Published articles by Fleet Society directors, members, historians, and other figures central in the Fleet Society history.
Greetings. One of our undertakings here at the Fleet Society is to carry out original research into anything Fleet related. In that regard, I would like to present a recent article written by Fleet Society Director and Academic Coordinator for the Society, Phil Flemming. Phil is a recognized expert in gold coinage of the Fleet
Good Morning. Effective March 22, 2020, Southwest has announced flights from Florida to Cuba will be canceled. They will resume on May 4, 2020. Due to this and the ever-changing circumstances surrounding the Corona Virus epidemic I have decided to reschedule the Conference, if possible, at a later time. I did not make this decision
One of my ongoing projects as a Director of the Fleet Society is to catalogue the many archival documents that I have acquired over the years. Although I enjoy this aspect of my job very much, I find that the responsibilities of my full time job often interfere with cataloguing duties. But, when I do
Within the State of Florida’s archaeological collection there resides an unusual and rare artifact, catalog number 93 A. 673. 000103. 0001, lab tag 6458, with the designation “bone toothpick”. It was received into the State’s collection in 1993 after being found at the site number 8SL – 00017, the Douglas Beach Wreck, part of the
Walt Holzworth was a Pennsylvania Dutch farmer who relocated to California to work in the construction industry. Eventually, he ended up a full-time treasure hunter. He made his first dive in 1963 at the age of 52. His wife Shirley authored this narrative describing a day in the life of a treasure hunter. The actual
“The Earliest Lima 8 Escudos in the Florida Collection” This post is the second in a series that will explore some of the highlights of the magnificent Florida State Collection of Spanish Colonial artifacts and coins. The Lima mint began striking a gold coinage in August of 1696, almost a decade after permission for a
In the summer of 1964, Mel Fisher working through a contract with the Real Eight Corporation, located and salvaged a tremendous treasure consisting of thousands of gold coins and priceless artifacts. This wreck site was surveyed, analyzed, and reduced to a report by archaeologist Carl J Clausen, who was representing the State of Florida. More
This article, by Phil Flemming and Ben Costello, was published in the January 2015 edition of The Numismatist, and the full text of the article is included below. Three hundred years ago, a Spanish treasure fleet was lost in the waters off Florida’s eastern coast. Over the last five decades, salvage operations on known wreck
The latest edition of Indian River Magazine, published by a locally owned company based in Ft. Pierce, Florida, has just released its Holiday 2014 Edition featuring a multi-page article on the 300th Anniversary of the 1715 Fleet Disaster. Written by Rick Crary, the article features a brief history of the 1715 Fleet supplemented with numerous
by Herman Blanton The “171S Fleet-Queens Jewels, LLC” treasure salvage operations recovered a cache of gold escudos on 13-July-2013 on a site called “Corrigans” at Sebastian Inlet near Wabasso Beach, Fl. Other artifacts including a silver spoon, olive jar pottery shards, musket balls and spikes were found in the vicinity. About a week later three
by John de Bry This past summer I had gone down to Juno Beach, Florida, to go out on a boat owned by a company involved in the commercial salvage of historic shipwrecks. The purpose of my visit was to check out their operations and to make sure they were following the State of Florida
Literature About the 1715 Fleet and the Coins Salvaged by Dave Crooks Introduction Much has been written about the 1715 Fleet since the wrecks were discovered by Kip Wagner and the Real Eight Company in 1965. Both popular and scholarly publications have been produced, ranging from articles and pamphlets to full-length books. This list includes
The Holy Grail of Fleet Collectors by Ben Costello They say a picture is worth a thousand words. They also say pictures do not lie. But try telling that to anyone who has ever snapped a photo of a UFO – or Bigfoot. Oftentimes a picture ignites a mystery and starts a controversy, leaving more
December 1964 edition of The Saturday Evening Post. Text reprinted with the permission of The Saturday Evening Post. Photographs provided by the 1715 Fleet Society.Note that the text for this article is rather small due to the archival nature of the article and website limitations.
by Ernie Richards Fleet Day this year, July 31st, will mark the 297th anniversary of the tragic loss of the 1715 Plate Fleet along Florida’s east coast. Exactly twenty years ago, July 31st, 1992, Captain Stephen Shouppé was celebrating Fleet Day by diving on a still unidentified Fleet site known as the Cannon Pile Wreck.
Winter 1965 edition of Sport Camping Magazine. This issue featured Real Eight Co. member Del Long who recently passed away on May 4th, 2011.
This article reproduced from the Bowers and Ruddy Auction Catalog, The Harold A. Blauvelt, Iberoamerican and 1715 Spanish Treasure Fleet Collections, public auction sale February 17-19, 1977
This article is reproduced, by permission, from the February 1967 issue of The Numismatist, official publication of The American Numismatic Association.
by Ernie Richards Just an hour’s drive north of here [WPB, FL] begins a 60-mile stretch of Atlantic waterfront that finds beachcombers making withdrawals from its sandy vaults nearly every day. From the St. Lucie Inlet to the inlet at Sebastian, lucky people swinging metal detectors —and others just kicking shells aside at the water’s
