Fantome Update

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1:52pm Sunday, Apr 15 | Edit Note | Delete

This year, two long feature articles have appeared in Archeology Magazine and Canadian Geographic telling the Fantome story and public interest is at a surprising level in NS. There have been dozens of media reports on the wreck worldwide. Three public discussions at the Maritime Museum in Halifax drew over 500 people.

As I predicted, and warned the NS government in 2005, both the US and UK government stepped in and formally complained to Ottawa in the summer of 2006 asking them to stop allowing treasure hunters on important wreck sites that others had a legal interest in.

The Nova Scotia government 'reacted' by telling the Fantome treasure hunters that they would have to get permission from the UK and US government to continue their hunt. But the government didn't change or review any of the laws under which they themselves gave the treasure hunters licence. The treasure hunters, acting in good faith, with legal NS licence had spent a lot of money on the site and so they are now suing the NS government.

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A recreated brig very much like Fantome

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Finally, at the end of 2006 the heritage taskforce, after public meetings with interested parties all around Nova Scotia, and consultation with the treasure hunters themselves, recommended to the government that the treasure trove act be shut down and that all historic shipwrecks be administrated under the special places act, which would also get an update.

This winter much has come to light , from court martial reports and captain's logs, about the Fantome's goings and doings before she was sunk in 1814. It's a great story but much mystery remains. I still find it hard to account for the vast amount of treasure that has reportedly already been taken off the wreck by past salvage and the treasure hunter's continued interest in the site given the facts that are known. But the UK and US government interest seems to indicate that something is up and more remains to be discovered about Fantome.

I still think the right thing to do is stop, for a moment, and use the Fantome as a model to formulate language under the Special Places Act to set down the principles on how to decide what to do with historic shipwrecks as they are 'discovered'. I say that in quotes because few shipwrecks are actually lost. Most are known to the communities, fisherman and other seagoing folks around Nova Scotia. But new technology and private commercial interests are taking this knowledge (for free) and exposing shipwrecks at an amazing rate. Going forward, we should have a plan for handling this. As the Fantome illustrates vividly, many and varied interests are at play.

In the end, I think the answer will be that every shipwreck site is unique and we need a system, and people (probably a marine archaeologist), in place to decide what best to do given all the interests and issues involved.

As the summer season approaches we are set to watch an intense stand off between the local community, the treasure hunters, archaeologists, the federal and provincial Canadian governments and the governments and historic groups in the UK and the USA.

The fate of the Fantome will also have a huge impact not only on the other 5-10,000 historic wrecks in Nova Scotia's waters but all issues surrounding our territorial waters including Nova Scotia's ongoing battle with the federal government over off-shore oil and gas rights.

jw