The mandate of Virginia’s Underwater Archaeology Program includes inventorying and documenting submerged cultural resources located in state waters, as well as working with citizens to identify and protect submerged sites of archaeological significance. Virginia’s underwater archaeology team has investigated a variety of sites across the state that range in type and time period. Such sites include:
A wreck believed to be the schooner Esk (1888) located on the Eastern Shore.
The Nansemond Ghost Fleet, a collection of sunken historic vessels believed to represent Suffolk’s oystering fleet from the early 1900s.
Revolutionary War–era shipwrecks in the York River that were sunk as part of the Battle of Yorktown. This site became the first underwater historic property listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.
Maritime resources along Virginia’s rivers include hundreds of sites related to early navigations and industry, including the James River & Kanawha Canal.