Press Room

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Official Press Releases from Michigan Maritime Museum

The Rockaway

January 12, 2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wreck of the Rockaway off the shores of South Haven featured in upcoming presentation at the Michigan Maritime Museum

South Haven, MI – The sinking of the good ship Rockaway off the shores of South Haven will be the subject of an illustrated presentation at the Michigan Maritime Museum on Sunday January 29 at 2PM.

Kenneth Pott, formerly Curator at the Museum and currently the Executive Director of the Tri-Cities Historical Museum in Grand Haven, Michigan, will be making the presentation. In his academic and professional careers Ken has worked maritime archaeological sites from Texas to East Africa with an emphasis on archeological dives in the Great Lakes Region. He has served on working committees of the national Trust for Historic Preservation, the Council of American Maritime Museums, the Society of Professional Archaeologists and as President of the Historical Society of Michigan.

The 107 foot Rockaway was a scow schooner that plied the Great Lakes carrying grain, wood, coal, produce and packaged goods for some 25 years before perishing in a fierce autumn storm in November 1891.

The wreck was discovered accidentally in 1983 by perch fishermen Don Nichols Sr. and Jr. when their anchor got entangled on the anchor of the Rockaway some 70 feet below. The Nichols reported the wreck to the Michigan Maritime Museum and the wreckage site was the focus of six seasons of archaeological fieldwork administered by the Museum in cooperation with the Michigan Bureau of History and the Department of National Resources. It was the first complete archaeological study of an historic shipwreck site administered in Michigan waters.

The Rockaway study produced a monograph on the project leading to a special two-year exhibition at the State Historical Museum in Lansing and a traveling exhibit that was viewed by more than half of a million visitors during its five-state tour. In addition the study was the recipient of a prestigious Preservation Honors Award from the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

The Michigan Maritime Museum Winter Lecture Series continues with a presentation on February 26 by shipwreck diver and author Valerie Van Fleet.

The Michigan Maritime Museum is dedicated to the preservation of Michigan Great Lakes waterways, maritime history, and culture. Located at the drawbridge in South Haven, the museum is a 501 (C3) organization and donations are tax deductible. For more information call 1-800-747-3810 or visit michiganmaritimemuseum.org.

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