The Maryland State Highway Administration (SHA), the US Navy, and Maryland Historical Trust (MHT) are currently searching for the USS Scorpion in the Patuxent River. Past underwater archaeology surveys revealed a War of 1812 wreck in these waters, but not enough evidence was gathered to identify her as Commodore Joshua Barney's flagship. The construction of a cofferdam and full excavation of the shipwreck will commence in 2012. Funding and in-kind support are provided by the Transportation Enhancement Program, US Navy, SHA, and MHT.

February 2, 2011

Preparing for Summer Survey 2011

Good news! It looks like we will be back in the field for another season. Two of our main goals for this summer will be to hydroprobe and delineate the known wreck (possible USS Scorpion) and to determine if we have additional wrecks in this stretch of the river. Remote sensing data looks very suspicious and we are wondering if we could have the entire flotilla. The combination of hydroprobing and excavation this summer will hopefully answer these questions.

While the next several months will be filled with drafting legal documents and moving through the environmental permitting process to dive and excavate on the wreck this summer, we are also feverishly looking for funding. We are close to securing the full amount to construct the cofferdam, but continue to search out sources of funding and grants. Wish us luck!
Posted by at 3:43 PM

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