What is known about the Mary Celeste:

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What is known about the Mary Celeste

• The Mary Celeste was a merchant ship.
• The ship had been on her way from New York City
  to Italy to deliver a cargo of wine worth
  35,000.
• She was found drifting in the ocean in December
  1872 unmanned and apparently unharmed. The
  water was calm. Her cargo was untouched.
• The entire crew of 7 was missing.

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Course of the Mary Celeste
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Captain Benjamin Briggs

• He was an experienced seaman.
• His wife Sarah and 2-yr-old daughter Sophia were
  with him on the Mary Celeste.
• He was very well respected and admired for his
  fairness and his sailing skills.

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Who found the Mary Celeste?

• 1. The Mary Celeste was found off the coast of
  Portugal by a ship called the Dei Gratia.

2. The captain of the Dei Gratia (Captain
Morehouse) had eaten dinner with Captain Briggs
the night before they set sail. 3. It appeared
that the crew of the Mary Celeste had abandoned
ship in a great hurry.
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Lets watch a short video.

• Smithsonian Video 1
• Smithsonian Video 2

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What happened to the Mary Celeste?
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The Pirate Theory

• The Mary Celeste was set upon by pirates and the
  crew was murdered or put overboard in the
  lifeboat.
• Were there any signs of a fight?
• What valuables were missing?
• What valuables remained on the ship?
• What was more valuable than the ship itself?

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The Drunken Crew Theory

• The crew of the Mary Celeste got drunk and killed
  the captain and his family. Then they fled in
  the lifeboat.
• What kind of man was Captain Briggs?
• Was any wine missing?
• Why didnt the crew keep the ship?

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The Frightened Crew Theory

• The captain and the crew were frightened by smoke
  and fumes from the wine. They waited in the
  lifeboat to see if the Mary Celeste was going to
  explode. For reasons unknown, they were never
  able to return to the ship.
• Was there evidence of smoke and fumes?
• Was there evidence of a fire on board?
• What kind of sailor was Captain Briggs?
• Were the hatches blown?

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The Weather Theories

• Bad weather, whirlpools even icebergs were
  said to have damaged the Mary Celeste OR
  frightened the crew into abandoning ship.
• What did the ships log say about weather?
• What kind of sailor was Captain Briggs?
• Was the ship damaged?

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The Sea Monster Theory

• Some people believed a sea monster like a
  kraken or a giant octopus had somehow devoured
  the crew.
• Is there any real scientific evidence of sea
  serpents or sea monsters?
• Were there any marks of any such struggle on the
  ship?

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The Conspiracy Theory

• Perhaps the captain of the Dei Gratia (Captain
  Morehouse) and his crew killed the crew of the
  Mary Celeste. Maybe Captain Morehouse and Captain
  Briggs planned the abandonment together.
• What family did Captain Briggs leave behind?
• What kind of money would have been involved. ?
• How respectable were the 2 captains?

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Essay Contest

• Topic You are the only known survivor of the
  Mary Celeste, so you are the ONLY person who
  knows what really happened.
• Use information from the book, website, and video
  to support your essay.
• Use the writing checklist, which will be used to
  judge your essay.
• Minimum 3 paragraphs.
• Due Thursday, March 26.

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Writing Checklist Does your writing

• ? present a clear central idea about the topic?
• ? develop the central idea with specific details?
• ? sustain focus on the central idea?
• ? have a clear introduction, body, and
  conclusion?
• ? provide a smooth progression of ideas?
• ? use precise and vivid vocabulary appropriate
  for the topic?
• ? use effective phrasing and a variety of
  sentence structures?
• ? show awareness of the audience and use an
  appropriate tone?
• ? show strong command of grammar, capitalization,
  punctuation, and spelling?

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and we have plenty of mysteries in the Media
Center!
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Sources

• http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FileMary_Celeste_as_
  Amazon_in_1861.jpg
• http//www.smithsonianchannel.com/site/smithsonian
  /images/mary.jpg
• http//www.lange.demon.co.uk/Castle_Falkenstein/Li
  veAction/Mary_Celeste_Chart.gif