Research

Scholars of history sometimes ask the question: "We know Sir Sam Moggs discovered Australia in 1759 but where lies his ship?

The wreck of the Sir Sam's ship was found two years ago. Here is a brief pictorial history of that wonderfully successful quest.

Over a decade ago Dr John Stanley led a team of geophysicists to the area of the Victorian coast between Port Fairy and Warrnambool. They were seeking the famous 'Mahogany Ship'. John knew that Sir Sam's ship had never been found and that many people at Moggs Creek were wondering if...?

The photos shows members of the geophysical research team walking down the sand dunes near Warrnambool with an ultra sensitive magnetometer.

Above is a newspaper report on their findings. Note that the Mahogany ship was not found and no governmental reward was therefore claimed.

In the summer of 2006 the Sir Samuel Moggs Foundation dispatched John and Gordon Stanley to the coast near Port Fairy in an attempt to discover the lost ship.  The photo shows them in the massive sand dunes near the coast at the precise moment that they observed the first sign of the wreck. For obvious reasons we cannot reveal this exact spot.

The photo shows the researchers on the yet-to-be-named beach near  the wreck. They are critically examining the planks from the ship. The unique timbers showed that their quest had been successful

The discovery of the ship's remnants was greeted with rejoicing throughout the scientific community. In the photo we see those remnants being received into the custodianship of the World Historical Sailing Museum. Gordon Stanley is shown receiving a a formal letter of thanks from a very young descendant of Sir Sam and Dame Minnie Moggs.

The ships ancient timbers are in the process of scientific examination. As the news is released we will inform the public.