An expert from the Egan Maritime Institute visited a beach in Nantucket to inspect wooden beams unearthed by a recent nor’easter. These beams are considered potential remnants of a 19th-century shipwreck.
The institute’s exhibits manager aimed to evaluate the site, sending findings to state underwater archaeologists. Together, they will identify the vessel involved. Rusted iron fastens the beams, existing in an area linked to remains of the Warren Sawyer schooner, lost in 1884.
The Egan Maritime Institute cautioned that the wreckage’s identity remains uncertain.
This weekend, heavy rain and strong winds impacted the Northeast. The powerful storm disrupted power for over 100,000 people. Boats in Massachusetts washed ashore, prompting worries about coastal erosion as waves battered the coast.
The Warren Sawyer’s historical significance dates back to December 22, 1884, when it grounded with cotton and scrap iron cargo from New Orleans to Boston. Islanders rescued 700 bales before another storm destroyed the ship, scattering the hull and remaining cargo.
Jason Graziadei, editor of the Nantucket Current, discovered the beams with his son. He found them beneath a beach drive-on area called the “Sewer Beds,” made accessible only by foot due to erosion.
Graziadei remarked, “It’s amazing to think, from over 100 years old, that it’s still there.”
Previous findings include hull sections identified as part of the Warren Sawyer. “Graveyards of the Atlantic” is a term for Nantucket’s estimated 750 wrecks.
Visitors are urged to avoid disturbing the wreckage. Massachusetts law prohibits interference with underwater archaeological resources.
1945 publication account: Patrolman Eugene Clisby spotted the schooner, summoning help amid raging surf. The crew was rescued using a hawser and breeches buoy rig despite challenging conditions.
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