Trouvadore Project 2006

TURKS & CAICOS ISLANDS, BWI – JULY 28, 2006

The 2006 season looking for the slave ship Trouvadore, wrecked off East Caicos in 1841, was hailed as a great success by the Turks and Caicos National Museum and Ships of Discovery, the Maritime Archaeologists involved. Museum Director Nigel Sadler stated that “the season was a success even though nothing found can confirm that the wooden wreck discovered in 2004, and test excavated this season, is Trouvadore. However, all our goals and objectives for the 2006 season were met and the Museum and Ships of Discovery now have several months of sifting through all of our data and conserving the finds”

The main aim of the 2006 season was to test excavate parts of the wooden wreck found in 2004. What was discovered were some very large timber pieces from the hull of a wooden ship that is at least 120ft long, much more substantial and longer than expected from what had been seen in 2004. Near to the ballast mound discovered in 2004 was an area with high metal content and some parts of this was also test excavated, finding more parts of the ship fabric. Most impressively though, a cathead was discovered with a carved pattern on the support and a carved 5 pointed star on its end. The cathead is a piece of timber that projects from the side of the side to support an anchor. Some of the fixtures for the anchor rope were still present on the side of the cathead. Nearby there was a large collection of metal items, probably linked to the cat head and to the operation of the anchor.

All the wreck finds were photographed, drawn and limited numbers of samples were taken, along with a few of the items which could be diagnostic. When the project finished all the sand removed from the timber was replaced to help protect the timber until a decision is made on the next stage of the project.

The 2006 season also saw other work being undertaken off the northern coast of East Caicos. In 2004 a survey using tow boards had been undertaken. This involves people being towed behind a boat looking for evidence of wrecks. Only 2 historic wrecks were located and this low number had concerned the archaeologists. For 2006 tow boarding would again be used in an extended survey area, but also a magnetometer was used in the area surveyed of 2004 to check the findings of the 2004 season. The magnetometer is a metal detector that is towed behind a boat. It picks up iron material and the data is placed on a computer to show the location of finds. The magnetometer readings justified the use of tow boards in 2004 as it picked up no new shipwrecks in the area and only located things that were buried, so not visible to tow boarders. However, one success of the magnetometer team was to show that the wooden wreck was greater in extent than first thought, and it was as a direct result of the magnetometer work that the buried cathead was discovered.

The project also continued to survey the area, the survey area being extended this year. Even though the main goal is to locate Trouvadore the project is also cataloguing all historic man made items and shipwrecks in the area, adding to the database at the museum. In the survey area a new metal shipwreck was discovered but this is recent, probably wrecking after 1970, so has been recorded but will not be added to the historic wreck list. In 2003 project team members flew over the area and saw a boiler on the reef, with some submerged wreck. This was recorded as a shipwreck and during the 2006 the team visited the site to record it. This turned out to be one of the surprises of the season. The boiler on the reef was probably not part of a ship but a train. The metal seen from the air was not a shipwreck but train wheels. There was no wreck nearby so it suggests that a ship ran a ground here, and to free itself it had dump part of its cargo, train parts.

A few sample items such as wood from the hull, coal, and basalt from the ballast mound have been taken to the USA for sampling whilst the few items recovered during the 2006 season such as a barrel stave and metal parts from the ship are at the Turks and Caicos National Museum undergoing conservation work. It is hoped that the material recovered will tell us a bit more about the wreck.

Windward Media are also partners on this project. They are making a documentary about the search for the Trouvadore story, concentrating on the impact on the Turks and Caicos Islands that the 168 survivors who remained in the country had. The search for the wreck is just part of the story but they helped record what the team found.

When asked what was next Museum Director stated that “The project still continues with the archival research on the story, especially in Cuba and in Africa where we are trying to find where the slaves had been collected from. Added to this research work now is also the task of trying to identify in the archives other ships that wrecked on East Caicos and hopefully eliminate the possibility that they are in fact the wooden wreck discovered. We will need to assess this years finds and the archival research before we make a decision on returning to East Caicos to excavate the wreck. However, whatever this wooden wreck is, it is substantial and important to the nation so the Museum will be approaching the government to get the wreck protected”

The Museum would like to thank all our financial supporters. 50% of the funds were raised through a grant from NOAA Ocean Exploration Program, but more heartening is that nearly 50% of the project costs were raised through Turks and Caicos Islands contacts, including a grant form the Conservation Fund, a donation from the Tourist Board, and substantial donations made to the Friends of the Turks and Caicos National Museum, from the Teddy Foundation and Dayton Foundation. This proves that the country has an interested in uncovering and preserving their past.

The museum would also like to thank the crew of Caribbean Explorer 1, a base ship for the project, for looking after us and for assisting in the field work.

ENDS

For more information on the project please visit www.slaveshiptrouvadore.com or contact Nigel Sadler at the Turks and Caicos National Museum on 946-2160.