H.M.S. Solebay and Maritime Archaeological Heritage
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
H.M.S. SOLEBAY AND MARITIME ARCHAEOLOGICAL HERITAGE PRESERVATION IN NEVIS, WEST INDIES A Dissertation by CHRIS CARTELLONE Submitted to the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies of Texas A & M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Chair of Committee, Luis Filipe Vieira de Castro Committee Members, Bruce Dickson Marco Meniketti James Bradford Head of Department, Cynthia Werner May 2015 Major Subject: Anthropology Copyright 2015 Chris Cartellone ABSTRACT In 2010, the discovery of a wreck identified as HMS Solebay off Nevis’ southwest seacoast prompted an investigation by a graduate student from Texas A&M University and the Institute of Nautical Archaeology, in collaboration with local and international partners. Team members documented the site with standard, low-tech, nonintrusive, archaeological recording methods. Nautical archaeology in Nevis is still a nascent discipline, one that should be pursued for the importance of seaborne commerce and warfare to the island’s historical evolution within the British Empire. The island is amongst the oldest English Caribbean colonies and in the 17th century was the richest of the Leeward Islands through slave-labored sugar plantations. Solebay’s story reveals the British naval experience during the American Revolution from the perspective of a crew manning a lower echelon warship. Built in 1763, deployed to America in 1776, and lost in the 1782 Battle of Frigate Bay, it transcended a vigorous period in British naval architecture, and technological innovations including coppered hulls and the introduction of carronades. Solebay exposes the challenges and rewards of studying this maritime heritage in Nevis. Solebay’s violent destruction and subsequent site formation, onto a volcanic seafloor in dynamic tropical waters, has largely precluded the survival of ship timbers or other organic materials. However, metal artifacts and six iron guns have been documented and the microenvironment has afforded unforeseen positive benefits. Shallow deposition and natural exposure permitted the recovery of 72 artifacts for full ii conservation and diagnostic analysis, complementing the archival evidence. Interpretations support the wreck’s identity and suggest resourceful adaptive wartime behaviors on the part of her crew. While Solebay remains British crown property under international sovereign immunity laws, the Nevis Historical and Conservation Society has been entrusted as the cultural steward. Conserved artifacts exhibited in the Alexander Hamilton Museum, Charlestown, Nevis, educate the public about Solebay, its story, and more importantly, the value of protecting and studying shipwrecks. This project serves Nevisians and the Federal government in St. Kitts as a case study for advancing underwater cultural heritage policy on this site and future discoveries. iii DEDICATION For my father, who inspired me to follow my passion. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my committee chair, Dr. Filipe Castro, for being a strong mentor in my professional, doctoral education. Thank you to my committee members, Drs. Bruce Dickson, James Bradford, and Marco Meniketti. Dr. Dickson challenged me to be a better anthropologist and Dr. Bradford challenged me to be a better historian. Dr. Meniketti made me a better archaeologist, teacher, and introduced me to Nevis. Thank you to Texas A&M University faculty and staff that helped shape my education and were always there to go the extra mile: Kevin Crisman, David Woodcock, James Woosley, James Jobling, William Charleton, Cindy Hurt, Rebekah Luza, and Marco Valadez. Generous sponsors that provided financial and material support made this research possible. Primary initial support came from the Institute of Nautical Archaeology, both financially and by loaning expensive archaeological remote sensing equipment, cameras, and tools. Adnams Southwold through its CEO Andy Wood, provided generous funding that made the project possible, opening doors for this project and future research in Nevis. Dr. Donny Hamilton at Texas A&M University contributed significant and essential unmet financial needs. The Brimstone Hill Fortress National Park Society, through park manager Mr. Cameron Gill, provided for the recovery and conservation of diagnostic artifacts. This made site identification and greater interpretations possible, and produced beautiful museum exhibit pieces that educate the public on history, archaeology, and the importance of protecting our heritage. v Donated labor in the field accomplished the archaeology. I owe a special thank you to Justin Parkoff, who performed outstanding, tireless duties recording artifacts, lugging equipment, meticulously taking notes, and being a solid colleague through the