By Kyrmyzy Turebayeva
Thousands of shipwrecks lie at the bottom of the Great Lakes, but their legal protection remains uncertain.
In an article published in the Detroit Mercy Law Review Online, archaeologist and attorney Ryan Seidemann argues that existing laws do not always provide adequate protection for shipwrecks as cultural heritage sites and underwater burial sites.
Seidemann is an expert in human remains law. He also works on legal issues involving shipwrecks and other submerged cultural heritage sites.
“I have had an interest in how the law interacts with shipwrecks and other submerged cultural heritage,” he said.
“When I learned that the University of Detroit Mercy Law School was doing a symposium on the 50th anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald, I saw an opportunity not just to engage with a really interesting and fascinating historical event, but also to propose some additional protections for submerged cultural heritage and archaeology sites,” he said.
“That symposium became the starting point for further work on this topic,” Seidemann said.
The Edmund Fitzgerald is the most famous shipwreck in the Great Lakes. The disaster occurred on Nov. 10, 1975, and all members of the crew died.
“It was an American vessel that sank in Canadian waters. It was leaving Wisconsin on its way to Ohio, and most of its journey during the storm was actually in Michigan waters,” Seidemann said. “Michigan is the closest American state to where that wreck occurred. The vessel ended up in Canadian waters, although it is very close to the American border, maybe 500 feet.”
According to Seidemann, the problem is that shipwrecks where people died do not always receive the same legal protection as burial sites on land.
Under U.S. law, when someone has been buried, the property is automatically considered a cemetery, and specific protections exist for that property.
However, the legal definition of a cemetery generally does not include shipwrecks.
“There are thousands of shipwrecks at the bottom of the Great Lakes with histories spanning the whole span of European history in the New World.”
He said the lakes have unique conditions for preserving shipwrecks.
“Because of the cold freshwater, many are very well preserved, and there is a very active diving community with access to a significant number of these sites. So, the issue of protecting them is particularly important here,” said Seidemann.
Cold water slows the deterioration of sunken vessels.
They can look almost the same as they did on the day they hit the bottom, as is the case with the Edmund Fitzgerald.
“The fact that the ships are so well preserved makes these places in the Great Lakes attractive to divers,” he said. “For example, the Titanic is degrading over time because of the saltwater.”
“In addition, unlike many deep-water shipwrecks in the oceans, some wrecks in the Great Lakes are at depths accessible to recreational divers. This means people can not only see them, but also physically access the ships themselves. They can take pictures or record video, and some may even take pieces of the ships and other things,” he said.
According to Seidemann, legal protection for shipwrecks in the United States depends on where the wreck site is located.
“In Michigan’s state waters, the protection is probably decent. But the state waters extend only 3 miles from the shore,” said Seidemann.
Beyond that boundary are federal waters, where, according to Seidemann, the protection of many civilian shipwrecks remains less certain.
“U.S. federal law provides protection for some sunken vessels. In 2004, Congress passed the Sunken Military Craft Act, which protects vessels of all nations that happen to be in U.S. waters, as long as they were military vessels.”
“However, the law does not apply to civilian vessels,” Seidemann said.
For Seidemann, the issue of protecting shipwrecks goes far beyond preserving historical objects.
In his view, if people died aboard a vessel and their remains are still inside, the site should also be considered a burial site.
“In the case of the Edmund Fitzgerald, the families of those who died see the wreck site as the gravesite of their loved ones..”
“For example, during one effort to reach the wreck for tourism purposes, a video was taken showing one of the dead crew members who was visible. The families were very upset about that and sued the company that had done it to block the video from going public,” Seidemann explained.
In Seidemann’s view, such sites should be treated with the same respect as cemeteries.
“That’s why I wrote this article and argue that basic cemetery law protections should apply to shipwrecks as well,” he said.“There is a gap in legal coverage for those types of sites. Without additional protection, these sites become very attractive for people to go dive on and explore and, in some cases, to sensationalize the dead who are still on those ships.”
At the same time, Seidemann said he does not believe that recreational diving itself should be prohibited.
On the contrary, he believes recreational divers can help preserve submerged cultural heritage.
If divers discover an unknown shipwreck and report it to qualified underwater archaeologists, specialists have an opportunity to study and protect the site.
“Recreational divers do help to preserve history when they find the wrecks and notify qualified underwater archaeologists that it’s there. They’re absolutely helping to protect that history.”
“But it’s a fine line between letting appropriate people know that there’s a wreck there and going one step further and taking pieces of it off,” Seidemann said.
Seidemann was once a sport diver and saw a shipwreck underwater.
“It’s very jarring to your mind to see this boat on the bottom. So I understand why these places attract people. But it’s important to enjoy the experience without harming the shipwreck or taking pieces of it,” Seidemann said.
For Seidemann, the main challenge is finding a balance between allowing people to explore submerged cultural heritage and respecting the people who died in these shipwrecks.
He said people should be able to see and study shipwrecks while at the same time leaving them undisturbed and not treating them simply as historical objects.
“Just remember that this is bigger than just you. A lot of them are graves. And maybe treat them with the respect that you would in a cemetery,” Seidemann said.