Red River Wreck Update: July 25

Longer Dives, More Confidence

Wednesday, July 25, 2001. Work continued today on the Red River Wreck, with crew members logging significantly longer dives and making initial drawings to document the structure of the vessel.

On Wednesday the crew members doubled their average bottom time from 25 to 50 minutes each. This is significant, since it suggests they are becoming more accustomed to the challenging current and visibility conditions that prevail at the site. Marlo Thomas, a second-year underwater anthropology-archaeology student at Long Beach City College, exemplifies this. Although certified, she’s not very experienced as a diver. On Tuesday, her first day on the site, she noted that she made her team leader "go inch by inch" taking her along the wreck, "and I only went as far as SS4 [a datum point near the middle of the stern section]. Tomorrow I’ll do much better because after my second dive I felt much more. . . well, I didn’t feel panicky." The following day, though, her outlook changed considerably.

She noted that the 48-minute dive she made Wednesday was her longest so far, and that "I felt good underwater, except when other divers pass me." Thomas and dive partner Brandon Talley, a junior biology major at Southeastern Oklahoma State University, recorded features on the inside of the aft hull in one of four sections assigned to the field school students. Thomas and Talley hope to complete their measurements of the inboard hull on Thursday, and begin recording the planking on the outside of the hull.

Cecilia Brothers, another Long Beach City College student, worked on recording the aft-most section of the wreck with Daniel Seib, a graduate student in Anthropology from Indiana University. They were assigned to the area between datum points SS5 and SS6, all the way aft on the starboard side of the hull. On the way to the site, Brothers and Seib worked out the signals they would use in taking measurements of the hull. This is necessary because divers only a few feet apart cannot see each other, and have to communicate basic ideas and instructions by tugging on the measuring tape stretched between them. The two decided that one tug would mean "OK," two tugs "move to the next datum point in sequence," three tugs "move to the previous datum point in sequence," and so on. They recorded deck beams, a futtock and a pair of heavy bitts on the starboard quarter of the vessel before moving to the outboard part of the hull.

The weather on Wednesday continued hot, with broken clouds providing intermittent relief from the sun.

This update is sponsored by the PAST Foundation and the Oklahoma Historical Society. It may be freely redistributed without modification for non-commercial purposes.

Brandon Talley and Cecilia Brothers document part of the wreck around the port side paddle wheel.	Dr. Annalies Corbin reviews a student's field notes with her.	Lucius Martin (left) and Daniel Seib look for shade at the wreck site.	Howard McKinnis (left) and Scott Whitesides discuss the day's activities after returning to camp.