An Anchor in Bellingham Bay, Washington – Legends of America
The vast expanse of the Pacific Northwest, with its rugged coastlines, dense forests, and intricate network of waterways, has long captivated explorers, traders, and adventurers. Among those who ventured into this uncharted territory was Captain George Vancouver, a British naval officer whose voyages in the late 18th century left an indelible mark on the region. This is the story of one such voyage, a lost anchor, and the enduring mystery surrounding its discovery in the depths of Bellingham Bay.
The Voyage of Discovery: Mapping the Pacific Northwest
Between 1791 and 1794, Captain George Vancouver, at the helm of the HMS Discovery and its accompanying ships, embarked on a comprehensive exploratory voyage of the Pacific Northwest. Tasked with charting the coastline and surveying the natural resources of the region, Vancouver and his crew became the first Europeans to document the majestic Mount St. Helens and to thoroughly explore the intricate network of waterways that comprise Puget Sound.
Navigating the treacherous waters along the coasts of present-day Oregon and Washington, Vancouver’s mission was clear: to meticulously map every bay, inlet, and outlet, leaving no stone unturned in his quest to understand the region’s geography. To accomplish this ambitious goal, he dispatched smaller boats manned by skilled sailors to explore the Columbia River and to navigate the Strait of Juan de Fuca, probing the depths of these vital waterways.
While the smaller vessels ventured into the intricate channels and rivers that crisscrossed the coastline, the larger ships, including the Armed Tender of the HMS Discovery, the Chatham, sought refuge in safe harbors, anchoring in sheltered waters to ride out storms and replenish supplies. On April 29, 1792, the ships sailed into the Strait of Juan de Fuca, finding calm anchorage in Discovery Bay. This tranquil bay served as a strategic base of operations for Vancouver and his men as they explored the waters of Admiralty Inlet and Hood Canal, meticulously charting their course and documenting their findings.
After several weeks spent exploring the waters around Discovery Bay, the Chatham set sail north across the Strait of Juan de Fuca, its destination the San Juan and Lopez Islands. Successfully navigating the channels and inlets of these islands, the Chatham turned southward in May, rejoining the HMS Discovery to continue their explorations further south.
The expedition continued its southward journey, reaching as far as Commencement Bay in Tacoma before turning back north towards the relative safety of Puget Sound. As they navigated the waters, they encountered a fierce storm, accompanied by strong currents and unpredictable tides. In an attempt to cross an uncharted channel, the Chatham was caught in a powerful flood tide, which swept it helplessly towards danger. In a desperate attempt to slow the ship’s progress, the crew dropped the stream anchor, but the force of the tide proved too strong, and the cable snapped under the strain. Miraculously, the Chatham survived the ordeal, and after a futile search for the lost anchor, the ship rejoined the HMS Discovery, its crew shaken but unharmed.
Vancouver’s Account: A Lost Anchor in the Tide
The events of that fateful day were immortalized in Captain Vancouver’s journal, where he meticulously documented the challenges and triumphs of his voyage. In an entry dated June 9, 1792, Vancouver recounted the incident that led to the loss of the anchor:
"We found tides here extremely rapid, and on the 9th, in endeavoring to get around a point to the Bellingham Bay, we were swept leeward of it with great impetuosity. We let go the anchor in 20 fathoms, but in bringing it up, such was the force of the tide that we parted the cable. At slack water we swept for the anchor but could not get it. After several fruitless attempts, we were at last obliged to leave it."
For centuries, the lost anchor remained undisturbed, a silent relic of Vancouver’s historic voyage, resting on the seabed of Bellingham Bay. Its whereabouts were known only through the pages of Vancouver’s journal, a tantalizing clue for future generations of treasure hunters and maritime historians.
A Modern Discovery: Unearthing the Past
In 2008, a team of divers from Anchor Ventures, LLC, a Seattle-based exploration company, embarked on a mission to locate the long-lost anchor. Rather than focusing their search in the immediate vicinity of the channel where the Chatham had encountered the storm, the team made a bold decision to explore the waters off the northwestern shore of Whidbey Island, theorizing that the Chatham may not have been with the Discovery at the time of the incident.
Their gamble paid off. After years of meticulous searching, the team located and recovered an anchor that they believed to be the one lost by the Chatham in 1792. The anchor, encrusted with barnacles and bearing the marks of centuries spent submerged in the depths, was carefully raised to the surface in 2014.
The discovery sparked excitement and debate within the maritime community. While the team at Anchor Ventures was confident that they had found the lost anchor of the Chatham, skeptics raised doubts, pointing to the anchor’s weight, which they claimed was heavier than anchors typically used on ships of that era.
The Mystery Endures: Is It the Real Deal?
The question of whether the recovered anchor is indeed the one lost by the Chatham in 1792 remains a subject of ongoing debate. While the team at Anchor Ventures has presented compelling evidence to support their claim, skeptics continue to challenge the authenticity of the find, citing discrepancies in weight and other factors.
As the debate continues, the search for answers goes on. Maritime historians and archaeologists are carefully examining the anchor, comparing its dimensions, construction, and materials to those of anchors known to have been used on British naval vessels in the late 18th century.
The story of the lost anchor in Bellingham Bay is a reminder of the rich maritime history of the Pacific Northwest and the enduring mysteries that lie beneath the surface of its waters. Whether or not the recovered anchor is ultimately confirmed to be the one lost by the Chatham, its discovery has sparked renewed interest in the voyages of Captain George Vancouver and the early exploration of the region.
The search continues, driven by a passion for history and a desire to uncover the truth behind one of the Pacific Northwest’s most intriguing maritime legends. The anchor, whether it is the real deal or not, serves as a tangible link to the past, a reminder of the daring explorers who charted the course of history in this remarkable corner of the world.