The Bruce County Museum and Cultural Centre (BCM&CC) has received their first donation of documents related to marine heritage.
In a release, the BCM&CC notes the donation came from the family of Arthur Amos and is the first item received by the new Marine History and Underwater Archaeology Research Centre.
The collection donated includes drawings, maps and nautical charts, as well as news clippings, newsletters, photos, statements of the wrecks and casualties, research files, shipwrecks, patents, and shipbuilding.
The books published in the collection cover a variety of topics, including: general marine history, lake vessel registers, shipbuilding and identification, patents, seamanship and terminology, and cultural resources.
The centre says Amos was a long-time resident of Tobermory and spent about 50 years of research and field work on shipwrecks in the county, Great Lakes and other areas.
BCM&CC Archivist Deb Sturdevant says the thousands of shipwrecks across Ontario all have interesting stories to tell and of their demise, eventual underwater discovery and identification.
“The Arthur Amos Shipwreck Research Collection contains information about the experiences of some of these ships and will be available to anyone interested in Ontario’s marine history, including historians, authors, archaeologists, genealogists, educators and students,” says Sturdevant.
One of the ships included in the collection is an 1863-built schooner, dubbed the Marian L. Breck. It wrecked in 1900 in Oct. on Bears Rump Island, while traveling from Owen Sound and loaded with bricks.
The centre is available Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. until 12 p.m. and from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. The Archives and Research Room is open Monday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., and from 1:30 p.m. until 4 p.m.
More details can be found on the Bruce Museum website.
