climate and environments of Florida had reached essentially modern

conditions. This allowed further regionalization of cultures throughout Florida, as

individual societies developed increasingly sophisticated adaptations to their localenvironments (Milanich 1994). During the Late Archaic period, the first pottery was

made by the native peoples of Florida. In southern Florida, two separate late Archaic

cultures can be identified archaeologically: the Orange culture and, for lack of a better

term, the Glades Archaic culture. The Orange culture is known primarily from northeast

Florida, including both the Atlantic coast and the St. Johns River drainage basin. The

Orange peoples made a distinctive pottery tempered with fiber. Other artifacts include

whelk shell (Busycon spp.) adzes and conch shell celts (Strombus spp.). It is likely that

theBusycon adzes found in northeast Florida at this time were of local origin, while the

Strombus celts were traded into the area from southeastern Florida (Wheeler 1992). Site

types are generally oyster and coquina shell middens along the coast and freshwater pondsnail middens along the inland rivers and streams. Some coastal shell rings also have

been observed (Newman and Weisman 1992). Recent work in St. Lucie County provides

evidence of a Late Archaic culture in this region. At the Ten Mile Creek project area, four

sites (8SL0007, 8SL1180, 8SL1181, 8SL1182) that have fiber tempered or fiber/mixed

pottery indicative of a Late Archaic component were identified (New South Associates

2003). In Martin County, Orange populations were present and were almost exclusively

coastal (Carr et al. 1995). Only semi-fiber-tempered shards were recovered from the Mt.

Elizabeth site (8MT30), and Orange populations may have migrated to that area from the

Indian River estuary farther north. The Joseph Reed shell ring (8MT13) on Jupiter Island

may represent something of an anomaly as it is Late Archaic in age but possesses aceramic assemblage characterized by spiculate and sand tempered pastes. Although the

Joseph Reed has been damaged by storm surges, it was once probably a constructed ring

made up mostly of oyster shell. In this respect, it seems quite similar to other Orange

period shell rings located farther north (Newman and Weisman 1992). Pepe (Carr et al.

1995) suggests that a separate Late Archaic culture, which he refers to as the Glades

Archaic, also was present in southern Florida, and probably had only limited ties to

the Orange culture (Carr et al. 1995). The presence of this culture is suggested by non-

ceramic bone middens now recognized as typical on nearly every interior tree island or

former tree island and in nearly every marsh or former marsh in southern Florida (e.g.,

Carr and Steele 1993; Ehrenhard et al. 1978, 1979, 1980). Several of these types of sitesalso have been identified in the Loxahatchee Slough and Allapatah Flats of Martin and

Palm Beach Counties (Carr et al. 1995). Faunal remains from these sites are mainly

freshwater species, such as turtle, fish, and pond apple snail, which were plentiful in the

surrounding marshes.


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POST-ARCHAIC PERIOD (2500-500 B.P.)

By 2500 B.P., regional adaptations had become so well established that it is possible for

archaeologists to subdivide the state by geographic areas that share similar archaeological

traits. The Palmer PUD project area is located near the interface of what has been termedthe Indian River region of the East and Central Lakes District (Rouse 1951; Milanich

1994) and the East Okeechobee Culture area (Carr and Beriault 1984). The Indian River

region extends from the Indian River-St. Lucie county line northward along the Atlantic

coast to Merritt Island in Brevard County. The western boundary extends about 20 miles

inland and to the St. Johns River drainage and tributaries. Rouse (1951) referred to the

regional culture as Malabar and this term is still used in some reports (e.g., Sigler-

Eisenberg 1985). Irving Rouse (1951) was the first to describe the archaeological cultures

in the Indian River area, referring to them as Malabar. His chronology paralleled that of

the St. Johns Region with St. Johns Check Stamped pottery indicating the break between

Malabar I and Malabar II. However, there also are significant amounts of sand-temperedpottery in the Indian River area and, instead of indicating influence from adjacent culture

areas, at least some of this sand-tempered pottery appears to have been made from the

same local clays as the St. Johns wares (Espenshade 1983). Cordells (1985) analysis of

pottery from several sites in Brevard County resulted in the ceramic sequence shown in

Table 2 and the sequence appears to hold for other portions of the Indian River region as

well (Milanich 1994:250). The dates assigned to these periods are estimates and have

been extrapolated from Milanichschronology for the entire East and Central Lakes

District (Milanich 1994:247). Cordell takes Rouses original Malabar I Period and

divides it into three sub periods based on changes in ceramic frequencies. Early Period I

(ca. 2500-2000 B.P.) is recognized by the introduction of non-fiber-tempered wares to theceramic assemblages of local native peoples. St. Johns Plain dominates these early

components, but sand-tempered plain also is present in small amounts. Middle Period I

(ca. 2000-1500 B.P.) is distinguished by a substantial increase of sand-tempered plain

ceramics in middens, a decrease in the proportion of St. Johns Plain, and the introduction

(albeit in very small quantities) of Belle Glade Plain at some sites. Late Period 1 (ca.

1500-1250 B.P.) is marked by the return to dominance of St. Johns Plain and the

corresponding decrease of sand-tempered plain pottery. There also is a slight increase in

the amount of Belle Glade Plain. The appearance of St. Johns Check Stamped pottery is

the marker for Period II (ca. 1250-500 B.P.). It, along with St. Johns Plain, is the major

pottery type during this period. Sand- Tempered Plain comprises about 10% of most

assemblages and Belle Glade Plain remains a minority ware.


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500-250 Period III

Introduction of European artifacts. St. Johns Check Stamped

continues.

750-5001000-750

1250-1000

Period II

St. Johns Check Stamped appears in combination with St. Johns Plain. Sand-tempered

plain remains at about 10%. Belle Glade Plain remains a minority type.1500-1250 Late

Period I St. Johns Plain returns to dominance as sand-tempered plain decreases to about

10%. Slight increase in Belle Glade Plain (3%).

