About Underwater Archeologist Dr. E. Lee Spence

These are just a few of the numerous interviews and appearances on TV and radio that Spence has done over the years. The ones included here were selected solely because there are links to them on the internet. Some interviews that Spence would have liked to include, such as when Jane Pawley interviewed Spence on NBC’s Today Show in the late 1980s, and an episode on a TV series hosted by Carmen Electra, in which Spence found a previously undiscovered Confederate steamer, as well as various interviews in different years on British Broadcasting Company (Radio), Canadian Broadcasting Company, and other major networks that Spence has been unable to locate or obtain a copy.

Dr. Spence has authored or been a  named contributor to numerous published books, as well as the researcher and author of various unpublished bound volumes that were prepared as confidential and proprietary and thus not immediately intended for public distribution. Many of the unpublished volumes are literally hundreds of pages in length, with the longest being over 5,000 pages. A few of those have been included here, but this section is definitely incomplete and thus still under construction more books by Spence to be added soon.

This section is under construction with more maps, charts and certificates to be added, please check back soon.

Spence is a polymath, (which is an individual whose knowledge spans a substantial number of subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific problems), and his academic achievements, his many shipwreck discoveries, his literary work and identification of the “real Rhett Butler”, his professional and popular publications, his plenary presentations before various conferences and civic groups, have been recognized in literally hundreds of ways and forms. Here are some that are especially meaningful to him.

Articles by or about Spence and/or his projects have also been carried in foreign publications such as the Norwegian men’s magazine Vi Menn; the French magazine Tresors de l’histoire, the Sunday Express and the Sun, (both London, England); Sarnia Observer, newspaper, (Canada); La Stampa, newspaper, (Italy); Oggi (Italian equivalent of People magazine); Canadian Diving News magazine; International Journal of Nautical Archeology (Great Britain); MacCleans (“Canada’s Weekly Newsmagazine”); and in Heutzu (a major German magazine). This section is under construction, please check back.

Besides major magazines like Life, People, U.S. News & World Report, Spence has had numerous articles by or about or crediting him and/or his work, that have appeared in various issues of such periodicals as Argosy (which was then the world’s largest men’s adventure magazine); Skin Diver (which for decades was the foremost magazine for divers); Gold Prospector, which bills itself as “the magazine of mining and adventure”; History Magazine; Atlantic Coastal Diver magazine; Treasure (the world’s largest treasure oriented magazine); Treasure World magazine; Treasure Search magazine; Treasure Diver magazine; Treasure Found magazine; Treasure Quest magazine; Islander magazine; Carolina Cruising magazine; Sandlapper magazine; National Diver magazine; ShipWrecks magazine; Wreck Diver newsletter; Millionaire magazine and the R.L. White Pages (both publications were published by Robert L. White, the founder of the Robb Report and both magazines catered to millionaires). Specific references will be given upon request. This is definitely an incomplete list.

