Mark M. Newell, Ph.D. RPA is a British/American underwater and terrestrial archaeologist and anthropologist, the director of the Georgia Archaeological Institute. He received his doctorate from St. Andrews University,

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

. Newell began diving in

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in 1963. While working as a journalist, he continued to dive throughout the Caribbean and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...

, developing an interest in the archaeological potential of the sites he discovered. In 1996 he completed a Ph.D. in

underwater archaeology Underwater archaeology is archaeology practiced underwater. As with all other branches of archaeology, it evolved from its roots in pre-history and in the classical era to include sites from the historical and industrial eras. Its acceptance has ...

at th
Scottish Institute of Maritime Studies
at the University of St. Andrews.

River craft

Since 1983 Newell has specialized in the recording of underwater sites and historic sea-going and river craft of the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

. He built two full-sized reproductions of historic craft in

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and

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, and developed the first

typography Typography is the art and technique of arranging type to make written language legible, readable and appealing when displayed. The arrangement of type involves selecting typefaces, point sizes, line lengths, line-spacing ( leading), ...

of historic working craft of the

waterways A waterway is any navigable body of water. Broad distinctions are useful to avoid ambiguity, and disambiguation will be of varying importance depending on the nuance of the equivalent word in other languages. A first distinction is necessary ...

of South Carolina,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

and Georgia.

Proponent of sport diver education

A former diving instructor with the National Association of Scuba Diving Schools, Newell was an early proponent of sport diver education

Wreck of the ''Dromedary''

Avocational marine archaeologists, Chriss Addams and Mike Davis, recovered artifacts from the anchorage of the

prison hulk A prison ship, often more accurately described as a prison hulk, is a current or former seagoing vessel that has been modified to become a place of substantive detention for convicts, prisoners of war or civilian internees. While many nation ...

''Dromedary''. The prison hulk been moored in the Naval Dockyard of Bermuda's Ireland Island in the mid-nineteenth century. Newell later reviewed data recorded by Addams and concluded that it was so competently gathered that it would support a master's degree in archaeology. With Newell's encouragement, Addams subsequently enrolled at the University of Ulster and completed an MSc in underwater archaeology using the Dromedary data. He is currently the only degreed underwater archaeologist working in Bermuda. The analysis of the Dromedary artifacts by Newell and Addams has provided unique insights into the lifeways of the hulk crew and inmates, their subsistence patterns and their economic activities. This work has now become the basis of a major exhibition on the British shipboard prison system staged by the Historic Houses Trust of New South Wales at Hyde Park Barracks. A new article by Addams on coin forgery aboard the ''Dromedary'' while stationed in Bermuda (Journal of the Numismatic Association of Australia, Vol 18) was recently awarded the prestigious Ray Jewell Medal for the best article from volumes 17 and 18.

Wreck of the ''Resurgam''

Newell participated in St. Andrews University's identification of the '' Resurgam'', the world's first practical powered submarine. The ''Resurgam'' was discovered off

Rhyl Rhyl (; cy, Y Rhyl, ) is a seaside town and community in Denbighshire, Wales. The town lies within the historic boundaries of Flintshire, on the north-east coast of Wales at the mouth of the River Clwyd ( Welsh: ''Afon Clwyd''). To the we ...

, Northern

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

, in 1995.

Wreck of the ''Hunley''

Dr. Newell initiated and directed the joint 1994/95 SCIAA/NUMA '' Hunley'' Expedition that most professional archaeologists credit with the discovery of the ''Hunley''. Newell's ''Hunley'' expedition was funded by best selling novelist

Clive Cussler Clive Eric Cussler (July 15, 1931 – February 24, 2020) was an American adventure novelist and underwater explorer. His thriller novels, many featuring the character Dirk Pitt, have reached ''The New York Times'' fiction best-seller list m ...

, who has claimed credit for the discovery. Newell, the project's official director, acknowledges basing his research and fieldwork, commencing in 1970, on the contributions of many other researchers from E. Lee Spence's alleged discovery decades earlier to members of the Sons of Confederate Veterans who all contributed to his project's ultimate success that concluded with the raising of the ''Hunley'' on August 8, 2000."The Hunley Newsletter," Saturday, June 03, 2006 7:29 AM
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Bibliography

"The Santee Canal Sanctuary," Part 1, edited by Joe J. Simmons and Mark M. Newell, 1989, South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology, Columbia, South Carolina. "What Really Happened to the CSS ''Hunley''? Success and Tragedy in Maffitt's Channel" by Mark M. Newell, ''Alabama Heritage'', Number 39, Winter 1996, p. 40 "Underwater Surveying" chapter of the "Archaeology Underwater The NAS Guide to Principles and Practice," published by the Nautical Archaeology Society.

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Newell, Mark M. Alumni of the University of St Andrews American underwater divers British underwater divers Place of birth missing (living people) Underwater archaeologists Year of birth missing (living people) Living people