1750-1500

2000-1750

Middle Period I

St. Johns Plain is still predominant but sand-tempered plain increases to about 30-40% of

assemblages. Belle Glade Plain present in very small amounts (less than 1%).

2250-2000

2500-2250

Early Period I

Decrease in fiber-tempered pottery. St. Johns Plain is the dominant ware. Minor

representation of sand-tempered plain.

2750-2500

SOURCES: (Carr et al. 1995; Cordell 1985; Milanich 1994).

Both interior and coastal sites are known in the Indian River region. Site types in the

interior include small, special use campsites and larger, multi-component sites that

possess extensive midden deposits and were probably used for permanent habitation.


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Russos (1986, 1988)analysis of faunal remains from interior sites indicates a

dependence on aquatic resources (turtle, ducks, fish, fresh water mussels). Throughout

the post-Archaic period, wetland resources expanded and water sources became deeper

providing suitable habitats for more and larger fish, such as bass and pickerel. However,

during the dry months of the year (winter and spring), these water sources shrank

providing habitat for fish species that favor shallow, muddy bottomed ponds, such asbowfin and gar. Terrestrial animals (deer, raccoon, rabbit) also were exploited, but the

emphasis was clearly on acquiring most of the diet from freshwater wetlands. Coastal

sites were once present in many locations along the Indian River lagoon, the adjacent

uplands, and on the barrier islands. Modern development has destroyed many of these

sites, but a few have been investigated and provide information on costal adaptations. At

present, it appears that the coast was utilized seasonally during the winter and spring

months of the year when interior wetlands were less abundant. The data

indicate that some sites were small, extractive sites occupied by only a few individuals

while other, larger sites served as habitations sites. Marine fish, shellfish (especially

coquina), and some terrestrial animals were exploited for food (Milanich 1994:252-253).

What is unknown at present is how the coastal and interior sites relate to one another. For

example, it is not clear whether the same people occupied both locations during different

parts of the year or whether different groups occupied each area year round.

CONTACT PERIOD

In the Indian River region, the historic period (referred to as Period III) is marked by the

presence of European goods in otherwise native assemblages. The St. Johns ceramic

series remains the dominant native pottery. The native groups encountered by Europeans

at this time on the Atlantic coast were the Ais. The Ais appear to have been an

independent tribe, but large amounts of St. Johns pottery and other artifacts from the

Indian River and St. Johns areas during this time suggests that their cultural influences

may have come from the north instead. Dickinson also observed that the Jeaga were

forced to hand over shipwrecked cargo to the Ais, their neighbors to the north (Andrews

1985). Of course, European contact marked the beginning of the end for the native

populations throughout Florida. It has been estimated that there were about 20,000

natives in southern Florida when the Spanish arrived (Milanich and Fairbanks 1980). By

1763, when the English gained control of Florida, the population had been reduced to

several hundred. These tribal remnants were reported to have migrated to Cuba with theSpanish (Romans 1775). However, it is likely that the Spanish Indians who raided

Indian Key in 1840 were the mixed-blood descendants of the Calusa, and/or refugees

from the northern Florida missions that were raided by the English in the early 18th

century (Sturtevant 1953). These Spanish-Indians became part of the Seminoles, who had

fled into southern Florida after the 1838 Battle of Okeechobee.


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HISTORICAL OVERVIEW

EARLY SPANISH EXPLORATION

For nearly half a century, ships of various origins have passed through the coastal waters

of what is now Brevard County. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, the region

served as an important stage for many early European expeditions in North America.

Some historians believe that the Italian captain, John Cabot, sailed south along the

Brevard coast during his 1498 explorations (Dovell 1952; Eriksen 1994). There is also

evidence that Spanish slave traders raided the indigenous villages of the coast, for when

Juan Ponce de Leon came to Florida he found a native who understood Spanish. Ponce de

Leon left Puerto Rico on March 3, 1513, with three ships. After sailing on a

northwesterly course for 30 days, the ships landed either north of Cape Canaveral

(Milanich 1995) or in the vicinity of modern day Melbourne Beach (Eriksen 1994;Gannon 1996). The Cape is found on many sixteenth century maps and is one of the

oldest place names in North America (Eriksen 1994). Ponce remained at this initial

landing place for six days before pulling anchor and sailing southward to explore the

remainder of the peninsula (Gannon 1996; Milanich 1995). The Gulf Stream, located off

the Brevard coast, was an important thoroughfare for the transportation of New World

supplies to Europe. Old World powers engaged in a bitter struggle to control it. Spanish

treasure galleons rode the current from Havana through the Bahama Channel, passing the

coast of Florida en route to Spain. Wrecks were common in the treacherous shoals around

Cape Canaveral and the local Indian tribe, the Ais, often recovered lost cargoes. The

Spanish crown realized the importance of this trade route, so when they heard that the

French were developing a colony, Fort Caroline, on the St. Johns River near Jacksonville

they decided to act. In 1565, Pedro Menndez de Aviles, a highly respected officer in the

Spanish navy, was issued the task of eradicating the French influence in the area

(Milanich 1995). Cape Canaveral became an early target in this larger effort. By the time

the Spanish ships arrived, the French had already built a wooden fort on a small island

anchored at the entrance of the St. Johns River (present-day Jacksonville), and a fleet of

ships had arrived from France a few days before, carrying, weapons, supplies, tools and

hundreds of soldiers and would-be colonists. Challenged, the French cut their anchor

cables and gave chase to the Spanish who found refuge within a natural inlet (St.

