Archaeologists re-examine Nantucket shipwreck’s origins

Archaeologists in Massachusetts initially believed they had located the remains of the Warren Sawyer, a schooner that sank off Nantucket in 1884, but further investigation revealed the wreckage belongs to a different vessel.

A nor’easter in September exposed wooden beams on the shore, prompting the initial identification based on previous discoveries of the Warren Sawyer in 2022 and 2023. The Warren Sawyer went down while carrying cotton and scrap iron from New Orleans to Boston, and its crew was rescued.

However, a recent assessment on October 7 showed the newly discovered wreckage did not match the previously found pieces of the Warren Sawyer. State archaeologists now believe the remains are part of a 50-foot section of a large merchant vessel from the late 19th or early 20th century.

David Robinson, director of the Massachusetts Board of Underwater Archaeological Resources, noticed larger wooden ribs and different types of wood and iron fastenings compared to the Warren Sawyer, leading to the revised conclusion. Researchers are now reviewing historical records to determine the identity of the unknown ship, which may have been a schooner barge used for coastal cargo transport. While shipwrecks often appear along the Massachusetts coast, this fragment’s size is notable.

Robinson cautioned that definitively identifying the ship will require careful analysis of available evidence and that the vessel may not be a schooner barge, as these were usually towed. The wreckage is the first in Massachusetts to be tagged as part of a public shipwreck monitoring program.