program. Thanks to Vincent Hubbard for inspiring our search for Solebay. Paul Diamond and Arthur “Brother” Anslyn thank you for locating Solebay and arranging meetings on Nevis. Additional supporters included David Small at the University of Bristol for digging through archives, Professor James Hewlett at Finger Lakes Community College for both financial support and divers, Dr. Marco Meniketti and his scientific diving students at San Jose State University, Suzanne Gordon facilitated affordable housing for the field project, Golden Rock Inn Nevis provided housing for additional research, T. Kurt Knoerl at the Museum of Underwater Archaeology provided online outreach, Bob & Judy Foster-Smith at Envision Mapping helped locate the wreck, Mr. Spencer Hanley with the Nevis Air and Sea Ports Authority expedited the import of scientific equipment and provided access to the Police Launch, and Mr. Ellis Chaderton at Scuba Safaris Nevis kept the research vessels and dive tanks operating. Numerous individuals helped complete the fieldwork: Lillian Azevedo, Javon Bissette, Llewellyn Collins, Dwayne Daley, Michelle Damian, Julius Darlington, Troy Deppermann, Brian Littlewood, Everette Mason, Ashli Roberts, Erin Sams, John Schlagheck, Ryan Schlater, Rebecca Spitzer, Hugh Stapleton, Diana Stellar, and Dwaine Walters. My family both supported and endured this long journey. Thank you to my parents for my education in and out of school. Thank you Steffany, without whom none of this would have been possible. I owe you everything — wife, mother, friend. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT .............................................................................................................. ii DEDICATION .......................................................................................................... iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...................................................................................... v TABLE OF CONTENTS .......................................................................................... vii LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................... viii LIST OF TABLES .................................................................................................... x CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION .......................................................................... 1 CHAPTER II NAUTICAL ARCHAEOLOGY IN NEVIS .................................. 8 CHAPTER III NEVIS IN THE BRITISH EMPIRE .............................................. 24 CHAPTER IV SOLEBAY IN THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION ........................ 61 CHAPTER V INTERPRETING SOLEBAY .......................................................... 101 CHAPTER VI MARITIME HERITAGE PRESERVATION IN NEVIS .............. 135 CHAPTER VII CONCLUSIONS ............................................................................ 168 BIBLIOGRAPHY .................................................................................................... 179 vii LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE Page 1 Location of Nevis within the Caribbean Sea ........................................... 8 2 Close-up section of 1808 Arrowhead chart showing HMS Solebay wreck on western side of Nevis ............................................................... 18 3 Vince Hubbard, Brother Anslyn, and Bob Foster-Smith discuss plans for HMS Solebay search .......................................................................... 19 4 Nuestra Señora de las Nieves. Typical summer day in Nevis showing a clouded Mt. Nevis peak ........................................................................ 27 5 Professor Marco Meniketti of San Jose State University recording archaeological ruins of colonial sugar plantation .................................... 35 6 A protected historic Flamboyant tree once marked property boundaries. Today they are simply beautiful trees that provide shade ....................... 55 7 A modern wreck just off Charlestown .................................................... 58 8 Sea Service Musket examples showing trigger guard details ................. 120 9 Artifact no. 10 trigger guard .................................................................... 121 10 Artifact no. 15 coak with Broad Arrow in upper left corner, second image close-up, and third image illustration of Broad Arrow observed in second image. Scale in centimeters ..................................................... 122 11 Artifact no. 34 with four, clearly visible Broad Arrows, two on each side highlighted by the author in white. Scale in centimeters ................. 123 12 Artifact no. 2 showing a clearly visible Broad Arrow, highlighted in white in third image. Scale in centimeters .............................................. 124 13