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The Florida Keys are a coral cay archipelago located off the southern coast of Florida, forming the southernmost part of the continental United States. They begin at the southeastern coast of the Florida peninsula, about 15 miles (24 km) south of Miami, and extend in a gentle arc south-southwest and then westward to Key West, the westernmost of the inhabited islands, and on to the uninhabited Dry Tortugas. The islands lie along the Florida Straits, dividing the Atlantic Ocean to the east from the Gulf of Mexico to the northwest, and defining one edge of Florida Bay. At the nearest point, the southern part of Key West is just 90 miles (140 km) from Cuba. The Florida Keys are between about 24.3 and 25.5 degrees North latitude.
An artificial reef is a human-created underwater structure, typically built to promote marine life in areas with a generally featureless bottom, to control erosion, block ship passage, block the use of trawling nets, or improve surfing.
USS Spiegel Grove (LSD-32) was a Thomaston-class dock landing ship of the United States Navy. She was named for Spiegel Grove, the home and estate in Fremont, Ohio of Rutherford B. Hayes, the 19th President of the United States.
The USCGC Bibb (WPG-31) was a 327-foot (100 m) Secretary-Class Coast Guard ship commissioned in 1936. Seven similar "combat cutters" were built and named for secretaries of the United States Treasury. Bibb was named for U.S. Secretary of the Treasury George M. Bibb.
USS Muliphen (AKA-61/LKA-61) was an Andromeda-class attack cargo ship named after Muliphen, a star in the constellation Canis Major.
MV Adolphus Busch was a cargo ship that was sunk off of Looe Key, Florida, as an artificial reef and dive site.
USS Scuffle (AM-298) was an Admirable-class minesweeper built for the United States Navy during World War II. She was awarded a Presidential Unit Citation and five battle stars for service in the Pacific during World War II. She was decommissioned in June 1946 and placed in reserve. While remaining in reserve, Scuffle was reclassified as MSF-298 in February 1955, but never reactivated. In October 1962, she was sold to the Mexican Navy and renamed ARM DM-05. In 1994, she was renamed ARM General Felipe Xicoténcatl (C53). She was sunk as an artificial reef and dive attraction off of Cozumel in 1999, and was stricken from the rolls of the Mexican Navy in 2000.
USNS General Hoyt S. Vandenberg (T-AGM-10) was a General G. O. Squier-class transport ship in the United States Navy in World War II named in honor of U.S. Army Chief of Engineers Harry Taylor. She served for a time as army transport USAT General Harry Taylor, and was reacquired by the navy in 1950 as USNS General Harry Taylor (T-AP-145).
Wreck Alley also known as "Sunken Harbor" is an area a few miles off the coast of Mission Beach, San Diego, California with several ships intentionally sunk as artificial reefs and as Scuba diving attractions for wreck divers.
Sinking ships for wreck diving sites is the practice of scuttling old ships to produce artificial reefs suitable for wreck diving, to benefit from commercial revenues from recreational diving of the shipwreck, or to produce a diver training site.
SS Benwood was a steam cargo ship of the early twentieth century. Built by Craig, Taylor & Co Ltd., Stockton on Tees, she entered service with Joseph Hoult & Co. Ltd, Liverpool. She passed through several owners, before being lost in a collision off the coast of Key Largo, Florida in 1942. Her wreck is now a popular dive site.
SS Radaas was a 2524-ton cargo steamship. She was built by and launched in 1890 as Marstonmoor for Moor Lines. She was sold to a Greek company in 1902 and renamed Athos Romanos, before being sold to Danish interests during the First World War and renamed Radaas. She was sunk by the German submarine UB-40 under the command of Oberleutnant Hans Howaldt on 21 September 1917. She was 18 miles west of Portland Bill en route from Tyne to Bordeaux when the torpedo struck her in the port side. The wreck lies on a sandy bed at a depth of 30 m at 50°34′13″N3°4′50″W.
USAMP Major General Wallace F. Randolph, sometimes also known as MG Wallace F. Randolph, was a 188.2-foot (57.4 m) mine planter built by the Marietta Manufacturing Company, and delivered to the United States Army Mine Planter Service in 1942. The ship was transferred to the U.S. Navy in 1951, placed directly into the Atlantic Reserve Fleet without being commissioned classed as the auxiliary minelayer ACM-15, then reclassified minelayer, auxiliary (MMA) and named MMA-15, and finally given the name Nausett without any active naval service. After being stricken from the Naval Vessel Register, the ship was transferred to different owners, and eventually was scuttled off the coast of Florida as an artificial reef and fish aggregating device. The site is currently known as the Thunderbolt Wreck, and is considered to be an excellent and challenging dive site for advanced divers.
Alligator Reef is a coral reef located within the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. It lies to the southeast of Upper Matecumbe Key. This reef lies within a Sanctuary Preservation Area (SPA).
The Florida Public Archaeology Network, or FPAN, is a state supported organization of regional centers dedicated to public outreach and assisting Florida municipalities and the Florida Division of Historical Resources "to promote the stewardship and protection of Florida's archaeological resources." FPAN was established in 2004, upon legislation that sought to establish a "Florida network of public archaeology centers to help stem the rapid deterioration of this state's buried past and to expand public interest in archaeology."
Amaryllis was a cargo ship built in 1945 at Burrard Dry Dock in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. She was 441.6 feet (134.6 m) long and measured 7,147 gross register tons. Originally named Cromwell Park, she was built for the government of Canada to be used in World War II. In 1946 she was sold to Canadian Transportation Co. Ltd. which renamed her the Harmac Vancouver. In 1948, she was sold to Greek shipowner Kydoniefs, renamed the Amaryllis and registered in Panama. In 1965, she ran aground during Hurricane Betsy off the coast of Florida and was later sunk offshore as an artificial reef at 26°47′17″N80°00′58″W.
SS Arratoon Apcar was an iron-hulled steamship built in 1861 for the Apcar Line. She ran ashore on Fowey Rocks off the coast of Florida on 17 February 1878, was abandoned 3 days later, and broke apart. Today the wreck is a good location for scuba diving.
The following index is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Wikipedia's articles on recreational dive sites. The level of coverage may vary:
Recreational dive sites are specific places that recreational scuba divers go to enjoy the underwater environment or for training purposes. They include technical diving sites beyond the range generally accepted for recreational diving. In this context all diving done for recreational purposes is included. Professional diving tends to be done where the job is, and with the exception of diver training and leading groups of recreational divers, does not generally occur at specific sites chosen for their easy access, pleasant conditions or interesting features.
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Eagle Shipwreck Trail Report". indiana.edu. 1997. Retrieved 7 February 2012.
- 1 2 "The wreck of the Eagle". eaglewreck.info. 2012. Retrieved 7 February 2012.
- ↑ "The Eagle". n-the-florida-keys.com. 2012. Retrieved 7 February 2012.