Augustine). As the tide was low, the French ships were unable to cross the large sandbar

and decided to wait for more favorable conditions to enter the inlet and engage the

Spaniards, but a hurricane blew over the region, pushing the French ships toward the

shoals of Cape Canaveral to the south where they were all lost. While most onboard those

ships survived, they were tricked by Pedro Menndez de Avils into surrendering and

were quickly put to the swords. Menndez and his men then marched north toward the

French fort. Under pressure from both a naval and a ground forces, the Frenchmen, who

numbered about 170, eventually surrendered to Menndez, but not before 132 of them


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were killed as they came out of their lodgings as the Spaniards swarmed into the forts

encampment (Lyon 1974:113-124). The expedition to Cape Canaveral was a victory for

the Spanish and expanded their knowledge of the region that later became Brevard

County (Eriksen 1994; Milanich 1995). Over the course of the seventeenth century, the

Spanish became more familiar with the eastern coast of Florida including present-day

Brevard County. In 1605, the Spanish sent a delegation under the command of AlvaroMexia to the Brevard area. The diplomat was charged with placating the aggressive Ais

and mapping the region. His mission was considered a success. Mexia was named an

honorary chief of the tribe and the Indian and Banana Rivers (which the Spanish called

Rio de Ais and Ulumay Lagoon) were explored and recorded. His maps detail many

Indian settlements along the shores of Mosquito Lagoon (at the north end of the Banana

River). Some have speculated that Mexia and his entourage also spread orange seeds

along the banks of the Indian River (Eriksen 1994). While these developments were

significant, they did not encourage the Spanish to sponsor further settlement of Florida.

The waters along the eastern coast of Florida continued to present dangers to sailing

vessels in the eighteenth century. On July 24, 1715, a flotilla of eleven Spanish shipscarrying 14 million pesos in gold, silver, and jewels left Havana for Europe. A few days

into the voyage, on 31 July 1715, eleven ships wrecked along the East Florida coast

between St. Lucie County and St. Johns County. Approximately 700 sailors perished and

an additional 1500 became castaways. The Ais aided the Spaniards by providing them

with supplies and instructions for gathering food in the dunes. The Spanish government,

desperate to recover the lost treasure, established an encampment of salvers in the

vicinity of present-day Sebastian State Park. Salvers recovered only one-third of the lost

cargo. In the mid-twentieth century, treasure hunters made a concerted effort to finish the

job (Burgess and Clausen 1982; Eriksen 1994).

THE BRITISH PERIOD AND THE SECOND SPANISH PERIOD

Through much of the eighteenth and early-nineteenth centuries, white men possessed a

poor understanding of Brevard County which was then known as the Mosquito Coast.

When the British came under control of Florida after the Seven Years War ended in 1763,

new explorations occurred (Figure 5). The botanist John Bartram and his son William

documented the region in the course of their search for the headwaters of the St.

Johns River (Eriksen 1994; Tebeau 1971). Their reports, which depicted a sprawlingwilderness full of alligators and Indians, inspired no new attempts at settling the area. In

1783, the Treaty of Paris restored Florida to Spain, whose control of the territory was

quite tenuous over the following decades (Tebeau 1971). Immigrants from the

Indian tribes north of Florida had replaced those who succumbed to European diseases

and warfare. They now numbered from five to six thousand in the colony. Zespedes, the

Spanish Governor, wrote to the king in 1785 that isolated groups of Americans were


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trickling into Florida (Eriksen 1994; Tebeau 1971). The Crown may have viewed

themselves as the ruler of Florida, but in truth their position in the peninsula was

dependent upon an alliance with local Indian tribes which held a much greater influence

on affairs (Frank 2005).

THE TERRITORIAL PERIOD

Even after the American acquisition of Florida in 1821, the Mosquito Coast was the

realm of Indians. Seeking to establish a boundary between white settlement and Indian

territory, the Americans designated four million acres of the interior of Florida as a

reservation for the Seminoles. This area included the southwestern corner of modern day

Brevard County (Mahon 1985). Two counties, Escambia to the west and St. Johns to the

east, were also formed. In 1824, the area encompassing most of east-central Florida

including Brevard County was organized as Mosquito County. Colonel James Gadsen led

a survey party through the eastern portion of the county in 1825 to find a route for a roadfrom St. Augustine to what is now Dade County. Several dozen plantations, some of

which were holdovers from the previous Spanish period, operated along the Indian River.

The majority of new settlement in Florida remained focused on the northern part of the

state with the exception of Key West (Eriksen 1994; Fernald and Purdum 1992).

Increasing tensions between American settlers and the Seminoles erupted into the Second

Seminole War. Mosquito County became a prominent theater in this conflict. On

Christmas day 1835, Indian forces razed plantations in the area. Along with a severe

freeze in 1835, the war decimated Mosquito Countys population as they fled to safe

havens outside the county (Shofner 1995:36). The military erected forts throughout the

Brevard area. Six hundred mounted militiamen, under General Joseph Hernandezs

command, constructed Fort Ann a mile south of modern day Haulover Canal. Camp

Hernandez was erected south of present day Scottsmoor in northern Brevard. General

Hernandez collected his troops at the camps on January 3, 1838 and proceeded to

advance south along the eastern coast. Their path followed the high ground along the

western side of the Indian River Lagoon before swinging west to meet Fort Taylor on

Lake Winder then southeast paralleling what is now I-95. Of all the military trails created

in Brevard, this is the only one historians are able to pinpoint accurately (Eriksen

1994:38-39). Naval forces were used during the Second Seminole War, but there appears

to have been no sizable expeditions along the coast of todays BrevardCounty. The war

ended in 1842, and on March 14, 1844, Saint Lucie County (whose name soon changedto Brevard County) was carved out of Mosquito County (Carter 1962:994-995;

Dunn 1998:34).

STATEHOOD AND THE CIVIL WAR


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On March 3, 1845, Florida became the 27th state admitted to the Union (Eriksen 1994).

As in centuries before, the coastal waters of eastern Florida remained treacherous. The

state therefore erected a lighthouse on Cape Canaveral in 1848 (Wooley 2002:9-10).

