RE: Castle at the Cross

["Ramsey-Styer, Darwin" <RamseyD@dot.state.sc.us>]

Dear Mr. Pincus: 
	I am sorry to take so long in getting back to you, however, I
was called out of town on emergency family business and just arrived
home today.  I would be very interested in excavating the site properly
and would love to have volunteers.  We would need to determine if the
site is actually available for excavation (I believe the owners were
actually interested in profiting from the site, which is highly unlikely
unless it can be proven to be of significance).  The owners must be
contacted, the Nova Scotian government should be contacted for rules and
regulations, and a comprehensive plan must be developed.  There is a
great deal to be considered in an undertaking of this sort but it is
feasible.  I am certainly interested in discussing this with you
further.  I have several projects that I intend to complete this week
(by Friday afternoon) and would be free to discuss this then.  Let me
know your thoughts and we'll get together.  Darwin

PS how old is your daughter?  I decided to do this when I was 4, against
the advice of many people.  I always try to encourage the interest of
others since that is the only way anything of value will ever get done!

> -----Original Message-----
> From:	Michael Pincus [SMTP:gate@APK.net]
> Sent:	Monday, May 04, 1998 4:02 PM
> To:	sinclair@zilker.net
> Subject:	Re: Castle at the Cross
> 
> Michael Pincus responds:
> Very interesting data. I would be interested
> in financing a proper excavation of the site
> by a trained and credentialed archaeologist
> or historian, as well as a proper film shoot.
> If interested please email to me. Only hitch
> is that I and my daughter would insist on being
> able to get ourselves dirty, and help as amatuer
> assistents. Come back! MSP
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Ramsey-Styer, Darwin wrote:
> > 
> > Dear Margaret,
> > Thank you so much for clarifying this.  I am new to this list (last
> > Friday, 4-17-98) and really appreciate the explanation.  I am an
> > archaeologist, as well as a Sinclair, and I truly believe in
> checking my
> > facts.  I have had a great deal of trouble believing anything that
> has
> > been stated before concerning the exploration of the New World and
> the
> > Sinclair involvement because of the lack of documented sources.
> > (However, all of this undocumented dribble is coming from only one
> or
> > two people that don't believe in footnotes.)
> >   I have been an archaeologist for the last 13 years, I have both a
> BA
> > and an MA in anthropology (focus in Southeastern Archaeology), and
> write
> > archaeological reports on a daily basis.  In all of my work, if I
> had
> > ever stated a fact without citing the original reference I would
> have
> > failed (if in school) or been laughed out of professional meetings.
> > However, even though I am a professional, that doesn't mean
> avocational
> > historians and archaeologists can not document their own work as
> well.
> > I have attended many presentations by amateur historians and
> > archaeologists that are equally as good as anything by trained
> > professionals.  Documentation is not difficult and can make all the
> > difference in whether or not a work is useful...  Thank you so much
> for
> > supplying the reference to Michael Bradley's book.  I will be sure
> to
> > find and refer to it for further research.
> > As to influencing the Nova Scotian government to increase their
> > preservation efforts... I am not sure we can do anything.  If a site
> is
> > on private property, in the US,  we have no legal recourse to
> preserve
> > it.  I would suspect the laws are very similar in Nova Scotia.
> However,
> > it might be possible to contact various preservation groups and
> > societies within Nova Scotia.  Many of these groups have educational
> > programs designed to increase the public awareness of the need for
> > preservation, trained excavators, and scientific excavation.  Once
> the
> > general public is educated and interested in the cause, it becomes
> > easier to influence the government as well as private land owners.
> > However, I would be surprised if it didn't take quite a long time.
> I am
> > heavily involved with the professional archaeology society here as
> well
> > as the avocational group.  We work constantly to educate the public
> and
> > yet I am asked on almost a daily basis what neat dinosaurs I have
> found
> > lately.  Still, I keep at it hoping someday to make and impression.
> >                                         Sincerely,
> >                                         Darwin Ramsey
> >  ----------
> > From: Margaret Rintoul/Neil Sinclair
> > To: sinclair@zilker.net
> > Subject: Re: Castle at the Cross
> > Date: Friday, April 17, 1998 3:28PM
> > 
> > Dear John and Michael;
> > "THe Sinclair Castle" at the cross Nova Scotia needs to be
> > introduced to some of our clan. For Sinclairs that are
> > interested in the Sinclair expedition this site is initially
