The skeletal remains of a shipwreck trapped off in the Maine coastlinehas been identified as a British vessel from the Battle of Yorktown.
The ship sits in the Short Sands beach and has been exposed several times in the past by storms ripping through the area.
The wreck, which consists of the bottom of the hull, is about 50 feet long and was 60 feet prior to being destroyed.
Researchers investigating the ship used drones equip with geographical dating technology to determine it was built in 1754 and laid to rest in a sandy grave sometime during 1769.
Along with identifying it as a Revolutionary War vessel the team also believes it was the ship known as the ‘Defiance’, which was a cargo ship carrying a crew of four, flour, pork, and other supplies when it hit rocks in Cape Neddick Cove during a storm.
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The skeletal remains of a shipwreck trapped off the coast of Maine has been identified as a British vessel from the Battle of Yorktown. The ship is trapped in the Short Sands beach and has been exposed several times in the past by storms ripping through the area
The Battle of Yorktown is deemed to have been the ‘great battle of the American Revolutionary War’.
It was here the British Army surrendered on October 19, 1781, forcing their government to begin talks of a peace treaty with the Americans.
Approximately 8,000 British soldiers stormed the beach only to be outnumbered by American and French troops, forcing General Cornwallis to raise the white flag for surrender.
And the shipwreck is a reminder of the American’s victory that day.
The wreck, which consists of the bottom of the hull, is about 50 feet long and was 60 feet prior to being destroyed. Researchers investigating the ship used drones equip with geographical dating technology to determine it was built in 1754 and laid to rest in its sandy grave sometime during 1769
Along with identifying it as a Revolutionary War vessel the team also believes it was the ship known as the ‘Defiance’, which was a cargo ship carrying a crew of four, flour, pork, and other supplies when it hit rocks in Cape Neddick Cove during a storm
However, the wooden remains have gone unidentified for years.
A storm had first revealed the ship in the 1950s the again in 1960, 1983, 2013 and finally in 2018 when experts finally decided to investigate its origins.
The project, led by Stefan Claesson who is a certified unmanned aircraft (UAS) mapping scientist, used a range of archaeological techniques, scientific dating and documentary research to date the ship, according to AncientOrigins.net.
Using his specialty, Claesson unleashed a drone with geographic information system (GIS) to map and survey the site.
A storm had first revealed the ship in the 1950s (pictured) the again in 1960, 1983, 2013 and finally in 2018 when experts finally decided to investigate its origins
The project, led by Stefan Claesson who is a certified unmanned aircraft (UAS) mapping scientist, used a range of archaeological techniques, scientific dating and documentary research to date the ship
Prior to this work, the ship had been a mystery to residents, as it would only appear during a storm and then reburied by shifting sands.
Now, Claesson and his team believe they have unraveled its secrets.
They determined the ship dates back to the mid-eighteenth century and was constructed in 1754 with wood that was cut down from trees in 1753.
It was about 60 feet long when it sailed the ocean, but the remaining structure only spans 50 feet.
Prior to this work, the ship had been a mystery to residents, as it would only appear during a storm and then reburied by shifting sands
They determined the ship dates back to the mid-eighteenth century and was constructed in 1754 with wood that was cut down from trees in 1753. It was about 60 feet long when it sailed the ocean, but the remaining structure only spans 50 feet
After determining the dates, Claesson set out to identify the ship itself.
He looked at the archives at Peabody Essex Museum and searched the records of Daniel Moulton, a local notary who documented all the wrecks in Maine between 1750 and 1794.
‘I believe it is the sloop Defiance,’ Claesson told Newsbreak.
‘I think the ship is a pink, a type of cargo ship.’
‘Defiance fit every description.’
Additional research revealed that on its last journey, the Defiance left Salem, Massachusetts for Portland, Maine’s Casco Bay.
Aboard were four crew members four, flour, pork and other supplies when it stcuk a cluster rocks in Cape Neddick Cove during a storm.
The crew survived the impact, but the ship was lost.