Numerous articles written about (or including) Spence and/or his work have been picked up by AP, UPI and other wire services and have appeared in various issues of over a thousand newspapers. A very incomplete list includes USA Today (national); the New York Times (national); World Treasure News (national); Underwater USA (national); the Birmingham News (Birmingham, AL); the Mobile Register (Mobile, AL); the Montgomery Advertiser (Montgomery, AL); the Arizona Daily Star (Tucson, AZ); the Herald (Dublin, CA); the Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, CA); the Los Angeles Herald (Los Angeles, CA); the Merced Sun-Star (Merced, CA); the Desert Sun (Palm Springs, CA); the West County Times (Pinole, CA); the Valley Times (Pleasanton, CA); the Record Searchlight (Redding, CA); the Sun (San Bernardino, CA); the Ventura County Star Free Press (Ventura, CA); the Contra Costa Times (Walnut Creek, CA); the News-Times (Danbury, CT); the Advocate (Stamford, CT); the Delaware State News (Dover, DE); the News Journal (Wilmington, DE); the Florida Times-Union (Jacksonville, FL); the Key West Citizen (Key West, FL); the Miami Herald (Miami, FL); the Tallahassee Democrat (Tallahassee, FL); the Vero Beach Press Journal (Vero Beach, FL); the Albany Sunday Herald (Albany, GA); the Athens Daily News (Athens, GA); the Banner-Herald (Athens, GA); the Atlanta Journal (Atlanta, GA); the Atlanta Constitution (Atlanta, GA); the Sunday Times Georgian (Carrollton, GA); the Daily Citizen-News (Dalton, GA); the Douglas County Sentinel (Douglasville, GA); the Times (Gainesville, GA); the Newnan Times-Herald (Newnan, GA); the Sunday Daily News (Lawrenceville, GA); the Macon Telegraph and News (Macon, GA); the Daily Sun (Warner Robbins, GA); the Chicago Sun Times (Chicago, IL); the Republic (Columbus, IN); the News-Sentinel (Fort Wayne, IN); the Muncie Star (Muncie, IN); the Boston Globe (Boston, MA); the Sun (Lowell, MA); the Ellsworth American (Ellsworth, ME); the Portland Press Herald (Portland, ME); the Detroit News (Detroit, MI); the Detroit Free Press (Detroit, MI); the Kalamazoo Gazette (Kalamazoo, MI); the Oakland Sunday Magazine (Oakland, MI); the Times Herald (Port Huron, MI); the Sanilac County News (Port Sanilac, MI); the Diving Times (Royal Oak, MI); the Charlotte Observer (Charlotte, NC); the Gaston Gazette (Gastonia, NC); the High Point Enterprise (High Point, NC); the Star-Herald (Scottsbluff, NE); the Courier-News (Ridgewater, NJ); the Buffalo News (Buffalo, NY); the Newark Star Ledger (Newark, NY); the Syracuse Herald Journal (Syracuse, NY); the Columbus Dispatch (Columbus, OH); the Daily Oklahoman (Oklahoma City, OK); the Portland Oragonian (Portland, OR); the Public Opinion (Chambersburg, PA); the Erie Morning News (Erie, PA); the Tribune Review (Greensburg, PA); the Daily News PM (Philadelphia, PA); the News (Philadelphia, PA); the Pocono Record (Stroudsburg, PA); the News and Courier (Charleston, SC); the Evening Post (Charleston, SC); the Gamecock (Columbia, SC); the State (Columbia, SC); the Columbia Record (Columbia, SC); the State (Columbia, SC); the Greenville Piedmont (Greenville, SC); the Island Packet (Hilton Head Island, SC); Moultrie News (Mt. Pleasant, SC); the Times Democrat (Orangeburg, SC); the Dallas Times (Dallas, TX); the Houston Chronicle (Houston, TX); and the Journal Times (Racine, WI).

Spence has been the driving force behind a number of shipwreck salvage companies and has put together quite a few prospectuses and research packets for specific projects. Because they usually contain confidential and proprietary information, they are never intended for general distribution or publication. Depending on the project, these documents can run into the hundreds of pages. Here are just a few that Spence has prepared.

As early as 1971, Spence’s work was already being supported in part by major corporations. Spence’s 1971 “Constance Expedition” (a salvage project on the wrecked Civil War blockade runner Constance Decimer conducted as a joint venture between Spence’s South Carolina corporation, Artifacts Inc., and a California corporation called Fathom Expeditions Inc.). Corporate sponsors of the project included Rolex Watch Company, Toyota, Mercury Motors, McKee Craft, Barringer Research, Taylor Tool Company, Bendix, Allis-Chalmers and Gulf Oil. The educational research foundation Sea Research Society was formed during this expedition and was officially chartered the following year.

In 2014, the award-winning “BumGenius” cloth diaper company contacted Spence and asked if they could name their newly designed pirate treasure print pattern after him. They explained that all of their print designs were named after geniuses, and he was both an expert on treasure and a member of Mensa. He thought it was hilarious, but quickly agreed. He even helped promote it at no charge. See: https://www.bumgenius.com/collections/spence 

In 2012, Spence entered into separate agreements to endorse Minelab’s “Excalibur II” underwater metal detector and Pharobit’s underwater LED flashlight and digital video recorder with GPS (GCF-200).

When Life Magazine published its March 1987, cover story on treasure hunting, Time-Life’s public relations section asked Spence to help promote that issue of the magazine and arranged various TV and radio interviews. Spence ended up doing a series of interviews on Time-Life’s behalf (including live appearances on such programs as NBC television’s Today Show and Talknet radio’s Owen Spann Show).

