Jersey Shore Magazine

j e r s e y s h o r e • s p r i n g 2 0 1 5 13 13 or vacationers. Officials added that they believed the surge and currents from Superstorm Sandy were, in part, responsible for the mine's discovery so close to shore. Ship Ahoy! Engineers installing a steel revet- ment wall along the Normandy Beach section of Brick Township had to abruptly stop working in early November 2014, after one of their drills hit something twenty to twenty-five feet below the sand. Upon further discovery, the debris lously reappeared on a beach twelve miles north. Eventually, the car was scrapped, as was most of the other debris that remained after beach- combers had their pick. Mine Or Yours? On June 25, 2013, a discovery that rattled the nerves of many was made in Bay Head by resident Larry Bathgate, just south of the Johnson Street beach entrance. A World War II era moored mine was lurking in the ocean about ten feet from shore. Divers from the Point Pleasant Beach Dive Team and Naval Weapons Station Earle were quickly dispatched to investigate. At first, the three- foot metal ball was believed to be a buoy, but when divers realized it was a mine, officials feared it might contain explosives. Since it weighed hundreds of pounds, and its stability was in question, the decision was made by Navy officials to detonate the mine the following morning. The next day, area residents were evacuated from their homes and beachgoers were kept off the beaches as a precaution. At 11:00 AM during high tide, the mine was detonated, sending a boom throughout Bay Head and a column of water 125 feet into the air. The debris was then removed from the water by the U.S. Navy. Afterwards, officials said the mine did not contain any explosives, and at no time posed a threat to residents courtesy of Jerry Meaney was thought to be the remnants of a nineteenth century shipwreck. The debris was removed from the site and is currently being analyzed by maritime archaeologists to deter- mine its origin. However, according to Dan Lieb, trustee of the New Jersey Shipwreck Museum in Wall Township, the pieces indicate a bow of a ship and could possibly be from the Ayrshire, a Scottish boat that ran aground in 1850 near the Normandy Beach location. According to the popular dive web- site njscuba.net, there were several other documented shipwrecks in the same area throughout history, including the Robert C. Harris in 1920, the Cornelius Grinnell in 1853, and the John S. Minturn in 1846. Officials believe the discovery would have never been made if the storm had not created the need for a steel revetment wall. The Superstorm's "Show & Tell" continues to generate interest for locals and historians alike. Only time will tell what else will be revealed and what stories will be told. —Jill M. Ocone Right: Mine explosion in Bay Head. Below: Part of the mine that landed on the beach. Remnants of a nineteenth century shipwreck were discovered in Nomandy Beach. Eileen Sappah

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