Ships of the Seas podcast Host Molly Taylor interviews maritime archaeologist and Georgia Southern University history teacher Kurt Knoerl, who is moving to the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater to teach public, digital, maritime history.

Knoerl explains maritime archaeology as studying water-related sites—shipwrecks, wharves, shoreline and inundated sites—and describes student fieldwork in Savannah using mapping, GIS, and recording methods. He recounts entering the field after an archaeology elective, attending a Savannah conference, getting scuba certified, and studying at East Carolina University; he notes career paths via CRM firms and agencies like NOAA.

He emphasizes researching before diving, documenting sites before removal, and the high costs and risks of artifact conservation. Knoerl discusses his online Museum of Underwater Archaeology, salvage law and ethical concerns (including war graves and Titanic), permitting challenges, interest in Civil War wrecks like CSS Savannah, AI limitations in research, and sea-level rise threats to coastal heritage.

The Ships of the Sea podcast is recorded on location at the Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum, housed in the historic William Scarbrough House, an elegant example of early Greek Revival architecture in the South. Built in 1819 for William Scarbrough, a prominent shipping merchant and the first president of the Savannah Steamship Company, the museum showcases a remarkable collection of ship models, paintings, and maritime antiques. In addition to its exquisite interior, the museum features the largest private gardens within Savannah’s historic district, designed to reflect a typical 19th-century parlor garden.

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FIND A FAVORITE SPOT IN THIS EPISODE:

00:00 Podcast Welcome

00:51 What Maritime Archaeologists Do

01:37 Teaching In The Field

03:49 Finding The Career Path

04:55 Diving Requirements

06:46 Degrees And CRM Work

07:57 Favorite Finds And Sites

09:41 How Wrecks Are Documented

11:35 Conservation Costs And Risks

12:13 Museum Of Underwater Archaeology

14:33 Ownership Salvage And Laws

15:54 Shipwreck Ownership Battles

16:34 Titanic Museums Debate

17:51 Profit Versus Preservation

19:00 Wrecks as Gravesites

20:08 Why Context Matters

20:55 Maritime Archaeology Careers

22:03 Teaching Fieldwork Logistics

23:08 Sharing Finds With Public

24:31 Dream Savannah Wrecks

26:25 Advice for New Archaeologists

27:38 Technology and AI Challenges

30:54 Future Threat Sea Levels

31:38 Closing Thanks