During this period, development of St. Lucie County was hindered because of the lack of

adequate roads in the region. The Indian River, which was more of an elongated lagoon,

served as the primary means of transportation (Shofner 1995:63-64). Hoping that a newname might invite wider interest in the region, Saint Lucie County was renamed Brevard

in 1855. Its namesake was Judge Theodore Washington Brevard who had been state

comptroller for Florida. The new county encompassed more than 7000 square miles and

had its seat of government at Fort Pierce, although most simply referred to it as Indian

River (Eriksen 1994; Shofner 1995:62). John Houston established the first permanent US

settlement in south Brevard County, Arlington, in 1854. This town was located on land

fronting the Indian River and Elbow Creek (Eriksen 1994). Between 1850 and 1860, the

population of Brevard County doubled although there were still only 267 people in

residence. Most were cattlemen and subsistence farmers (Shofner 1995:65). The Civil

War began another chapter of intrigue along the Coast of Brevard County as blockaderunners attempted to transport goods in and out of Confederate Florida. They received no

help from the Cape Canaveral lighthouse which, along with other lights, was ordered to

be extinguished early in the war. The keeper at Canaveral, Mills Burnham, was a Union

sympathizer. Fearing that the lamp and other mechanisms might be apprehended by

Confederates, he boxed them up and buried them in his orange grove. Union vessels

patrolled the waters along Brevard County throughout the duration of the war. From New

Smyrna (Volusia County) southward, approximately 32 blockade-running vessels were

captured between 1862 and 1865 (Shofner 1995:70). Aside from the occasional blockade

runners, Brevard County was far removed from the action of the war but still played a

visible role in the war as a supplier of beef. The Confederate government estimated thatthree fourths of the cattle from Floridawhich had become the main supply of beef for

the Confederacywas from Brevard and Manatee Counties. Settlers in Brevard also

engaged in salt production for the Confederate Army (Shofner 1995:72).

THE LATE NINETEENTH CENTURY

Brevard County remained one of Floridas least populated counties in the decades

following the Civil War. The region was far removed from the growing centers of

population in the state and overland transportation routes were still poorly developed. In

the years before the arrival of the railroad, water transportation was the dominant mode

of travel in Brevard County (Brown 1991:13-14) (Figure 6). Until the railroad arrived in

the 1880s, the Indian River was the primary corridor of transportation into the region.

Those were the days when a mans approach and arrival were heralded by the cut and

rig of his sail, wrote onehistorian (Nance 1962:258-259). Nevertheless, there were

individuals who saw opportunity in this frontier. Titusville, once a small cluster of


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settlers, became more prominent in the 1870s when citizens elected it as the permanent

seat of government. By the 1880s, steamships were traveling the Indian River with

regularity (Nance 1962:258-259). They hauled lumber in and agricultural products out of

the region in the years before the railroad (Eriksen 1994:95-96). The population of the

Indian River area was expanding due to a solid economic base of agriculture and fishing

(Eriksen 1994). In addition to these stable sources of income, the occasional shipwreckoffered a bonus of sorts. Following the wreck of the steamerLadona in 1870, the coastal

residents of Brevard gathered the lost cargo which consisted of French shoes (Wooley

2002:9-10). Many of the early settlers acquired lumber by collecting driftwood and other

goods from shipwrecks (Nance 1962:257-258). Other wrecks offered cloth and consumer

goods (Wooley 2002:9-10).

Brevard County Population.

Date Population Date Population

1860 246 1930 13,283

1870 1,216 1940 16,142

1880 1,478 1950 23,653

1890 3,401 1960 111,435

1900 5,158 1970 230,006

1910 4,717 1980 272,959

1920 8,505 1990 398,978

Despite the popularity of oceanfront living in the current day, settlers to Brevard Countyin the late 19th century were most interested in settling the inland areas. Settlement in this

era was situated around the Indian River. In 1880, Melbourne, founded by Richard W.

Goode, obtained a post office. Titusville was chosen as a stop on the Jacksonville, Tampa

and Key West Railway in 1885. Columbus Willard established Cocoa in 1882 and by

1887 the town had six stores and was quickly expanding around its deep-water landing.

In 1890, a group of wealthy Harvard graduates founded the 18,000 acre Canaveral Club,

which is now the Merritt Island National Wildlife Preserve. In 1893, the Flagler East

Coast Railway line came to Titusville and Eau Gallie. In 1895, a double blast of freezing

temperatures devastated the areas citrus industry. The orange and pineapple groves

recovered by 1897. The economy of the area boomed with the rejuvenated citrus industryand the new railway. In 1899, with the aid of a new state road building fund, Brevard

County began a road building campaign. During this project many Indian shell middens

and mounds were borrowed for shell that was then crushed and hard packed over

palmetto fiber. As the turn of the century approached, Brevard County had a population

of 5,158 people, a new road system, and 35 public schools (Eriksen 1994). Extensive as

the Brevard County coastline was, an ocean port failed to develop until the 20thcentury.

The main reason was geography, as there were no navigable channels that connected the


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sea with the north-south Indian River. In the late-nineteenth and early twentieth centuries,

attempts were made to connect the two (Eriksen 1994:132, 155). By the late 1910s the

Sebastian Inlet was somewhat navigable although it had to be dredged often. County

residents petitioned for a harbor at Cape Canaveral but their plea went unfulfilled

(Eriksen 1994:156-160).

