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Maritime Archaeology

The unique islands and atolls of the NWHI, due to their isolation, are reserves for ecosystem diversity, and the intelligent management of their natural resources is of critical concern. The NWHI also possess a rich maritime history and special non-renewable resources…submerged maritime heritage resources, such as shipwrecks, sunken aircraft, and other archaeological sites. Such historic sites are like windows into the past. There are currently 52 known vessels lost within the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, but who knows how many more have yet to be discovered

Houei Maru #5 shipwreck at Kure Atoll. Photo by James Watt

The islands and reefs to the northwest of Hawaii have been a veritable graveyard of marine disaster. The two sufficient reasons for this have been, first, the low, inconspicuous character of the islands, and, second, the faulty or insufficient location of them on the marine charts. The menace of the iceberg is the fact that it lies seven-eighths underwater and you strike some submerged, protruding spur of it before you dream of danger. In a much more disastrous way the same thing is true of many of these islands. (Reverend J.M. Lydgate, 1915)

NOAA’s Maritime Heritage Program

NOAA’s National Marine Sanctuary Program seeks to increase the public awareness of America’s maritime heritage by conducting scientific research, monitoring, exploration and educational programs. This heritage component is supported by the National Marine Sanctuaries Act (16 USC 1431) which states: “…a federal program which establishes areas of the marine environment which have special conservation, recreational, ecological, historical, cultural, archeological, scientific, educational, or esthetic qualities as national marine sanctuaries managed as the National Marine Sanctuary System.”

Today, 13 national marine sanctuaries encompass more than 18,000 square miles of America’s ocean and Great Lakes natural and cultural resources. NOAA’s Maritime Heritage Program, formally created in 2002, is dedicated to the protection of historic shipwrecks and other submerged archaeological sites within sanctuary boundaries.

As with natural resources, numerous user and interest groups—from archaeologists to recreational divers to salvors—seek to interact with maritime heritage resources (shipwrecks, sunken aircraft, submerged archaeological sites etc.) in various ways. These resources are also impacted by the elements (storms, currents, corrosion etc.). Therefore, responsible and informed decisions must be made on how to manage these resources since, unlike living resources, such sites are non-renewable. Additionally, the maritime heritage resources within NOAA’s National Marine Sanctuaries, if properly studied and interpreted, can add an extra dimension to our education programs designed to increase public enjoyment and appreciation of sanctuary resources.