> > mentioned in Michael Bradley's book Holy Grail Across the
> > Atlantic, Honslow Press 1988. In this book it was put
> > forward that there was a settlement created which became the
> > Castle at the Cross in the middle of Nova Scotia by Henry
> > Sinclair and the site has received some mention in his other
> > books and other writings of the expedition...
> > 
> > I visited the site which is on private lands in 1996 and
> > there is little evidence remaining of any edifices but what
> > what there was became certainly significant. I saw physical
> > remains of a well, and stone foundations that were certainly
> > old. It was not a castle in the sense that we would think of
> > castles. Anything built and referred to as a castle in 1398
> > or so referred to more correctly to a building or buildings
> > that could be fortified but really used as habitation. There
> > may have been a buildings that were constructed but from eye
> > level one did not see a huge area being involved. However in
> > my uneducated eye it was very old, located on a height of
> > land and in the middle of Nova Scotia between the Bay of
> > Fundy and the Atlantic. It was a logical site for an old
> > habitation and certainly far removed from water access. That
> > sid some backyard digging had occurred. I had the
> > opportunity to write the owner and speak to them with the
> > following advice;
> > First that the site should be closed and left as is until
> > experts could be found to properly conduct an examination. I
> > further urged that while the site was interesting and
> > controversial (there are many skeptics) it should receive
> > proper designation as an historical site. Again the property
> > is on private lands and no site preservation was undertaken
> > from day one. To make matters worse there was speculation as
> > how to make money from the site and should anything be of
> > historical interest then the worst one could do would be to
> > commercialize it with no evidence of what existed. I would
> > add that the Government of Nova Scotia is not only short
> > sited on historical matters but when it came to historical
> > preservation it was grossly negligent. I only hope the site
> > is "preserved" and not dug up until a proper archeological
> > study can be made. The lead of Clan Sinclair in Nova Scotia
> > may have some more insights.
> > 
> > I also have no insight whether the site is still rapidly
> > found. It was known to locals and was the very dickens to
> > find from any published material and it was not on the
> > historical sites being stuck in the middle of nowhere. If
> > you are interested in the NS Sinclair Historical tour you
> > may want to check out another travesty to historical
> > preservation, Oak Island. While I have satisfied myself that
> > Henry Sinclair did not bury any treasure there this site is
> > one of the most significant mysteries on the eastern
> > seaboard and should have been preserved from an historical
> > perspective, and again the people of Nova Scotia and their
> > government let that site get destroyed too with no care or
> > preservation of artifacts no study of any kind and a
> > terrible treasure hunt that turned up nothing. What I did
> > leave this site with is a curiosity as to how Red Oaks came
> > into the region. Planted from 1398? Again no studies and
> > hence only books of speculation.
> > 
> > If anyone is following the History in Nova Scotia this
> > summer a couple of spots are interesting and worth visiting.
> > Louisburg has plaques suggesting that Prince Henry landed
> > there, and the cannon mentioned in Sinclairs book are there
> > mostly replicated but they did exist. Of most historical
> > interest is that the Basques had been visiting Nova Scotia
> > well before 1400 for the Fish and the Grand Banks. I would
> > not be surprised if others did as well. This area as a
> > fishing destination was not a surprise to every European. By
> > the way of interest, Guysbouough NS has also laid some plans
> > for significant celebrations and the most recent published
> > history of Nova Scotia by Lesley Choyce does mention the
> > Henry expedition as historical fact.
> > 
> > Hope this helps. Because this network runs on shared
> > information is it helpful for all of us, if some background
> > is put forward when making an inquiry so we may all be
> > educated at the same time.
> > Keep up the fine work, it is a most interesting
> > communication network of clansmen.
> > Neil Sinclair, Toronto
> > Descendant of Argyll Scotland
> > 
> > Michael Pincus wrote:
> > 
> > > Michael Pincus responds:
> > > Please fill me in. Is there a sight here I missed?
> > > Thank you, MSP
> > >
> > > John Duguid wrote:
> > > >
> > > > Does anyone out there have any recent information on the
> > > Sinclair "Castle at
> > > > the Cross" in Nova Scotia. The last I heard there was
> > > talk of carrying out some
> > > > excavations to ascertain whether or not the structure
> > > could be dated to the
> > > > visit of Prince Henry in 1398.
> > > >
> > > > John Duguid