THE TWENTIETH CENTURY

Brevard County was in the midst of a massive program of internal improvements during

the first twenty years of the new century. Municipal governments constructed water

towers, sewage lines, and new roads. The county purchased a large trenching machine in

1911 and began to drain the floodplain east of the St. Johns to open land for new

development. The Dixie Highway route of 1915 brought an infusion of tourists to the

area. In 1917, Brevard achieved its modern day dimension when the southern portions of

the county became St. Lucie and Okeechobee counties and the western portion OsceolaCounty (Fernald and Purdum 1992). The center of population in the county shifted from

Titusville in the north to Eau Gallie, Cocoa, and Melbourne in the south. In 1920, 1445

people lived in Cocoa, 1361 people resided in Titusville, and 533 people called

Melbourne home (Table 2). A bridge constructed from Cocoa to

Merritt Island opened a link to the many small communities on the coast. Another toll

bridge from Melbourne to Merritt Island followed four years later and by the mid-

twenties four bridges spanned the river. New developments sprouted up along the

beaches as result of these bridges (Eriksen 1994). Canova Beach was one such

development. Around 1923, Carlos Canova of Eau Gallie had aspirations to establish a

marine biology laboratory on his oceanside property. After the completion of the bridge

from Eau Gallie to the beach, he abandoned those plans and opened Canova Beach which

consisted of a hotel, fishing pier, and casino (Shofner 1996:40, 47) (Figure 7). Canova

intended his resort to be quiet, non-alcoholic, and rustic (Kjerulff 1972:97). After the

Eighteenth Amendment prohibited alcohol sales, the inlets along the Indian River once

again became smuggling hotbeds. The Chicago gangster Al Capone coordinated rum

running from the Bahamas to the States at a small hideaway in Eau Gallie (Eriksen 1994).

Also well-known was Captain William H. McCoy, a former steamboat captain from Eau

Gallie. The expression the real McCoy originated during this period as a reference to

the quality of his products (Eriksen 1994:164, 169-170). After the Stock Market crash of

1929, the numbers of tourists visiting Brevard dramatically waned. This decline crippledthe economy and bankrupted the government. The area received aid from the Civil Works

Administration (CWA) which employed 800 people from December 1933 to March 1934

to repair roads, build schools, and excavate Indian mounds. In 1935, the Works Progress

Administration replaced the CWA. This agency constructed the Canaveral port and the

Melbourne airport and dredged the Intracoastal Waterway from Cumberland Sound in

Georgia to Miami in 1936. As World War II approached in 1939, the military chose land


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south of Cocoa Beach to build the Banana River Naval Air Station (Eriksen 1994).

Shortly after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, German submarines became

active off the coast of Florida. They sunk several tankers and cargo ships early in the war.

Brevards coastline was soon littered with the wreckage of the commercial ships, and

crewmen from sunken ships were plucked from ocean waters or found exhausted on the

beaches, wrote one historian (Eriksen 1994). On one exceptionally active day, threemerchant ships were torpedoed off of Cape Canaveral (Stone 1988:52). After the

completion of the Banana River and Melbourne airbases in 1942, shipping lanes were

patrolled by Navy airplanes. Later in that year, beach patrols were established to monitor

the horizon and blackouts were initiated at inland communities as a preventative measure

against attacks. By the end of the war, German subs had torpedoed 25 ships between

Miami and Daytona Beach (Eriksen 1994:194-196). In 1949, the U.S. Air Force

developed a long range missile testing ground at the former Banana River Air Station.

The base was renamed Patrick Air Force Base in 1950 and was the sight of experimental

launches of hybrid rockets. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration began

operations on the Cape in 1958 and in 1963 the agency received 88,000 acres on MerrittIsland on which to build the Kennedy Space Center. A complex of more than 50

buildings was constructed on the island including the largest building in the world, a 52-

story rocket assembly hangar. The space industry had a drastic effect on the area. Brevard

County grew by 371 percent from 1950 to 1960 and the population doubled again during

the 1960s (Tebeau 1971).

BREVARD COUNTY HISTORIC SHIPWRECKS

There has been documented maritime activity in Brevard County since the early 16th century.Since that time, there have been thousands of shipwrecks along the Florida coast and Brevard.

Brevard Countysmaritime history is evident in the waters along Melbourne Beach and

Indialantic. Bob Gross, historian at the Florida Historical Society and a longtime resident of

Brevard County, shared information about shipwrecks in this area. Gross knowledge comes from

personal experiences as well as extensive research on the subject in local newspapers. Gross

knew of two possible wrecks in the vicinity of the current project area. The first was a Spanish

wreck that dated to the early to mid-eighteenth century and the second was the 1928 wreck of a

ship called the Oraca (Gross, personal communication, 2006; 2010). Gross reported that artifacts

of Spanish origin had been found on the shore and in the water along Melbourne Beach, in the

vicinity of Spessard Holland Park, Melbourne Beach, and Canova Beach, Indialantic, in the

1960s. During that decade, Gross (who was then a boy) knew a gentleman who had a box ofSpanish artifacts that he had collected at Canova Beach. The collector is now deceased. Gross

claimed to have found a few artifacts along the beach and in the water during the same period, but

reported that they have since been misplaced. Gross description of the location of these various

recoveries of Spanish artifacts coincided with the general location of the current project area

(Spessard Holland Park, Melbourne Beach and Canova Beach). He speculated that the wreck

dated to no later than the first half of the eighteenth century based on what he described as a

Pillar Dollar found near the old pier at Canova Beach. Gross also remembers seeing a salvage


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boat working off Spessard Holland Park back in the early 1960s (Gross, personal communication,

22 December 2010). Newspaper reports from December 1928 described the wreck of the cruiser

Oraca along Canova Beach. The wreck occurred on the evening of December 5 after an engine

backfired and set the ship aflame. The crew of five attempted to fight the blaze with fire

extinguishers but they were unsuccessful. They ignited flares and abandoned ship. In the

meantime, keepers of the Cape Canaveral lighthouse and observers along Canova Beach had

noticed the flares from the sinking ship. The lighthouse keeper telephoned a local fisherman who

hurried to the scene as residents of Canova Beach notified the chief of police. The fisherman

rescued one survivor from the water. Another survivor appeared on the beach near Melbourne

sometime thereafter. In the meantime, the chief of police at Melbourne had requested aid from the

Coast Guard base in Fort Lauderdale. Five patrol boats were ordered to Canova Beach. Despite

the efforts of the fisherman and the Coast Guard, the three remaining sailors were not found alive.

