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Were 18th-century pirates literate? What sort of books did they keep on board ship? ... During conservation work on artifacts recovered from the wreckage of Queen Anne's Revenge -- the flagship of the pirate Blackbeard -- 16 tiny fragments of paper were discovered in a mass of wet sludge removed from the chamber for a breech-loading cannon. The largest fragment was only about the size of a quarter. Paper is an extremely rare material to find on shipwrecks, especially one 300 years old, because it usually disintegrates quickly under water... As the work progressed another discovery was made -- that...

Shiver me timbers: Archaeologists have unveiled some unnerving medical tools found amid the wreckage of Blackbeard's Queen Anne's Revenge.

BEAUFORT | One cannon was raised and another found as state underwater archaeologists closed out their latest dive at the Queen Anne’s Revenge shipwreck site. Crews were cleaning up Monday after a three-week fall dive expedition that focused on the large pile of artifacts molded together in a cement-like mass of iron and sand at the ship’s midsection. The plan was to bring up two small cannon at the uppermost layer, but that changed somewhat as work to free one of the guns from the mass revealed a new discovery. “We were only able to bring up one of the...

BEAUFORT, North Carolina (Reuters) - Nearly three centuries ago, the notorious pirate Blackbeard ran aground in his ship, the Queen Anne's Revenge, off what is now a North Carolina beach town. This month, a crew of 13 heads out to sea each day, hoping for clear-enough weather to dive the 20 to 25 feet (6 to 7.5 metres) to the ocean bottom to excavate what they believe is Blackbeard's ship. The team has found cannons, a bell, lead shot of all sizes, gold dust, pewter cups and medical devices, like a urethral syringe used to treat syphilis with mercury. "A...

GREENVILLE, N.C. - What do those numbers "1730" on a cannon retrieved from a shipwreck that state archaeologists think is the flagship of the pirate Blackbeard really mean? A year? A weight? That's part of the argument about whether the shipwreck really is Queen Anne's Revenge, the ship that historical accounts say Blackbeard intentionally sank near Beaufort in June 1718 to break up his company of 300 to 400 men. At a symposium at East Carolina University those who believe it is defended their work. "Anybody that says that's a date is really showing their ignorance of 18th century cannon...

MOREHEAD CITY, N.C. - Mark Wilde-Ramsing may be ashore in his office, but his thoughts are often on a patch of water that's displayed on his computer screen via a live feed from a tower-mounted zoom camera. On the surface, the picture is not much to look at: a marker buoy being tossed about by whitecaps on the angry brown waters of North Carolina's Beaufort Inlet. But 30 feet down lie the remains of a 17th-century vessel that experts say once belonged to the notorious pirate Edward Thatch, better known as Blackbeard. Since its discovery in 1996, Shipwreck Site 0003BUI...

ATLANTIC BEACH, NC (WECT) – Divers trying to recover cannons from Blackbeard's flagship, the Queen Anne's Revenge wreck site off the coast of North Carolina were successful in their efforts Thursday. Bad weather forced the team to scrub the previous two trips, but the conditions were just right the third time around. A group from Cape Fear Community College used inflation bags to float two cannons to the surface. This is the first time the cannons have been out of the water in almost 300 years. According to David Hardin with CFCC, the cannons are estimated to weigh 2,000 pounds...

THE GIST Three metallic clusters at what is believed to be the wreck of Blackbeard's flagship reveal the pirate's gruesome secrets.The piles of ammo contain lead shot, nails, and glass which were likely put in canvas bags and fired from cannons.Blackbeard's improvised missiles were intended to scare sailors into surrendering.

As underwater archaeologists dive to recover 300-year-old artifacts from the shipwreck presumed to Blackbeard’s flagship, the effort to keep the public a part of the project are all 21st century. A six-week dive expedition at the Queen Anne’s Revenge shipwreck site began this week, and anyone interested in following its progress can do so via the Facebook page Blackbeard’s-Queen Anne’s Revenge. Full information on the project is also available at the website qaronline.com. After a day of field preparations, a Wednesday afternoon Facebook post announced the biggest news of the expedition: “Returning to USCG Fort Macon. Still need to get...

MOREHEAD CITY, N.C. – An anchor from what's believed to be the wreck of the pirate Blackbeard's flagship has been raised from the ocean floor off the North Carolina coast. Archaeologists believe the anchor recovered Friday is from the Queen Anne's Revenge, which sank in 1718. That was five months before Blackbeard was killed in a battle. The artifact is the third-largest item at the shipwreck, outsized only by two other anchors. Researchers retrieved the anchor from the shipwreck about 20 feet under water... The anchor is about 11 feet long.

