Press

ALBANY, NY An anchor shot off a British ship during the War of 1812 can stay in New York state.

The British Ministry of Defense has agreed to donate the 14-foot anchor, recovered in Lake Champlain by divers two years ago. It will now be raised Friday morning at 8:40 a.m. - the same time and day in 1814 when the crucial Battle of Plattsburgh took place.

Local divers discovered the iron and wooden anchor and brought it to the surface two years ago. But officials with the State Museum determined it would be safer if returned to the lakebed until a preservation plan was in place. Generally, artifacts discovered on state land are considered to be the property of the state. However, it was determined by the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Department of State to belong to the British government.

"What it does is allow an important project to go forward, and it gives the State Museum a wonderful new asset for its collection," said Philip Lord, the acting chief of the historical survey at the State Museum.

Lord, who will represent the state at Friday's ceremony, said the decision sets a precedent for future international artifacts discovered underwater in New York state. Lord noted that the anchor is a wonderfully preserved artifact with its paint and lettering intact.

The anchor was shot off the Confiance. The ship had been brought to Canada in pieces before entering Lake Champlain and was considered indestructible before the battle between nine American ships and the 15 British ships.

The Navy Historical Center and the U.S. Department of State assisted the State Museum in the negotiations.

After the anchor is raised Friday morning, it is to be taken to the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum in Basin Harbor, Vt., to be restored. After that, plans call for the anchor, under the management of State Museum experts, to be displayed in either Plattsburgh City Hall or in a possible museum at the Old Stone Barracks at the former Plattsburgh Air Force Base.

"Relief is the big word," said a grateful Shirley Koester, the director of the Clinton County Historical Society.

Now, the 14-foot anchor will be raised and at the same time a ceremony honoring those killed in the battle, both British and American, will be held.