Skip to Content

SC Institute for Archaeology and Anthropology

Our People

James D. Spirek

Title: State Underwater Archaeologist
Department: Maritime Research Division
SC Institute for Archaeology and Anthropology
Email: spirekj@mailbox.sc.edu
Phone: 803-576-6566
Office: 1321 Pendleton St, 1st Floor, Suite 17

Background 

Jim received his M.A. in Maritime History and Nautical Archaeology from East Carolina University in 1993. Jim is in charge of review and compliance for the division, and is also responsible for conducting archaeological research in the state's waterways. Research interests lie in shipbuilding and seafaring of the 16th-century, ship architecture, remote-sensing operations, and in providing public access to submerged maritime resources. Prior to working for the Institute, Jim spent three and a half years working for the Pensacola Shipwreck Survey locating and recording shipwrecks in Pensacola Bay, Florida. Two of those years were spent excavating a Spanish shipwreck most likely associated with the failed Tristan de Luna expedition of 1559. Research and contract projects have taken him to Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Bermuda to document sites ranging from a 16th-century Spanish dispatch vessel to a 370-foot Great Lakes bulk freighter.

SC Institute for Archaeology and Anthropology


Challenge the conventional. Create the exceptional. No Limits.

©