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Possible Site of White House Treasure Ship Found
November 17, 2005
Newtown, Pa. -- The Canadian coast wreck site of a possible British gunboat believed to have been carrying White House and Capitol Building valuables looted by soldiers who invaded and burned the Washington, D.C. landmarks during the War of 1812 is being surveyed by divers, archaeologists and conservators from Artifact Conservation & Recovery, Inc. (ARC), a portfolio company of Sovereign Exploration Associates International, Inc. (SEAI), a Pennsylvania-based firm.
ARC has been conducting an archaeological survey of the site off the coast of Halifax, Nova Scotia, under an official Treasure Trove licensing agreement with the provincial government. Under the licensing agreement, the province will receive a 10 percent royalty on any official ?treasure? recovered, including specie and artifacts. The remaining artifacts will belong to ARC.
The focus of the exploration has been the location where it is believed the Fantome, a French brig captured by the British in 1810 and used as a gunboat during the invasion of the Chesapeake in 1814, went down on November 24, 1814, three months after British troops invaded Washington, D.C. Surviving manifests for the Fantome indicate that it was carrying valuables taken from the White House and Capitol Building when it was lost on a reef of rocks near Prospect, some 20 miles southwest of Halifax, while escorting a convoy of ships.
Curtis Sprouse, COO of SEAI, says that no actual wooden ships from the period are left on the site, having long since disintegrated. The company hopes to find what remains of the ships? historic cargo. Although items clearly linked to Washington, D.C. and the British Navy ? including American coins and buttons from officers? uniforms ? already have been recovered, Sprouse says that neither the company?s independently retained chief marine archaeologist, James Sinclair, who worked on the wreck of the Titanic and other historic sites, nor its independent conservator, Ian Cross, is prepared to say the site of the Fantome itself has been pinpointed. The involvement of both Sinclair and Cross in the project has been approved by the Province of Nova Scotia. The company is dedicated to a careful, responsible excavation, he said, and has a 25-year record of meticulous marine exploration.
?We believe that the preservation and presentation of history is of utmost importance. We are proud of the approach we take to these sites,? Sprouse said.
The War of 1812, often called ?The Second American Revolution,? was prompted by British interference with U.S. sea trade with Europe. On August 24, 1814, British soldiers invaded Washington and looted and burned key government buildings, including the Capitol and White House. President James Madison?s wife, Dolley, managed to save a full-length portrait of George Washington and a few other possessions before fleeing the presidential mansion just prior to the soldiers? arrival.
After the sacking of Washington, the British forces turned their attention north to Baltimore, whose famed clipper ships had harassed the British Navy and commercial fleet. British warships ? including the Fantome ? invaded the Chesapeake Bay. They unsuccessfully sought to bombard Baltimore?s Fort McHenry into submission with a relentless barrage of rockets, bombs and cannon fire from September 13 to early on September 14, 1814. The successful resistance of Fort McHenry ? signaled by the sight of its mammoth flag still flying, inspired Francis Scott Key to write ?The Star-Spangled Banner.?
It is not known if the Fantome participated in the famous bombardment, but it retreated with the rest of the British flotilla following its failure to defeat the American troops on land or sea near Baltimore.
British naval records describe the Fantome as ?a fine French corvette brig letter of marque...with ports for twenty heavy carronades?, a short gun half the weight of an equivalent long gun. It carried a crew of 74. Although its role in the bombardment of Ft. McHenry is not clear, it did participate in the British attack on the Maryland city of Havre de Grace on May 2, 1814.
Excavation of the possible Fantome site is just one of the projects being conducted by ARC and Sea Research, Inc. (SR), both portfolio companies of SEAI. ARC has been recovering substantial artifacts from the site of the wreck of Le Chameau, a French ship whose loss on August 27, 1725 may have altered the history of France?s colonies in Canada.
Originally known as CALI Holdings, Inc., SEAI is a Business Development Corporation firm headquartered in Newtown, Pa. It became a public corporation in October (OTC BB: SVXP).
About Sovereign Exploration Associates International, Inc.
Sovereign Exploration Associates International, Inc. (OTCBB:SVXP) is a Business Development Company under the Investment Company Act of 1940 undertaking shipwreck exploration and recovery initiatives. Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Security Exchange Act of 1934, SVXP has filed Form 8-K.
SAFE HARBOR
The statements made in this release constitute "forward-looking" statements, usually containing the words "believe," "estimate," "project," "expect," or similar expressions. These statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Factors that would cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, the failure of the ships to contain cargo of historic, archeological or intrinsic value, changing economic conditions, interest rates trends, continued acceptance of the Company's products in the marketplace, competitive factors and other risks detailed in the Company's periodic report filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. By making these forward-looking statements, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these statements for revisions or changes after the date of this release.
Contact:
Sovereign Exploration Associates International Inc.
