Captain Kidd Shipwreck
Resting in less than 10 feet of Caribbean seawater, the wreckage of Quedagh Merchant, the ship abandoned by the scandalous 17th century pirate Captain William Kidd as he raced to New York in an ill-fated attempt to clear his name, has escaped discovery -- until now. Charles Beeker (above) and a team of IU underwater archeologists announced the discovery Dec. 13, 2007. The team has been licensed to study the wreckage and to convert the site into an underwater preserve, where it will be accessible to the public.
IU anthropology doctoral student Fritz Hanselmann documents one of the "great guns" as described by Captain Kidd.
A member of the underwater archaeology team from Indiana University explores the lost wreckage of Captain Kidd's Quedagh Merchant.
Students carefully measure and document the remains of the Quedagh Merchant.
Anthropology doctoral student Fritz Hanselmann, who teaches underwater archaeology techniques in HPER, studies a cannonball from 1699.
