With a symbolic, echoing boom from the 1824 cannon atop Old Fort Jackson on Thursday morning, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officially kicked off the long-awaited construction phase of the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project.
More than 15 years in the making, the $706 million project known as SHEP will deepen the Savannah harbor and the associated shipping channel from an authorized depth of 42 feet to 47 feet to allow larger, more efficient container vessels to use the East Coast’s second busiest container harbor with fewer weight and tidal restrictions.
As divers took to the chilly waters of the Savannah River to initiate the first phase of construction — the recovery of the Civil War ironclad CSS Georgia from the floor of the river — Col. Tom Tickner, commander of the Corps’ Savannah Distict, said the agency is preparing to award contracts to extend and deepen the channel from Fort Pulaski into the Atlantic Ocean and to construct and install an oxygen injection system into the harbor.
The contract to recover the CSS Georgia — the first awarded under the construction phase of the project — went to a joint venture between Dial Cordy and Associates and Gulf Engineers & Consultants, both of Jacksonville, Fla. Panamerican Consultants of Memphis, Tenn., will conduct field work.
“This event marks the first tangible sign of deepening this harbor, a major milestone toward making it more efficient,” Tickner said. “It is the key to unlocking so much of the infrastructure already built or planned for the next generation.”
The entire expansion project is scheduled to be completed within the next five years.
Hull full of history
Former U.S. Rep. Jack Kingston, whose office had been working on SHEP since the project was approved by Congress in 1999, called the beginning of the construction phase “a significant day in the history of Savannah and the port.”
“There are so many stories that have yet to be told that are sitting at the bottom of this river,” he said. “The recovery and curation of this ship will be a major part of our history going forward and a fitting beginning to this project.”
The Georgia’s hull was laid in Savannah in 1862, and the ship was launched in 1863. According to Steve James of Panamerican Consultants, the ironclad was originally intended to be a gunboat but was too heavy to offensively maneuver.
It was subsequently anchored in the Savannah River, serving as a “floating battery” to protect Savannah and Fort Jackson. Confederate troops intentionally scuttled the warship in December 1864 rather than surrender it to advancing Union forces.
The wreck was discovered during a 1968 dredging operation. A small-scale recovery effort in the 1980s removed two cannons, a few cannonballs and other artifacts. The site was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.
“The recovery work we are now performing will remove the entire remains of the vessel so we can deepen the channel in that area,” Tickner said, adding that the full recovery effort will be conducted in five phases spanning several years and will include artifact analysis, conservation and a technical report.
The first phase of recovery, which began Thursday and should last about five months, entails mapping the site, tagging artifacts, excavating test units and recovering small artifacts, Tickner said.
“Once that is done, the U.S. Navy salvage and dive team will come on site and recover the large artifacts and unexploded ordinance,” he said. “This second phase will include advisors from the U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command.”
The Navy owns the Georgia, which is designated a captured enemy vessel.
Phase three involves mechanized recovery of the remaining pieces, he said, and phase four involves archeological confirmation that the site is clear of all artifacts.
The final phase involves conservation of select artifacts, which will be conducted by the Conservation Research Laboratory at Texas A&M University.
“The final decision on the disposition of these artifacts will be determined by the Navy’s History and Heritage Command. At this time, no local museums have agreements with the Navy to exhibit the artifacts, but several groups have approached us and expressed interest,” Tickner said.
ABOUT SHEP
The Savannah Harbor Expansion Project to deepen the Savannah River channel has been under investigation and planning since the passage of the Water Resources and Development Act of 1999.
Congress reauthorized the construction of the SHEP in the Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014.
The cost of the $706 million project will be shared by the U.S. government and the state of Georgia. The Georgia Department of Transportation is the official state sponsor, and the Georgia Ports Authority acts as executive agent.
The Corps has determined that deepening the harbor to 47 feet will bring $174 million in annual net benefits to the U.S. economy.