The body of one of them later washed ashore near Melbourne. The other two were never

recovered (New York Times 6 December 1928; CocoaTribune 13 December 1928). Newspaper

accounts do not describe what the vessel was transporting. Nor do they describe the ships port or

origin or its destination. Records of the Fort Lauderdale Coast Guard base are not available. Local

histories do not provide specific information on wrecks in the Canova Beach area or the

Melbourne Beach area. Existing accounts indicate that the wreck of the Oraca occurred along

Canova Beach. TheFlorida Star described that the wreck was a short distance off shore between

Eau Gallie and Melbourne. TheNew York Times was more specific, noting that the ship was

located five miles off Canova Beach. Also, the latter account mentions that residents at Canova

Beach were able to see the flare signals sent up by the crew of the Oraca (New York Times 6

December 1928; Cocoa Tribune 13 December 1928). Finally, an entry in the 1929 volume of

Merchant Vessels of the United States (MVUS) lists the Orca as lost by fire on December 6, 1928

(United Stated Department of Commerce [USDC] 1929). It should be noted that newspaper

accounts referred to the ship as the Oraca while the MVUS source refer to the ship as the Orca.

Regardless of spelling, the records refer to the same ship. While further information on the actual

wreck of the cruiser Oraca and its crew has not been found, other details relating to the vessel are

available in theMerchant Vessels of the UnitedStates volumes from the period. This informationtells that the Orca was built in Neponset, Massachusetts, in 1917 as a 260-horsepower gas yacht.

The Orca was based out of New York City during the first half of the 1920s. After 1926, the

Orca is described as a fishing vessel. In the years immediately preceding its demise along Canova

Beach, the vessel had undergone improvements that raised its horsepower to over 450. This

alteration coincides with its transfer of ownership from Robert W. Thompson of Edgewater, New

Jersey to John Little of Jacksonville, Florida. When the Orca was lost in 1928, the owner was

A.C. Hardy. Information on the various owners of the Orca over time is minimal. Of Robert W.

Thompson (the owner as of 1926) and John Little (the owner as of 1927), nothing has been

discovered in census records and national newspapers of the era as well as Jacksonville local

histories and business directories. However, information has been found on A.C. Hardy who

appears to have been fairly prominent in the realm of marine engineering. He was an editor ofvolumes on the subject and a member of the Institute of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers

(New York Times 20 November 1927). During the 1920s and later, his opinion was sought on a

number of issues dealing with marine architecture (New York Times 17 January 1928;New York

Times 30 January 1928). Although the likelihood seems high that this A.C. Hardy was the same

individual of Jacksonville, Florida who is listed as the ownerof the Orca in the USDC source

from 1929, no document discovered during the course of this research has indicated with

certainty that they are the same individual. Harry Goode, Mayor of Melbourne, a lifelong resident


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of that city, also remembers hearing of Spanish artifacts being found around Spessard Holland

Park as well as north and south of that location; he also knows that old iron cannon were

recovered along that coast and melted down during WWII (Harry Goode, personal

communication 2003).

Brevard County Shipwreck Inventory (Offshore; Cape Canaveral to Melbourne)

Date Name/Type Information

1551 San Nicolas (Nao) 200 tons, wrecked near Ais (The

coast of the Ais tribe stretches from

Cape Canaveral to St. Lucie Inlet)

1554 San Estevan (Nao) Sank near Ais

1556 The Armada of Nueva Espaa Ais

1563 La Madelena (Galleon) Wrecked on a shoal near Cape

Canaveral

Before 1564 Three ships of Juan Menndez Coast of Ais

1565 Three ships of Jean Ribaults fleet Cape Canaveral or north of

Before 1570 Vizcayo (Ship) Wrecked near Ais

Before 1570 El Mulato (Urca) At Ais

1571 or 1572 Two ships Off Cape Canaveral

1572 Two small tenders of Pedro 1 wrecked near Cape Canaveral

Menendez de Aviles 1 wrecked in the province of Ais

1582 Spanish merchant (Nao) Lost off Cape Canaveral

1589 Spanish ship Wrecked at Cape Canaveral

1592 Frigate Sank on the coast near Cape

Canaveral

1618 Almiranta of Honduras 10 leagues (30 miles) south of Cape

Canaveral

1715 Spanish Plate Fleet c. 11 ships

1773 Liberty (Schooner) Rio d Ais

1778 Otter (British naval sloop) Lost off Cape Canaveral

1835 Noble (Brig) Went ashore near Cape Canaveral


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1870 Col. J.T. Sprague (Schooner) Wrecked near Cape Canaveral

1871 Pomona (Brig) Stranded 12 miles south of Cape

Canaveral (South Cocoa Beach)

1871 S.W. Walsh (Brig) Stranded 12 miles south of Cape


1871 H. Burg (Brig) Stranded 12 miles south of Cape


1880 City of Vera Cruz (Wooden hulled Located at 28 43.115, 080 22.752

brigantine steamship)

1890 Ethel (Schooner) Foundered off Cape Canaveral

1891 Orrie V. Drisco (Schooner) Lost off Cape Canaveral

1913 Huntress (Gas vessel, yacht) Burned at Cape Canaveral

1918 Lizzie E. Dennison (Schooner) Stranded at Hetzel Shoal

1925 Mohican (Steamer) Burned off Cape Canaveral;

Located at 28 23.900, 080 32.200

1928 Orca Burned off Canova Beach

1930 Dunham Wheeler Foundered off Melbourne in 60

(5-mast schooner) feet of water; Located at 28 11.166,080 19.666

1942 Key West (Oil vessel) Burned at Cocoa Beach

(WWII)


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1942 Elizabeth Massey (British freighter) Located at 28 09.166,

(WWII) 080 00.666

1942 Cities Service Empire (Steam tanker) Located at 28 23.792,

(WWII) 080 02.799

1942 Korsholm (Freighter) Located at 28 12.350,

080 28.650

1942 Laertes (Dutch freighter) Located at 28 28.670,

known as the Dutch Wreck (WWII) 080 21.605

1942 Ocean Venus (British freighter) Located at 28 23.391,

known as the Lead Wreck (WWII) 080 17.324

1942 Leslie (Freighter) Located at 28 36.211,

080 16.363

1952 Jackie Faye (Oil vessel, steel hull) Foundered two miles

offshore, five miles north

of Melbourne

1952 Helen C (Oil vessel) Burned off Cocoa

1959 Capt. Tap (Oil vessel) Foundered off Cape

Canaveral

1977 Miss Eileen (Oil vessel) Foundered off Cape

Canaveral

Sources: (Barnette 2003; Berman 1972; Marx 1985; Singer 1998).


