Florida's Golden Galleons - The Search for the 1715 Spanish Treasure Fleet [Paperback]

Robert Forrest Burgess (Author), Carl J. Clausen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1996 | ISBN-10: 0912451076 | ISBN-13: 978-0912451077

On July 24, 1715, a Spanish treasure fleet sailed from Havana, carrying a cargo of 14 million pesos in gold, silver and jewels. In the Florida Straits, near present-day Cape Canaveral, the fleet ran into a hurricane, with the disastrous loss of ten ships and 700 lives. Little was salvaged at the time. For more than two centuries, sand and sea held their secrets well. Occasionally, however, tides and storms tossed blackened silver coins up on the beaches, tempting would-be treasure hunters. Among the most successful was the Real Eight Company, contracted by the state of Florida to recover the valuable treasure and historical artifacts under the supervision of state underwater archaeologist Carl J. Clausen. Spurred by the unique finds on the ocean floor and curious about the full story behind the tragic event that had scattered this fabulous treasure along Florida's east coast, he and Robert F. Burgess determined to record the history of the ill-fated fleet. In writing their book, the authors needed the answers to hundreds of questions. What was it like to cross the Atlantic in the eighteenth century? What precautions were taken against pirates? What caused the delays that led to sailing at a particularly treacherous time of the year? What really happened the night of the hurricane? How much treasure was lost? How many people survived? The authors discovered that pieces of the historical jigsaw puzzle lay scattered all over the world. They examined hundreds of documents recovered from dusty archives: official statements, depositions, royal court orders, private and public letters, and ships' manifests. After ten years of research, the authors finally had all the facts, which enabled them to reconstruct the story. Florida's Golden Galleons is that stunning story, meticulously detailed and excitingly told, of the sinking of the great fleet and of the successful modern-day efforts to bring its treasure once more to the light of day.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This a book that will captivate all readers interested in historical adventure books(...). Readers will love this one!" -- Armchair Adventure Review

"This a book that will captivate all readers interested in historical adventure books. Readers will love this one!" -- Armchair Adventure Review

About the Author

Robert F. Burgess is the author of over 20 books on ocean related subjects such as sharks, shipwrecks, treasure hunting and underwater archaeology. Mr. Burgess works closely with anthropologists, archaeologists, oceanographers and marine biologists to create accurately the material he writes about. His magazine articles, books, and photographs detail major research work in these fields. To gain material for his writing, he has dived on ancient treasure wrecks, photographed the unique beauty of Florida's underwater caverns and documented the scientific recovery of 12,000 year old Early Man remains from deep Florida springs. Recently he spent time in Europe revisiting Hemingway's Paris haunts and backpacking into the Spanish Pyrenees researching Ernest Hemingway's early years there for his most recently published book, Hemingway's Paris and Pamplona, Then and Now. He and his wife live in northwest Florida. In this Special Edition of Florida's Golden Galleons with its up-dated information and many color photographs, Mr. Burgess offers Numbered, Hand-autographed Copies for interested readers. These are available from Spyglass Publications, 308 West Marion Street, Chattahoochee, Florida 32324

Carl J. Clausen is a marine archaeologist whose principal interests lie in colonial-period shipwreck sites. He has served as Adjunct Professor of North American Archaeology at the American Institute of Nautical Archaeology, as well as a university lecturer and a consultant to private firms. Appointed Florida's first state underwater archaeologist, by governor Farris Bryant in 1964, his duties called for inspection of historical period shipwrecks and numerous dives involving observation and supervision of the activities of commercial salvagers working under leases and contracts with the State of Florida.

Mr. Clausen's has served as: Visiting Assistant Curator (Social Sciences), Florida State Museum, University of Florida, Gainesville; Associate Professor (Geoarchaeology), Department of Geology, University of Miami, Coral Gables; Director and Principal Investigator, Little Salt Spring Research Facility, North Port, Florida and founder and president, CCC Enterprises, Inc. a cultural resource management firm primarily involved in terrestrial and marine cultural resource surveys and archaeological site evaluations (including historical period shipwreck sites). Mr. Clausen lives in north Florida.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Florida Classics (1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0912451076
• ISBN-13: 978-0912451077
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #930,460 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars GOLD FEVER!!, July 4, 2006

By 

Michael Terrell "paleo121" (North Florida) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Florida's Golden Galleons - The Search for the 1715 Spanish Treasure Fleet (Paperback)

This is a very detailed book on the history of the 1715 fleet. The story is so well written it is hard to set this book down before the ending. In depth historical information and amazing illustration combine to make this a book of dreams, dreams that came true for a few and lost for many. It leaves many more dreams for me...."GOLD FEVER"....