Curtis R. Sprouse, 781-246-7512
Fax: 781-245-7774
November 17, 2005
Newtown, Pa. -- The Canadian coast wreck site of a possible British gunboat believed to have been carrying White House and Capitol Building valuables looted by soldiers who invaded and burned the Washington, D.C. landmarks during the War of 1812 is being surveyed by divers, archaeologists and conservators from Artifact Conservation & Recovery, Inc. (ARC), a portfolio company of Sovereign Exploration Associates International, Inc. (SEAI), a Pennsylvania-based firm.
ARC has been conducting an archaeological survey of the site off the coast of Halifax, Nova Scotia, under an official Treasure Trove licensing agreement with the provincial government. Under the licensing agreement, the province will receive a 10 percent royalty on any official ?treasure? recovered, including specie and artifacts. The remaining artifacts will belong to ARC.
The focus of the exploration has been the location where it is believed the Fantome, a French brig captured by the British in 1810 and used as a gunboat during the invasion of the Chesapeake in 1814, went down on November 24, 1814, three months after British troops invaded Washington, D.C. Surviving manifests for the Fantome indicate that it was carrying valuables taken from the White House and Capitol Building when it was lost on a reef of rocks near Prospect, some 20 miles southwest of Halifax, while escorting a convoy of ships.
Curtis Sprouse, COO of SEAI, says that no actual wooden ships from the period are left on the site, having long since disintegrated. The company hopes to find what remains of the ships? historic cargo. Although items clearly linked to Washington, D.C. and the British Navy ? including American coins and buttons from officers? uniforms ? already have been recovered, Sprouse says that neither the company?s independently retained chief marine archaeologist, James Sinclair, who worked on the wreck of the Titanic and other historic sites, nor its independent conservator, Ian Cross, is prepared to say the site of the Fantome itself has been pinpointed. The involvement of both Sinclair and Cross in the project has been approved by the Province of Nova Scotia. The company is dedicated to a careful, responsible excavation, he said, and has a 25-year record of meticulous marine exploration.
?We believe that the preservation and presentation of history is of utmost importance. We are proud of the approach we take to these sites,? Sprouse said.
The War of 1812, often called ?The Second American Revolution,? was prompted by British interference with U.S. sea trade with Europe. On August 24, 1814, British soldiers invaded Washington and looted and burned key government buildings, including the Capitol and White House. President James Madison?s wife, Dolley, managed to save a full-length portrait of George Washington and a few other possessions before fleeing the presidential mansion just prior to the soldiers? arrival.
After the sacking of Washington, the British forces turned their attention north to Baltimore, whose famed clipper ships had harassed the British Navy and commercial fleet. British warships ? including the Fantome ? invaded the Chesapeake Bay. They unsuccessfully sought to bombard Baltimore?s Fort McHenry into submission with a relentless barrage of rockets, bombs and cannon fire from September 13 to early on September 14, 1814. The successful resistance of Fort McHenry ? signaled by the sight of its mammoth flag still flying, inspired Francis Scott Key to write ?The Star-Spangled Banner.?
It is not known if the Fantome participated in the famous bombardment, but it retreated with the rest of the British flotilla following its failure to defeat the American troops on land or sea near Baltimore.
British naval records describe the Fantome as ?a fine French corvette brig letter of marque...with ports for twenty heavy carronades?, a short gun half the weight of an equivalent long gun. It carried a crew of 74. Although its role in the bombardment of Ft. McHenry is not clear, it did participate in the British attack on the Maryland city of Havre de Grace on May 2, 1814.
Excavation of the possible Fantome site is just one of the projects being conducted by ARC and Sea Research, Inc. (SR), both portfolio companies of SEAI. ARC has been recovering substantial artifacts from the site of the wreck of Le Chameau, a French ship whose loss on August 27, 1725 may have altered the history of France?s colonies in Canada.
Originally known as CALI Holdings, Inc., SEAI is a Business Development Corporation firm headquartered in Newtown, Pa. It became a public corporation in October (OTC BB: SVXP).
About Sovereign Exploration Associates International, Inc.
Sovereign Exploration Associates International, Inc. (OTCBB:SVXP) is a Business Development Company under the Investment Company Act of 1940 undertaking shipwreck exploration and recovery initiatives. Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Security Exchange Act of 1934, SVXP has filed Form 8-K.
SAFE HARBOR
The statements made in this release constitute "forward-looking" statements, usually containing the words "believe," "estimate," "project," "expect," or similar expressions. These statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Factors that would cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, the failure of the ships to contain cargo of historic, archeological or intrinsic value, changing economic conditions, interest rates trends, continued acceptance of the Company's products in the marketplace, competitive factors and other risks detailed in the Company's periodic report filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. By making these forward-looking statements, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these statements for revisions or changes after the date of this release.
Contact:
Sovereign Exploration Associates International Inc.
Curtis R. Sprouse, 781-246-7512
Fax: 781-245-7774
