The Search for Blackbeard’s Queen Anne’s Revenge

Join us Wednesday, November 15 at 10 a.m. to hear Lindley S. Butler, Ph.D, discuss his work on Blackbeard's Queen Anne's Revenge. He was a volunteer diver and served as Historian of the Queen Anne’s Revenge Shipwreck Project from 1997 - 2013.

He received his Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1971. He is Professor Emeritus and was Historian-in-Residence at Rockingham Community College. Now a historical consultant, he researches and writes North Carolina history. 

Among Dr. Butler’s significant contributions to the history of the state are numerous publications, television commentaries and consultations, and service to several historical organizations. He is author or editor of twelve books, including Pirates, Privateers, and Rebel Raiders of the Carolina Coast and a widely-used college supplement, The North Carolina Experience; as well as scores of monographs, articles, and reviews. He is currently engaged in writing a comprehensive history of Proprietary North Carolina, 1629 – 1729.

In November 1996, a treasure hunter discovered a shipwreck in Beaufort Inlet, from which he recovered early 18^th-century artifacts. Since the inlet was the location of the 1718 loss of Queen Anne’s Revenge, flagship of the infamous pirate Blackbeard, the state launched a comprehensive underwater archaeological, historical, and scientific research project to identify the wreck conclusively and prepare an exhibit for the 300^th anniversary in 2018. 

The work continues: nearly sixty percent of the remains have been recovered; a major exhibit is in the North Carolina Maritime Museum in Beaufort; and conservation proceeds at the lab in Greenville for the nearly 400,000 artifacts recovered so far.