Today: March 03, 2007 at 7:0:7 PST Blackbeard's Ship to Be Fully Excavated By STEVE HARTSOE ASSOCIATED PRESS RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - A shipwreck off the North Carolina coast believed to be that of notorious pirate Blackbeard could be fully excavated in three years, officials working on the project said. "That's really our target," Steve Claggett, the state archaeologist, said Friday while discussing 10 years of research that has been conducted since the shipwreck was found just off Atlantic Beach. The ship ran aground in 1718, and some researchers believe it was a French slave ship Blackbeard captured in 1717...

Could this partly gilded hilt have held Blackbeard's sword? There's no way to know for sure, though it was found amid the North Carolina wreck of the Queen Anne's Revenge, the flagship of the infamous 18th-century pirate... After running aground on a sandbar in 1718 near the town of Beaufort, the ship was abandoned but likely remained intact and partly above water for as long as a year before collapsing and disintegrating... The newfound hilt may have been left behind because it was unwanted, or it may have been inaccessible, according to Moore's colleague Wendy Welsh, a conservator on the...

State rejects request for DNA test on 18th-century remains from Bath A Raleigh author is attempting to reopen the 274-year-old estate of a Beaufort County man he thinks was once a member of Blackbeard's pirate crew -- and whose bones may be stored in a box in Raleigh. Kevin P. Duffus, a writer and filmmaker, says he needs access to the estate of Edward Salter, a landowner and merchant who died in 1735, to help confirm that the state has Salter's remains. With the backing of some of Salter's descendants, Duffus is seeking to have DNA testing done on bones...

Bill Richardson is now being investigated by a federal grand jury for pay to play allegations. CDR Financial Products donated $100,000 to register Hispanic and Indian voters in 2004 and thus received $1.5 million dollars in fess from the New Mexico Finance Authority in 2004. Can't post article because it is from Bloomberg.

Blackbeard's sloop Adventure was anchored on the inner side of Ocracoke Island. Maynard's sloops guided by local pilots, arrived in the area at dusk on Thursday, November 21 where they decided to wait for the tide and attack the next morning. At first light the sloops weighed anchor and crept toward the island. Maynard ordered some men to take a small boat and row ahead of the sloop as there was so little wind. As they approached the pirate ship they received a volley of shot. The boat hastily retreated back to the protection of the sloops. The pirate ship...

One of the smallest artifacts recovered during the latest dive expedition at the shipwreck presumed to be Queen Anne's Revenge is getting big attention. The circular, dime-sized piece has been resting on the ocean floor for 300 years, but early examination indicates it may be the first coin to come from the site believed to be the flagship of the pirate Blackbeard... QAR Conservation Field Supervisor Wendy Welsh said.. a coin weight with a bust of Queen Anne was recovered from the site during a 2006 dive but no actual coins. Shanna Daniel, assistant conservator at the QAR lab in...

"When you look at the golden age of piracy, 1692 to about 1725, pirates were considered what they in fact were -- ruthless brigands, murderers, thieves," says W. Thomas Smith Jr., co-author of "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Pirates." "Robert Louis Stevenson's book romanticized pirates and made them very personable. That was taken a step further with the story of 'Peter Pan,' where Captain Hook was loosely based on the image of Blackbeard -- and as we all know, Blackbeard was a horrible guy." So, Mr. Smith, who's your favorite pirate? "I would have to say, I guess, Blackbeard --...

In March 1997, archaeologists in Raleigh made an exciting announcement: Divers had discovered a wreck the previous year off Beaufort Inlet they believed to be the Queen Anne's Revenge, the flagship of the famous pirate Edward Teach, better known as Blackbeard. The Queen Anne's Revenge sank in approximately that location in June 1718, Dr. Sim Wilde, program administrator for exploration of the ship, told Rocky Mount Kiwanis Club members Thursday at Benvenue Country Club. A diving expedition in October 1997 provided additional evidence strongly suggesting that the wreck is, indeed, the Queen Anne's Revenge, he said. "Blackbeard the pirate ran...

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Nine years ago, researchers believe they found Queen Anne's Revenge, Blackbeard the pirate's flagship. Now, some Archaeologists at East Carolina University are not so sure. Researchers found a major shipwreck at Beaufort Inlet nearly a decade ago. They later located 23 cannons resting on the ocean floor. Archaeologists have recovered some of them, along with other 18th century artifacts, which they say all point to the famous vessel. "I am, from my point of view, personally 1,000 percent sure it is Queen Anne's Revenge. I have absolutely no doubt whatsoever," researcher Phil Masters said.

GREENVILLE, N.C. - Three archaeologists are disputing the state's claim that an undersea wreck found near Beaufort is the flagship of the pirate Blackbeard. In the first major challenge to the claim, two East Carolina University professors and the state of Michigan's underwater archaeologist said there is no conclusive evidence to justify identifying the wreckage as the Queen Anne's Revenge. They said state officials and researchers have studied the wreck with preconceived notions of its identity, and that pressure to capitalize on the Blackbeard connection caused alternative theories to be overlooked. "It's an exciting shipwreck and an important shipwreck," said...