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Tuesday, June 17, 2008

HMS Ontario

A few words in the TimesOnline article about the recent discovery of the wreck of the HMS Ontario, Lake gives up ghostly British warship of 1780, caught my eye:

The search for HMS Ontario began in earnest in 2005 after they obtained documents about the loss from British and Canadian archives.

Was careful research the key to their success? I'd like to think so.

Described as an "archeaological miracle" by Arthur Britton Smith, author of The Legend of the Lake, the news accounts all agree on the remarkable amount of preservation at the site--there are even intact windows on the vessel. (See ShipwreckWorld.com for a remarkable photo gallery of wreck images, drawings, and a model of the ship.) But few news sources go into detail about the future of the site, which is the final resting place of 120 men, women, and children, including prisoners, who went down in the autumn gale in 1780--however the BBC does. Not only is their coverage excellent including links to relevant resources, but they do report on a current plan for the future of the site, one that is often not in the popular imagination as a plan for our maritime heritage: a war grave.

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