[MSN] Griffon: Heritage group is helping in ship search (Traverse City Record Eagle)

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Aug 14, 6:59 PM EDT

Marine heritage group assisting Griffon search 

By JOHN FLESHER 
Associated Press Writer

CHARLEVOIX, Mich. (AP) -- A nonprofit marine heritage
group is throwing its support behind an entrepreneur
who believes he has located the Great Lakes' oldest
shipwreck but is battling with the state over rights
to oversee it.

The Center for Maritime and Underwater Resource
Management wants to help Steve Libert determine
whether the wreckage he found in 2001 is the Griffon,
the 17th century ship built by the French explorer La
Salle.

"Government alone should not be writing our maritime
history," Ken Vrana, president of the center, said
Monday. "We should all be involved."

The Griffon disappeared on its maiden voyage in 1679
after setting sail from an island near Green Bay,
Wis., with a crew of six and a cargo of furs and other
goods. It's believed to have sunk in northern Lake
Michigan.
  
Libert's company, Great Lakes Exploration Group LLC,
and marine archaeologists issued a report last month
with findings from their examinations of what they
believe may be the Griffon's bowsprit.

Carbon testing of wood slivers shows they could date
to the period when the Griffon was built, Vrana said
at a news conference. Historical research also shows
the area where the wreckage was found is consistent
with where the ship likely foundered, he said.

Magnetic and acoustic testing of the wreckage suggests
a "wood hull vessel of an early build," he said.

"Does this mean that this site is Griffon? No, this is
not conclusive evidence at this point," Vrana said.

The next step is closer examination in hopes of
positively identifying the wreckage, Varna said. His
organization will help by crafting a plan describing
things such as methods and technologies to be used,
costs, and a schedule.

Libert refuses to disclose the exact site of the
wreckage, saying he doesn't want to tip off looters
and sport divers who might damage it. He wants a
promise from the state that he can stay involved as
the wreckage is studied and take part in decisions
about what to do with it.

"I want to work together, but you have to give credit
where credit's due," Libert said. "I've been working
on this for nearly 30 years."

But Michigan officials say the state owns all
abandoned Great Lakes shipwrecks within its
jurisdiction and Libert has no claim to the Griffon.
They want to determine what's there before making any
deals about his future involvement.

"They haven't adqeuately described what they think is
down there," said Peter Manning, an assistant state
attorney general.

"This could be a fishing net pole, it could be a piece
of lumber from a different ship. The real question is,
have we been denied the right to go out there and have
a look at it ourselves? I should say we have."

Libert says he's informed the state of the debris
field's general location, but state officials say
that's not specific enough.

He also wants the state to sign an agreement to keep
the location private. Manning said that's a moot point
because U.S. District Judge Robert Holmes Bell, who is
hearing a federal lawsuit in the dispute, issued a
confidentiality order.

Bell is expected to rule soon on Libert's request for
rights to salvage, search and study the wreckage and
restrict access to others.

© 2006 The Associated Press