HATTERAS — David D. Moore, curator of Nautical Archaeology at the North Carolina Maritime Museum in Beaufort, will give a free public presentation on the “Shipwrecked Slaver Henrietta Marie” at the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum in Hatteras on Wednesday, July 15, at 7 p.m.
The Henrietta Marie is the first slave ship wreck in North America that has been seriously studied. When Moore discovered the ship’s bell that revealed the name and date of the vessel, it made it possible to research the ship’s manifest and learn of the destinations, ship type, owners and cargo. The story of the Henrietta Marie is a vital piece of history that helps explore the cruelty of the Middle Passage, according to Moore.
Moore will discuss the various investigations that have taken place at the site of the English slave ship since the location was discovered in 1972, three centuries after the ship was lost on New Ground Reef off the coast of Florida in 1700. Contemporary historical data gleaned from shipping lists, slavers logs, manifests and accounts, seamen’s wills and a wealth of artifacts will be utilized to place Henrietta Marie within her proper context as a vehicle involved in the notorious triangular or transatlantic slave trade.
Moore has been involved in maritime history and shipwreck research for almost 30 years, including stints as a nautical archaeologist for the states of North Carolina and Florida. He has conducted field research on almost 200 shipwrecks dating from the 16th to 19th centuries.
An alumnus of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and East Carolina University, Moore was the principal investigator on the Henrietta Marie project and was instrumental in the development of a major traveling exhibit that has been touring the United States and abroad since 1995. Currently he is directing the recording efforts on the excavation of what is thought by most archaeologists to be Blackbeard’s flagship, the Queen Anne’s Revenge.
For more information, call the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum at (252) 986-2995.
The museum, located next to the Ferry’s Dock in Hatteras, presents the maritime heritage and history of the shipwrecks of North Carolina’s Outer Banks. It is part of the Division of State History Museums in the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, the state agency dedicated to the promotion and protection of North Carolina’s arts, history and culture. Join the Cultural Resources 2009 theme observance of “Treasure N.C. Culture.” For more information, visit www.ncculture.com.