After draining the electrolytic solution it has been soaking in, the iron 4-pounder cannon recovered from the Storm Wreck is exposed for all to see. The solution needs to be periodically changed as it soaks up dissolved salts from the iron gun.

Yesterday our visitors got a special treat, as our Archaeological Conservator Starr Cox lead a team of interns and volunteers in the changing of the water from one of our two cannon vats. These two cannons were brought up by LAMP archaeologists almost one year ago, and have been undergoing treatment ever since. Take a look below the fold to read a bit about what it takes to conserve a 200 year old cannon completely saturated in seawater, and to see some photos from the water change.

Continue reading "Cannon Treatment Continues" »

Yesterday morning a brand new vessel slipped into the waters of Salt Run, a Chaisson dory tender built by the LAMP Boatworks. The hull is the ninth project from the Boatworks and is a style of hull that dates to the early 20th century in Swampscott, Massachusetts from the shop of George Chaisson. These popular and stylish 10' tenders were designed as auxiliary boats for larger sailboats or yachts. Their timeless beauty has preserved the hull type and this boat is the second Chaisson built here at the LAMP Boatworks. She has been built as the 2012 LAMP Boatworks drawing boat. Tickets for the boat are available here in the museum gift shop and are $5 each or a bargain deal of 5 for $20. The drawing will take place on December 5th, 2012 at our Luminary Night event. You stand a 1 in a 1000 chance of winning a beautiful little boat worth thousands, so get your chance now and we wish you luck!

Click here to see more pictures LMP0009, the Chaisson Dory Tender!

Continue reading "LAMP Boatworks Launches Hull #LMP0009!!" »

I am sitting on the banks of the Puget Sound this evening, waiting for dinner, and enjoying the beautiful scenery of western Washington state. Under my feet is a pebble beach, a log for my butt, behind me is a well ordered row of woody cabins. In front of me is a mile wide stretch of water about 48 degrees but crystal clear and full of sea lions, otters, salmon, dungeness crabs, and gray whales. On the other side is Whidby Island, framed at times by the even more distant but majestic Olympic Mountains. Rising to over 12000 feet, their snowy crags are a reminder of the youthful vigor of the landscape, the restless Pacific Rim. Eagles chatter and whistle from the giant cedar trees and the lapping of the water are all that meets the ears.

No trip to Seattle would be complete without a shot of the Space Needle, but I thought I'd add the flair of the conference to this picture. Superposed on the Space Needle is the mainmast and rig for the schooner Lavengro, a beautiful 1920s Biloxi lugger now sailing Lake Union.

But that us not why I am here. LAMP sent me here to learn from the best institutions in the country who build wooden boats and train young people in solid math and science skills using a philosophy that 'boats build people', not the other way around. Groups from all over the country are here to share their success stories in programming and it has been an astounding success. How do I measure this success? The 80 or so participants who have participated this weekend have kept a remarkable energy going to blend ideas, come up with new ones, and refine existing concepts of how to make our young people better, smarter, and stronger. While we do many of these things at the Lighthouse Museum with our education programming, we are thinking about making the LAMP Boatworks more of a part of this. It has been a successful part of the museum and deserves to share its skills with a broader group.

Continue reading "Update from the Teaching With Small Boats Conference!" »

Volunteer archaeologist Brian McNamara and intern Julie Powell cleaning copper-alloy artifacts that have recently completed electrolysis at the LAMP Archaeological Conservation Laboratory.

Just a quick blog post to let folks know out there that conservation activities are progressing in the LAMP laboratory! We have recently had some iron artifacts, recovered by archaeologists from a colonial site in New Smyrnia, finish electrolysis treatment and final coating, and we have also had a batch of copper-alloy artifacts, from a variety of shipwreck sites, finish their electrolytic treatment. Our volunteers and interns are now physically and chemically cleaning these objects by soaking in vinegar and hydrogen peroxide, and by scrubbing with baking soda. They will eventually be coated with a special finish to help prevent future corrosion. Most of these artifacts are spikes and other ship fasteners from the Steamship and Ballast Pile Wreck Site recovered in 2009, along with a brass belt or strap buckle recovered in 2010 from the late 1700s Storm Wreck.

Stay tuned for more updates! We are gearing up for our Field School and subsequent field season and are planning on lots of blog updates!

Julie cleans a brass belt or strap buckle recovered from the Storm Wreck, which was lost off St. Augustine sometime shortly after 1780.

When: Tuesday, May 1, at 7:00pm
What: St. Augustine Archaeological Association Meeting & Lectures by Local Archaeologists
Where: the Flagler Room, Flagler College
Who:Chuck Meide (Director, LAMP), Robin Moore (St. Johns County Historic Resources Specialist), and Sarah Miller (Florida Public Archaeology Network, Northeast Regional Director)

Join us for the St. Augustine Archaeological Association's last meeting before breaking for the summer! We'll hear from three local archaeologists: Chuck Meide of the Lighthouse Archaeological Maritime Program, St. Johns County Historic Resources Specialist Robin Moore, and FPAN Northeast Director Sarah Miller! Each will be providing their annual update overviewing the results of their program's research in the last year.
This event is free and open to the public.

