Underwater Archaeology Branch lab Tour!

About

Join the Anthropology club for a “DIVE” into the NC Office of State Archaeology’s lab at the Underwater Archaeology Branch (UAB) at Fort Fisher!

learn how artifacts from shipwrecks are preserved and excavated to further the understanding of maritime history along the Cape Fear River and coastal shores!

The North Carolina Office of State Archaeology operates the Underwater Archaeology Branch out of Ft. Fisher North Carolina directly next to the new museum (attendance to the museum is free and students are encouraged to tour the museum after the UAB tour). The Underwater Archaeology Branch actually predates the NC Office of State Archaeology. their website states;

"Since our inception, we has made steady progress in our efforts to understand and manage the state’s submerged cultural resources. We have documented over 1,000 underwater archaeological sites that include prehistoric dugout canoes, colonial sailing vessels, beached shipwreck remains, dozens of Civil War shipwrecks, and nineteenth and twentieth-century steamboats."

"We conduct historical, archival, and cartographic research to identify historic shipwrecks and develop an understanding of North Carolina's maritime history. These activities include remote sensing surveys to locate endangered shipwrecks and underwater archaeological sites, diver investigations to document the sites, and analysis of material and information recovered from those sites. We maintain historical and archaeological records of known shipwrecks and new discoveries along our coast, which can be accessed by researchers and consultants by appointment."