A team of field researchers and college students have rediscovered the likely remains of a long-lost Spanish pirate ship off the North Carolina coast. Found not far from the remains of three other historical shipwrecks, the centuries’ old timber appears to be linked to La Fortuna, a privateer that exploded after an ill-fated attack on the colonial town of Brunswick during the mid-18th century. But experts warn any additional recovery efforts need to happen quickly before there’s nothing left to retrieve.
The first days of September, 1748, were rough for Brunswick, North Carolina. For years, Spanish privateers had been raiding British ships up and down the Eastern Coast amid King George’s War. But on September 3, pirates aboard the La Fortuna finally got around to attacking and occupying Brunswick. At the time, Brunswick was North Carolina’s busiest port, and was home to a sizable community that included the province’s governor. The incursion was shortlived, however. Local militia led a counterattack against the Spaniards the following day, forcing them back to their ship where they then returned cannonfire. But at some point in all the chaos, historical accounts indicate a powder fire ignited inside the Spaniards’ ship, resulting in an explosion that killed La Fortuna’s captain, officers, and most of its crew.
Aside from the discovery of an 18th century cannon in 1985, nothing else has surfaced that can be confidently linked to La Fortuna in 277 years. This summer’s field excursion to the Brunswick Town/Fort Anderson State Historic Site (BTFA) by East Carolina University (ECU) faculty and students appears to have finally changed that. The potentially major find occurred completely by accident, says maritime studies graduate student Cory van Hees.
“My dive buddy, Evan Olinger, and I were taking width measurements of Wharf Four to help delineate the site,” he explained in ECU’s announcement. “The visibility is consistently pretty low in the Cape Fear River. Evan attempted to find the Northern extent of the wharf but had become disoriented due to the conditions.”
The disorientation continued even after they switched roles. There was even a point when van Hees became lost, but any lingering frustrations dissipated after he noticed several curved, waterworn wooden frames and ship planking jutting out from the clay mud.
“I didn’t understand what I was looking at in that moment, but I knew I should relay the wooden structure to faculty,” explained van Hees. “Later that day, [team leader] Jason Raupp was able to confirm this was a wreck, which may be La Fortuna.”
Subsequent analysis of wood samples showed the materials were sourced from either Monterey or Mexican cypress (H. macrocarpa or H. lusitanica). Historically, both trees’ ranges are respectively limited to southern California and Central America, implying the shipbuilders utilized timber only available to Spanish Caribbean colonies during the 18th century. Combined with the nearby cannon discovery 40 years ago, the evidence strongly points to the wreckage of La Fortuna.
The season’s fieldwork has also yielded three other wreckage sites. One appears to have been used for waterfront land reclamation given its positioning next to the site of a colonial wharf, while another may be a colonial flatboat traditionally used for transporting people and materials between the port and local plantations. The fourth, however, is barely exposed above the mud and remains a mystery.
While the team managed to complete an emergency recovery for over 40 shipwreck timbers from all four sites, time isn’t on the side of preservationists. The BTFA shoreline has endured extensive erosion in recent years due to not only expected wave energy, but channel dredging projects and stronger-than-average storms. For now, experts intend to further analyze the shipwreck timbers in Greenville at the North Carolina Office of State Archaeology’s Queen Anne’s Revenge Conservation Laboratory at ECU. Based on historical evidence and geography, there’s a solid chance that van Hees and his diving buddy have closed the case on a centuries’ old pirate mystery.
“It was kind of overwhelming and a little emotional-feeling, once it set in,” said van Hees.
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