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ARCHIVAL RESEARCH

THE 1715 SPANISH PLATE FLEET

Eleven of the twelve known ships that comprised the 1715 Plate Fleet were driven ashore

and sunk by the July 30-31, 1715 hurricane and scattered along the East coast of Florida.

One particular deposition by a survivor, recorded by a royal court notary, stated that he

floated on a hatch cover for three days in sight of land; this deposition is in the

Contratacin section of the Archivo General de Indias (AGI), Seville, Spain:

... Captain Sebastian Mendez, pilot of the ship...he departed from Havana on the 24th

day of July in company of the Galleons and the Flota, and he was lost on Wednesday the

31st, at two o'clock in the morning, because of a hurricane that came on from the east-

northeast so strongly that although he has sailed the seas for many years and suffered

through many tempests he has never seen another like it for violence, and his ship and all

the rest were lost, some before and some after Palmar de Ays (Cape Canaveral),at 28

degrees 10 minutes (NorthLatitude)...in an area nine leagues (36 nautical miles or 41.42

statute miles)*from north to south...

*During the late 17th-century and first quarter of the 18th-century, one Spanish nautical

league was equal to 4 nautical miles; 17.5 Spanish leagues were equal to 1 degree of

latitude.

Other historical data shows there were visual reports of shipwrecks and scattered

wreckage in the wake of this hurricane northwest toward the lower mouth of the Banana

River which is at 28 degrees 08 minutes. The southern area of E-155D is just south of thelower mouth of the Banana River. Artifacts have been found both north and south of this

location by beachcombers for many years, and many cannons and anchors from this area

were recovered during the 1930s and 940s, sold for scrap metal or sold to individuals,

restaurants, motels, and public parks, across Florida, as revealed by Harry Goode, Mayor

of Melbourne (personal communication, 2003). Over the past fifty years, five to six

wrecks have been located and tentatively identified as having being part of the 1715 Plate

Fleet or as contemporaneous salvage vessels. Artifacts from these ships have been

recovered in projects conducted before the development of current underwater state-of-

the-art scientific archaeological technologies and techniques (de Bry 1995).

It has long been recognized by scholars, archaeologists and the historians that if one of

the as-yet to be located ships from the 1715 Fleet or other yet unidentified vessels were

found relatively in a good state of in situpreservation with a high degree of integrity, it

would present an unique opportunity for educational institutions, State and local

communities, for undertaking archaeological investigations using state-of-theart

equipment and technologies; conservation of the cultural material and surviving elements

of ship architectural remains would be done using the latest conservation techniques,


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such as the one outlined by Texas A & M Universitys conservation team. Studying the

finds for scholarly purposes, placing the artifacts in their historical context for

public/student education, appreciation of the rich history of Florida and European

colonies of the Americas, assembling artifacts in a non-profit museum collection

environment, not only for display but also for research all in a facility within the State of

Florida, are the stated goals of Seafarer Exploration Corp. Such a collection would not bedispersed and would remain whole for present and future generations of researchers to

study. Seafarer Exploration Corp. subscribes to the principle that any significant cultural

material recovered as mutually agreed upon with the State of Floridas Bureau of

Archaeological Research should be for the benefit of the public at large. This project is

being carried out in compliance with these principles and with private funding.

The area in which recent finds are located is within 4.8 km (3 miles) of Florida's shores

more or less, and are thus within the area in which the State of Florida has ownership

and/or control of abandoned shipwrecks, debris, or abandoned cargo, under the FederalAbandoned Shipwreck Act. The recent finds south of Cape Canaveral indicate that

remains of one or more of the missing 1715 Plate Fleet vessels may in fact be present in

this area. The excellent state of preservation of the artifacts found on this particular site,

such as the pistol with working parts and intact wooden grip, containing two lead shot

wired together (split shot), dated 1709 and bearing the stamped name of a gunsmith

known to have worked in Mexico then, two silver ornate communion or platters/chargers

inscribed with name of a Spanish noble woman, a silver dagger or knife handle, a silver

miniature cannon, an iron cannon, many other period artifacts including ceramic, iron and

copper-based fasteners, and wooden element of ship structures and fittings, all suggest

one or more historic shipwrecks. This particular shipwreck or shipwrecks is/are located ina deep layer of heavy anaerobic clay, covered with sandy, marl seabed and layers of sea

shells; low visibility and the presence of sharks in murky waters contribute to the difficult

task of exploring and investigating. However, these conditions suggest to Seafarer

Exploration Corp.'s archaeologists and biologist / conservator the possibility of excellent

in situpreservation of the material culture contained within the site.

This has created an unprecedented opportunity for the use of state-of-the-art

archaeological techniques to study this site and implement a systematic program of

archaeological and environmental investigation of the site and surrounding areas. A

comprehensive research design, survey, testing, conservation and study of the artifacts,

and as Seafarer Exploration Corp. has insisted upon, the retention of the majority of theunique artifacts not represented in the State of Floridas collection from other shipwreck

sites, will allow for continuing research, preservation, and public benefits through public

outreach programs by Seafarer Exploration Corp. or other recognized institutions (such as

non-profit museum display).


