COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT

Florida Keys dive operator, fisherman discover new historical resources

 

Nov. 8, 2018

Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary investigated two new discoveries in the Upper Keys that were reported in October. Sail Fish Scuba owner Jennifer Kerr found a cannon on Elbow Reef off Key Largo while diving the shipwreck Hannah M. Bell. Sanctuary marine archaeologists believe it and a similar cannon nearby were likely jettisoned from a sinking ship crashing on the reef more than 100 years before Hannah M. Bell sank in 1911.

Fisherman Jose Antonio Lopez Ruiz of Homestead is credited with finding wooden wreckage from an unidentified 19th century sailing ship near Alligator Reef. A visit to the site by the sanctuary's maritime heritage team revealed a more than 50-foot section of wooden planks and frames partially buried in sand.

Kerr and Lopez Ruiz recognized that they should not move, damage, or disturb their finds so they contacted the sanctuary. Providing location and descriptive information to the sanctuary creates an opportunity for study of artifacts that contribute to the Florida Keys rich maritime history. Both new discoveries will be the subject of further investigation, but will not be removed from sanctuary waters.

You can report potential discoveries to Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary archaeologist Matthew Lawrence at Matthew.Lawrence@noaa.gov.