Mystery Shipwreck Off Indian Rocks Beach

[Salvor6]

LARGO – Jim Leatherwood is convinced there is an as-yet-undiscovered shipwreck just off our shores. The treasure hunter from Largo backs his claim with dozens of ship-related artifacts, discovered while beachcombing with a metal detector.

His finds include large keel pins, used in building wooden ships. They connect the wood and keep the ship together. He shows a heavy pin that is bent, evidence it has been under stress. “That tells you it has been in a wreck,” said Leatherwood.

Weighty spikes, bolts and wedges were all part of a ship’s outfitting, and further indications of a nearby shipwreck, according to Leatherwood. A brass nail would have tacked down the metal sheeting on a boat, while a pulley was connected to the rigging.

A piece of chain showed a string cheese pattern, indicating a long-ago blacksmith had worked it.

Dainty rings of ancient vintage, likely part of the ship’s cargo, carry distinct markings. A cat’s head, two “sea monster” dragons facing each other. One ring appears to have been made from a teaspoon.

A piece of shell/coral conglomerate contains the remnant of a dinner plate, with a design still discernible. Several nails in the cluster suggest that the plate was in a nailed box. Another conglomerate piece is embedded with a fragment of wood, nearly petrified from age, which was part of a ship. These are very rare finds, Leatherwood said, which his metal detector picked up because of the iron nails present.

Leatherwood held up a piece of coal. There is no natural coal in the ocean, he said, so its presence would mean a steamship had been nearby. “(The coal) would be the first thing that would turn me on to a site,” he said.

Full article here: http://www.tbnweekly.com/pubs/largo_...110_lle-01.txt

[MadPixelPusher]

According to the NWS report, on March 31, 2011 a tornado touched down around Indian Rocks Beach at about 11:04 a.m., with winds of about 90 mph.
http://www.baynews9.com/article/news/2011/april/226617/NWS-confirms-nine-tornado-touchdowns-in-Thursdays-stormsWould this event make for a desirable hunt now on this beach or not?
What effects on the beach would a tornado cause? More/less sand?
Would a tornado have the same effect on a beach as a waterspout just offshore?
I hear all the time about hunting beaches after storms but what about this?
Oh, and of course, obviously, any and all sandcastles on said beach have most probably been transported to Oz!

[stevemc]

I dont think it would do much. A tornado (and those werent huge ones) dont do much at ground level, most is up some, the forces are sheared at ground level. And the winds were moving everything at 30-50 miles an hour to the East. It wouldnt have been there for very long. We need a storm, and huge waves. Something we dont get very often.