We blogged the other day about the impending arrival of the replica tallship Bounty. As of 1:00 pm yesterday, after two weeks at sea, the Bounty crossed through the Bridge of Lions and safely docked at the City Marina. Some of our Lighthouse volunteers, including Maurey Keiser, escorted the proud ship in with his own sailboat, some of us watched from the Bridge, and some of us witnessed the arrival with binoculars from the top of the tower. What an exciting day, and what a beautiful ship!

From the St. Augustine Record:

As the HMS Bounty made its way through the Bridge of Lions early Wednesday afternoon, the crowd of people on the bridge burst into applause. Hundreds of others, stationed all along the waterfront from the Castillo de San Marcos to the St. Augustine Municipal Marina, waved and cheered the three-masted wooden vessel as boats of all shapes and types buzzed around the harbor, escorting the ship.

The Bounty will be open for tours Friday through Sunday. Tickets are available at the City Marina.This Saturday marks the 223rd anniversary of the original mutiny on the Bounty, which took place on April 28, 1789.

The St. Augustine Record compiled a great slideshow of the Bounty's arrival, and also this video below. Its great to see a historic sailing ship in our port, and to imagine how for centuries tall masts dotted our harbor like a forest on the water.

What: Volunteer Appreciation Barbeque
Where: Front lawn of the Keeper's House, St. Augustine Lighthouse & Museum
When: Thursday, 26 April 2012 from 12:30 to 2:30 pm
Who: All Lighthouse and LAMP volunteers are invited to welcome our new Volunteer Coordinator, Loni Wellman!

We are having a Thank You Barbeque for all volunteers on April 26 from 12:30 until 2:30 here at the Lighthouse front lawn. Come enjoy yummy barbeque (slow-cooked by our own Rick and Lee) and great company! Volunteers will receive a small thank you gift from the St. Augustine Lighthouse and Museum. This will also be an opportunity for everyone to meet Loni, our new Volunteer Coordinator.

After a lengthy search and grueling interview process, we are pleased to announce Loni Wellman as our new Volunteer and Special Projects Coordinator. She will start with the team Monday, April 23, 2012. Loni earned her M.A. in Museum Studies from Johns Hopkins University and her B.A. in history from Flagler College. She has worked at several museums in various capacities, including the Children’s Museum of Memphis, Art and History Museums-Maitland, Orlando Science Center, and the Center for Science and Industry, Toledo. Her experience will be an asset to the organization, and her enthusiasm will undoubtedly be contagious!

We would also like to extend a big THANK YOU to our dedicated and long-time volunteer Lee McConkey for providing his time and input as part of the interview and selection team.

What: Lecture, "Why a Chalupa?"
Where: St. Augustine Yacht Club
When: Wednesday, April 25, 2012, 5:00-6:30 pm
Who: Dr. Sam Turner, LAMP
Food: Beverages and light dinner available for purchase

This lecture is co-sponsored by the St. Augustine Maritime Heritage Foundation, and LAMP and the First Light Maritime Society. Dr. Sam Turner will be speaking about our joint project, to build an archaeologically and historically authentic replica of a sixteenth century watercraft used by the first Spanish settlers in St. Augustine.

Tomorrow morning, sometime around 0800, the tall ship Bounty should be arriving off the St. Augustine Inlet and preparing to sail into Matanzas Bay. She is a replica of the well-known British naval vessel which saw the infamous mutiny against Captain Bligh in 1789. Drawing 13 feet of water, she will have to wait for the high tide in order to enter the harbor and cross under the Bridge of Lions and dock at the City Marina, where the public can tour her decks on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

From the St. Augustine Record:

The HMS Bounty, a replica of one of the most famous ships in the world, was built for the 1962 MGM movie, “Mutiny on the Bounty” starring Marlon Brando and Trevor Howard. The Bounty has also appeared in several other motion pictures over the years, including “Treasure Island,” and two of the “Pirates of the Caribbean” movies starring Johnny Depp.

The Bounty, which has just begun its 2012 East Coast tour, will come through the St. Augustine Inlet, possibly as early as Wednesday, and tie up at the St. Augustine Municipal Marina, where she will be available to the public for tours Friday through Sunday.

Continue reading "The Bounty Comes to St. Augustine!" »

What: Lecture: "The Caribbean World of Juan Ponce de León and His Discovery of Florida"

Where: Flagler College Ringhaver Student Center
When: Saturday May 5, 2012 10:00 - 11:00AM

And

Where: The Gallery, St. Augustine Lighthouse & Museum
When: Saturday May 5, 2012 1:00 - 2:00PM

Who: Dr. Sam Turner, LAMP

This is one of a number of lectures sponsored by the Florida Humanities Council and organized by Flagler College as part of the Viva Florida 500 commemoration. The series runs in various locations in St. Augustine May 3 -6, 2012. More information on these events can be seen here, but please note the place and time of Dr. Turner's lectures are mistakenly transposed at the linked webpage; the correct times and places are as listed above.