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Ongoing Research on Doa Juana Isabel Chaves Espinosa de los Monteros

The Espinosa de los Monteros family originates from the small locality of the same name

in Cantabria. The village (N 43 04 37.74 W 03 33 08.78) is located southeast of

Santander. The origin of the name of this village is linked to the Hunt Masters of the

royal Court of Castile who traditionally originated from there. To reward the people fromthis locality (first simply named Espinosa) for their loyal service to the Court, de los

Monteros was addedto the place name. Los Monteros designates persons who

administer royal hunting grounds. The Espinosa de los Monteros family expanded

throughout the entire Iberian Peninsula, and many members of this illustrious family

were decorated with the Order of Alcantara, the Order of Calatrava, and the Order of

Carlos III.

Archival evidence reveals that a Captain Don Francisco de Chaves (sometimes spelled

Chabez) Espinosa de los Monteros but the relationship, if any, has not been established,

although it must be kept in mind that in Spain, the name of the husband is always first,

followed by the family name of the wife, in this case Espinosa de los Monteros. Capt.Don Francisco de Chaves Espinosa de los Monteros is a possible relative; he was listed as

residing in Sant Domingo in 1711 and was involved in a legal procedure pertaining to the

ship he owned, theNuestra Seora del Rosario San Francisco y las Animas(AGI,

Contratacin 668); he was present in Veracruz in 1715. A Don Joseph Espinosa de los

Monteros consigned merchandises, including a box of presents in Veracruz aboard the

Santissima Trinidad y Nuestra Seora de la Concepcin on February 1st, 1715; the

master of the ship was Don Juan Antonio de Laviosa (AGI, Consulados 854).


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FIGURE 3.PAGE OF MANIFEST FROM THE SANTISIMA TRINIDAD Y NUESTRA SEORA DE LA CONCEPCINLISTINGDON JOSEPH ESPINOSA DE LOS MONTEROS AS HAVING CONSIGNED 257COWHIDES AND A CRATE OF PRESENTS

(AGICONSULADOS,854)

.


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FIGURE 4.PAGE (DETAIL)OF MANIFEST FROM THE SANTISIMA TRINIDAD Y NUESTRA SEORA DE LACONCEPCION (AGICONSULADOS 854)

The Espinosa de los Monteros seem to have been well established in New Spain

(Mexico), and still present around 1800. A captain Espinosa de los Monteros was with

the 2ndCompany of Nueva Vizcaya (New Biscay), which capital is Victoria de Durango.

Numerous silver mines are located in this region. Foremost was the Royal Silver Mine of

Chalchihuites, followed by the Minas de Coreto, Minas de Mapimi, Minas de Chindea,

Minas de Santa Barbara, Minas de Guanacevi , Minas de Topia, Minas de San Andrs,

Minas de Dihastla, Minas de Maloya, and Minas de Pnico. It was a fashionable and easy

thing for affluent families in this region to commission personalized silverware, silver

chargers, silver platters, and silver dishes, engraved with their names before returning to


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Spain. The family is also present in Mizquiahuala y Tetepango where we find one

important mayor in 1758 by the name of Bartolom Espinosa de los Monteros.

FIGURE 5.SIGNATURE PAGE (DETAI){OF THE SANTISIMA TRINIDAD Y NUESTRA SEORA DE LA CONCEPCIONSMANIFEST (AGICONSULADOS 854)

SURVEY OF E-155D SOUTHERN SECTIONThe area surveyed was Block 1 which begins at the southernmost point of E-155 and runs

north for 3 miles and extends out to sea for approximately 2 miles. Survey line spacing

was set to 20 Meters wide and ran parallel to the shore-line for the length of Block1. The

equipment used in this survey consisted of a Geometrics 882 Cesium Vapor

Magnetometer, an Imagenex Sport Scan Side Scan Sonar and a Syqwest Strata Box Sub-

Bottom Profiler.

The remote sensing survey in Block 1 produced over 1000 magnetic and acoustic

anomalies. To better understand the potential of any significant cultural re-sources or

shipwreck debris in this area this priority list was compiled to try and facilitate theidentification of these anomalies. Although not every anomaly can be visually identified

the identification of the selected anomalies should give a better understanding of the

potential for shipwreck debris.

The anomalies chosen for identification were picked because of their magnetic signatures

which are conducive of shipwreck debris. Not every anomaly that may represent

shipwreck assemblage could be chosen but a broad enough range of anomalies were


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picked to conclude whether or not further study should be conducted, or if the patterns

reflected in the survey warranted a full-scale recovery. Many of the larger anomalies

chosen give a classic signature of 18th-century cannon scatter while the small anomalies

appear to be assemblage such as ballast stones, spikes, cannonballs and iron pins.

Although many of these anomalies appear to be shipwreck related the identification can

only be established and confirmed until visual inspection is conducted. The majority ofacoustic anomalies were not chosen for visual identification because most represent the

signature of modern debris.

Coverage of the survey area,i.e. E-155D, BLOCK 1,was monitored using the Geometric

MagLog NTsoftware application. This software receives geographic positional

information from a high accuracy state-of-the-art Furuno DGPS receiver cycling 1 time

per second and then correlates each magnetic point recorded by the magnetometer to

produce a 3D plot for all recorded points. The software renders this data visually on a

display with a continuous track line and user-created reference marks. The display was

continuously monitored by the pilot of the survey vessel to ensure steady and accurate

navigation. All positional information, including delineation of target zones and

individual targets were corroborated using redundant GPS receivers, Maptech

Navigation software, and paper charts. This allows for precise positioning and recording

with sub-meter accuracy. For the side scan Sonar Wiz Map 5 from Chesapeake

Technology was used. Microsoft Excel and AutoCAD MAP 3D are used for data

manipulation and create final drawings.

Acute changes in the magnetic field indicate the presence of ferrous material (Fe). While

small or gradual changes in the magnetic field are common, magnetic anomalies are

typically noticeable by the amplitude of the change (x>2nT) in a small period of time (y

Documents

2014.03.26 - Seafarer E-155 Recovery Permit Application