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62
WBM june 2017
When Morris tells the story, you can practically feel
the wind and the rain and taste the salt spray as the
Condor makes its run past the Union blockaders in the
pre-dawn hours. You can feel the excitement of the chase,
and the fear as she swerves to avoid the CSS Night Hawk,
which had run aground.
You can hear the captain passionately arguing with
Rose Greenhow, telling her the ship is safe under the
guns of Fort Fisher and she doesn’t need to try to make it
ashore in the lifeboat in the dark, in rough seas. You can
see the waves that capsize her launch, and sense the ter-ror
as Greenhow vanishes beneath the sea.
In Morris’ hands, history is more than a recitation
of facts from the past. It’s alive, and rich in details. The
Condor’s one-and-only voyage happened 150 years ago,
but she is just as real today. She’s not just a page in a his-tory
book, but a shipwreck currently lying in about 25
feet of water, about 700 yards from the North Carolina
Aquarium at Fort Fisher.
Morris has been diving the wreck since the ’70s. He’s
still diving it today as the head of the North Carolina
Underwater Archaeology Branch (UAB), headquartered
at Fort Fisher.
“One of the reasons this appeals so much is it’s got a great
story,” Morris says. “You’ve got Rose O’Neal Greenhow, the
ship was on her maiden voyage when she ran aground. And
then it’s an awesome dive site for people to go down and
take a look at. Actually being able to see it brings it home to
people. There’s something about the tangible feel of it.”
Prompted by the desire to make history come alive, and
to help people experience the feel of it, the UAB is turning
the Condor shipwreck into the state’s first heritage dive site.
The underwater museum will function much the same
way as its land brethren, allowing “patrons” to experience
a piece of history by seeing it and touching it. There will
be buoys to mark the spot, and mooring lines for boats
to tie off. There will be maps and information on Mylar
slates to help divers interpret what they are seeing.
“When we set the dive park up, people will be able
to swim out to these buoys — a long swim — or kayak
out and tie off,” says Greg Stratton, archaeological dive
supervisor and diving safety officer with UAB. “You can
either snorkel or take your dive gear and dive it.”
Above-water visitors can read about the Condor on
signs within sight of the buoys, and at the Fort Fisher
visitors center. The aquarium has a replica of the engine
room in one of the tanks.
“Visitors to this area, whether they dive or like muse-ums
or want to go the aquarium, can experience the
wreck,” Morris says. “I think that’s a really cool thing.
And if they’re really into it, we’ll give them directions so
they can pay homage to Rose Greenhow who is buried
at Oakdale Cemetery in Wilmington.”