Spence has performed paid product endorsement for Seagram’s Classic Wines in relation to bottles of G.H. Mumm Champagne recovered from the wreck of the Canadian steamer Regina. The title of the November 16, 1987, People magazine article on Spence was Ho Ho Hum and a Bottle of Mumm and the three page article also included a half-page picture of Spence pouring a magnum of new Mumm’s Champagne (with the label of it and other bottles clearly showing). Spence was also able to mention G.H. Mumm Champagne by name during numerous live and taped interviews for radio and television. See: Dr. Spence in People magazine, which Spence did at the request of  Time-Life’s public relations department.

Spence’s picture and endorsement has been used in the paid advertising of Fisher Research Laboratories (manufacturers of metal detectors) with ads being published in a number of magazines. Spence has also endorsed Fisher products while being interviewed on TV and radio, and has managed to get photos and mentions of Fisher metal detectors in various articles about Spence’s work. See: Fisher’s advertisement with Spence.

Spence’s name has been used in advertising (magazine ads and direct mail) paid for by Freedom Marine, Ltd., to promote the sale of artifacts and to enhance the overall prestige of the company. Spence appeared on radio and television interviews arranged by Freedom Marine to increase public recognition of Freedom Marine. For examples see full-page ads placed by Freedom Marine in Treasure (January, 1988); Treasure Found (Spring, 1988); Treasure Search (March/April, 1988).

Spence arranged for Edge™ diving computers to be supplied to Freedom Marine Ltd. by Orca Industries and succeeded in mentioning the computers by name on various radio interviews and in explaining the importance of the computers as pertains to safety and productivity. Their products were mentioned by Spence in numerous live interviews including several on the J.P. McCarthy Show (WJR, Detroit, MI), which is the largest single market radio show in North America. Orca’s products were also written up in various magazine and newspaper articles resulting from interviews with Spence.

In 1983 White’s Electronics Inc., at Spence’s request, provided metal detectors to use in conjunction with his “Shipwrecks of South Carolina and Georgia Shipwrecks Project,” which was sponsored in part by the National Endowment of the Humanities, the South Carolina Committee for the Humanities, the Savannah Ships of the Sea Museum, and the College of Charleston. The State of South Carolina subsequently distributed thousands of flyers at the various South Carolina tourist welcome centers, telling of the project. The flyers mentioned White’s Metal Detectors by name. The detectors were also mentioned in various articles and books, which resulted from the project.

Shipwreck Press Inc., and Shipwreck Consultants Inc., (both of which were solely owned by Spence) made extensive use of Spence’s credentials in their paid advertising {For examples of full page ads see Daily Variety (1988 Anniversary Issue); Hollywood Reporter (1988 Anniversary Issue); Low Country News (Volume 7, issue 51); and Seafarers: Journal of Maritime Heritage (Volume 1). Smaller ads have also appeared in various issues of Daily Variety, Hollywood Reporter, California Diver, Florida SCUBA News, Underwater USA, etc.

Spence was a founder, owner and editor for Narwhal Press Inc. (based in Miami, Florida, and Charleston, South Carolina), which published a wide variety of paperback and hardcover books ranging from reference books and histories to novels and law-books, even a training manual for the CIA.  The following are some of the books he personally edited and/or did the layout and cover art.

 

IMPORTANT NOTE: Spence has never endorsed any product, which he did not actually use or which he did not truly feel deserved endorsement. In fact, Spence has turned down opportunities to endorse some items simply because he felt their quality was inferior to or indistinguishable from competing products. The following products and/or corporations have been favorably mentioned by Spence in published articles and/or during radio or television interviews without remuneration of any type: magnetometers and underwater metal detectors by JW Fishers Mfg. Inc.; side scan sonar by Klein Associates Inc.; rubber boats by Avon and Zodiac; service by Delta airlines; and beverages such as Dewar’s Scotch; and Veuve Clicquot Champagne. Spence has also used his ability to reach the public through the news media to inform the public of inferior products (ranging from balky autos to awkward drysuits) and/or aggravating service (ranging from that provided by hotel staff to that not provided by public officials). And, just as important, Spence, as a consultant, frequently makes direct product recommendations (ranging from compressors to computers, and boats to lift bags) when clients are outfitting expeditions and/or offices and/or laboratories. Furthermore, when making such a recommendation for a client, Spence passes any rebate or “free” equipment received by him from the manufacturer (as a result of such recommendation) on to the client so there will not be a conflict of interest.