Roosevelt Inlet Shipwreck (7S-D-91)

Site History

This site, which appears to be a secondary artifact scatter from an 18th-century shipwreck, is located near Roosevelt Inlet in Lewes, Delaware. It is likely that the wreck represents remains of a British merchant ship in-bound from Great Britain to Philadelphia. While only a small portion of the ship remained intact, estimates place the ship was between 85 and 90 feet in length with a 225-to-275-ton capacity. Documentary research on merchant ships lost in the Delaware Bay or Delaware River during the mid-18th century suggests that this wreck may have been either the Severn or the Commerce.

Archaeological Investigations

This site was disturbed in the fall of 2004 during dredging by the Army Corps of Engineers. The dredging operation pumped sand containing artifacts from the wreck onto Lewes Beach. Local residents who noted the artifacts reported them to archaeologists with Delaware Cultural Resources. Artifacts from the deposit collected between December of 2004 to April of 2005 included red and yellow clay paving bricks, Westerwald stoneware mineral water bottles, borderware, tin glazed earthenware, olive green case bottle glass, white salt glazed stoneware, Dutch tobacco pipes, millstones, shoe buckles, gun parts, porcelain, and creamware. Since mid-2005, local citizens have donated additional artifacts collected on the beach.

Analysis of the artifacts suggests that they were associated with a vessel active during the 1760s-1775 period.

Phase I archaeological investigations of the wreck took place in early 2005 confirmed the location of the wreck and Phase II investigations that began in April of 2005 included a side scan sonar of the wreck site.

References

Cox, J. Lee Jr.

2005   Phase 1 and Phase 2 Archaeological Investigations, Lewes Beach and Roosevelt Inlet Borrow Areas, Delaware Bay, Sussex County, Delaware. Dolan Research, Inc.

(Edited from Delaware Cultural Resource Survey Archaeological Site Form)

Associated Artifacts