The Mission Some years ago a new member of the National Maritime Historical Society noted with surprise that we do more than publish this magazine. Well, yes, we do. Sea History itself has been defined "the journal of a cause in motion." But clearly more definition is needed, and our good friend the distinguished educator Cynthia Parsons has suggested that we publish a continuing statement of the Society's mission, reporting the mission as we've actually been developing it, by discussing goals, concerns, dreams and what we're doing about them-here and now.
An NMHS Marine Archaeology Seminar Sue Morrow Flanagan had been pursuing our marine archaeological campaign for improved safeguards for historic shipwrecks, and to bring this effort to a point she proposed a marine archaeology debate, which was duly held at the Explorers Club in New York this past February 26. On one side were Paul F. Johnston, Maritime Curatorof the Smithsonian Institution, whose strong views on barring salvors from wreck sites were published in Sea History 51, p6-7 , and National Park Service Historian James Delgado, wno has done pioneering work in locating and recording shipwrecks on the US littoral. Facing them were Christopher Hamilton, the archaeologist assigned to the Wydah wreck on Cape Cod by the State of Massachusetts, whose views have been made known in SH 51, p7 and 52, p8, and Barry Clifford, president of Maritime Explorations Inc. , excavators of the Wydah . Their confrontation produced a stunning surprise,
Antique U.S. Coast Survey maps from the 1800s
from whose shock wave it is to be hoped none of us are yet recovered. From the outset, the impossibility of barring all recreational and commercial access to underwater wrecks was agreed. The extreme desirability of reserving some wrecks purely for historic purposes was also agreed. The litany of problems was reviewed: that commercial sponsors have no interest in context (often more important than the recovered object), that untrained sports divers can spoil things for everyone, that seeking absolute protection for all wrecks can lead to effective protection for none. But the reviewers began seeking workable solutions and to reconcile interests by each side learning what the other really has at stake-and how that stake can be honored. At the end of the evening, we said let 's get a photograph-you people have never been together before, and probably never will be again in this lifetime. Oh no, said all four, we think we've got something going. We plan to go on with this. NMHS Advisor Peter Throckmorton, who helped found the modem science of marine archaeology, and who will be much missed by all of us (word of his death was received as this issue of Sea History went to press) was not at this meeting, but took a keen interest. He advocated the policy that we went on to adopt at the NMHS Annual Meeting in May: Henceforth we will seek agreed strategies with all participants in underwater exploration who agree to play by the rules-and let's get rules that really protect historic wrecks. To this Throcko
The foursome who me/ 10 do ha/lie and ended up seeking join! stralegies. From !he lefl, Paul Johns/on, Cura/or of Marilime History, Smilhsonian lnslilulion; James Delgado, Hislorian , Nalional Park Service; Chrislopher Hamil/on, Slale-assigned marine archaeologisl on !he Wydah projec/; Barry Clifford, President of Marilime Explorations Inc.; andNMHS hos/ Pe/er S!anford.
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