Ships Graveyards

From the New York Times bestselling author of Zodiac, Auto Focus, and Black Fire. SO CLOSE TO SHORE, SO FAR FROM FORTUNE. WITH THE DISCOVERY OF GOLD, THEY CAME. San Francisco, 1849. Some arrived by land, but most came by sea. From packet to clipper, the first steamers, and even a stolen paddlewheeler, ships of every kind poured in through the Golden Gate. Packed to the gills with passengers and bursting to the brim with valuable cargo, they crowded Yerba Buena Cove. The perfect harbor in every way except one fatal flaw—its shallow waters offered no passage to shore. Fever overtook even the heartiest of men. Passengers and crew alike jumped ship and swam ashore. Within sight of their prize destination, a thousand majestic vessels were left adrift. Each incapacitated vessel’s fate locked in by the next. Some dedicated captains remained aboard these derelict hulks, in a short time forming a fantastic floating city, Graveyard Harbor. Families, commerce, intrigue, and crime all thrived and died within its skeletal framework. Among them were captains held hostage by their own cargo, families that could not afford nor find housing on land, criminals hiding out from the law, and their pursuers hot on their heels. A LANDLOCKED CAPTAIN. A KILLER WHO LOOKED LIKE CHRIST. HIS UNFORTUNATE DOPPELGÄNGER. THE BLOODTHIRST OF SAN FRANCISCO’S FIRST VIGILANTE SOCIETY. AND THE TEXAS RANGER TURNED SAN FRANCISCO SHERIFF. WOULD CRIME, JUSTICE OR VIGILANTISM PREVAIL? Illustrations by the author.

On January 22, 1906, the passenger ship Valencia lost her way in heavy fog and rain and rammed into the deadly rocks at Pachena Point on the west coast of Vancouver Island. As the wreck was shattered by the pounding waves, the survivors clung desperately to the rigging. Few made it the short distance to shore through the frigid and turbulent waves—117 of the 164 souls aboard perished. A year earlier, the King David had been wrecked on Bajo Reef near Nootka Sound. The fate of her sailors was much more mysterious. Today, the magnificent Pacific coastline of Vancouver Island draws hikers, surfers and storm-watchers to marvel at its natural splendour. But the ghosts of the Valencia, King David, Janet Cowan, Pacific, Soquel and dozens of other lost ships still haunt the rugged shores of the Graveyard of the Pacific. Anthony Dalton tells the incredible stories of many of these ships and their courageous crews, who often discovered that their nightmares had only begun once they made it ashore. These true tales of disaster and daring rescues are a fascinating adventure into British Columbia maritime history.

A historically accurate, well-rounded picture of shipwrecks on the Great Lakes.

This title is a comprehensive survey of maritime archaeology as seen through the eyes of nearly fifty scholars at a time when maritime archaeology has established itself as a mature branch of archaeology.

The historical importance and archaeological potential of deliberately discarded watercraft has not been a major feature of maritime archaeological enquiry. While research on the topic has appeared since the 1970s as books, chapters, and articles, most examples have been limited in focus and distribution, and in most cases disseminated as unpublished archaeological reports (i.e. the “gray literature”.) So, too, has there been a lack of a single source representing the diversity of geographical, historic, thematic, and theoretical contexts that ships’ graveyard sites and deliberately abandoned vessels represent. In contrast with much of the theoretical or case-specific literature on the theme of watercraft discard, this volume communicates to the reader the common heritage and global themes that ships’ graveyard sites represent. It serves as a blueprint to illustrate how the remains of abandoned vessels in ships' graveyards are sites of considerable research value. Moreover, the case studies in this volume assist researchers in understanding the evolution of maritime technologies, economies, and societies. This volume is intended to expose research potential, create discussion, and reinforce the significance of a prevalent cultural resource that is often overlooked.

The author, a native Australian, covers everything you might want to know about Australia - guaranteed! The places to stay, from budget to luxury, rentals to B&Bs, the restaurants, from fast food to the highest quality, the beachwalks and bushwalks, the wildlife and how to see it, exploring the country by air, on water, by bike, and every other way. This guide zeroes in on Adelaide and the Southern part of Australia, but a detailed introduction covers all aspects of travel to and around the continent as well, plus the history, culture and sightseeing.

This volume presents multiple idiographic, archaeological studies of vernacular watercraft from North America and the Caribbean. Rather than attempt to synthesize all vernacular types, this volume focuses on ship construction data recovered through archaeological investigations that has been used to make inferences about culture. This collection of case studies, including many examples from cultural resource management and graduate student theses, presents a thematic exploration of cultural adaptation as expressed through ship construction.