Gowanus canal cleanup uncovers historic relics

The remains of a World War II-era crash boat found in
the Gowanus Canal.
Maria
Audin

• The Gowanus Canal, one of the most polluted bodies of
  water in the country, is filled with toxic sewage, bacteria,
  and heavy metals.
• The EPA has created a plan for cleaning up the canal,
  starting with a pilot study in Brooklyn’s Fourth Street Turning
  Basin.
• Workers cleaning the turning basin recently found
  relics that go decades back, including a World War II-era
  “crash boat” and large wooden textile spools from the early
  1900s.

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The Gowanus Canal is
one of the dirtiest bodies of water in the United States.

The canal has become more and more polluted by runoff and dumping
over the past few decades. Raw
sewage tanks overflow into it, giant clumps of bacteria have
been found at the bottom of the canal, and officials have
detected amounts of heavy metals — like arsenic — that are 60
times higher than healthy exposure levels.

The EPA has committed to cleaning the canal in a project
that’s expected to cost more than $500 million. During the the
cleanup, workers recently discovered several relics that go back
to Brooklyn’s industrial past, including a “crash boat” from
World War II, wagon wheels, and large wooden textile spools.

The remains of a wagon wheel discovered in Brooklyn’s
Fourth Street Turning Basin.
Maria
Audin

The relics were found during a pilot study underway in the Fourth
Street Turning Basin, a 1.8-mile section of the Gowanus.
Contractors will soon move on to cleaning up the rest of the
canal.

The 63-foot-long crash boat is the largest discovery. Built in
Miami during World War II, the boat was used to rescue pilots
from downed airplanes,
according to the New York Post. Since then, the boat has
served as a Fire Island Ferry, a houseboat in the Bronx, and a
floating art space in Brooklyn. It was transformed into an
LGBT party boat after a group purchased it in 2006, but it is
unclear how the boat later ended up at the bottom of the canal.

Researchers wrote in a report to the EPA that the boat does not
have much historical value as a relic because it has undergone
several renovations over the past seven decades.

Workers have also found large spools and skeins that seem to have
come from Zobel Color Works, an early 20th-century textile and
dye manufacturer, according to the Post.

Yarn found at the bottom of the Fourth Street Turning
Basin in New York City.
Maria
Audin

Archaeologists hired to examine the relics say cleaning the
objects can be challenging.

Archaeologist Jonathan Bream from Archaeology & Historic
Resource Services has to wear a Tyvek suit and protective gear as
he washes the sewage off the discoveries.

“When this stuff first comes out, it kind of has a …
fecal-petroleum-musty smell that you have to have a good stomach
to be around,” Bream told the Post. “The grossest part of it …
is when something accidentally falls in the drink and splashes
you, because you’re not expecting it.”

Bream said a ceramic kettle was the lone personal object
discovered in the turning basin.

A ceramic kettle, the only personal item discovered by
workers in the Gowanus Canal.
Maria
Audin

The Fourth Street Turning Basin was built in the 1860s and 1870s,
so researchers do not expect to find objects from the oldest
parts of Brooklyn’s history there. But the Gowanus as a whole
played an important role in the American Revolution — during the
Battle of Brooklyn, an American regiment retreated across the
former swamp after the British Army gained the upper hand — so it
is possible the archaeologists will find Revolutionary War relics
in other parts.

As the EPA finishes the turning basin pilot study,
workers will put layers of sand, clay, and carbon-absorbing
materials to form a clean bottom in that part of the canal. And
Bream is working to figure out if any of the other discoveries
have historical value; if they do, the EPA and New York City will
need to determine what to do next.

The EPA will keep dredging the rest of the canal, capping it with
sand and clay, and cement will be added to sediment that contains
mobile liquid tar to keep the tar from moving. Full-scale
dredging is expected to begin in 2020.