Preserving a Lost WWII Battlefield off of North Carolina
David William Alberg, Sanctuary Superintendent, NOAA
Beyond Monitor National Marine Sanctuary’s (MNMS) current boundaries off North Carolina lie waters associated with nearly 500 years of western maritime history and includes shipwrecks representing coastal heritage, American Civil War, U.S. naval aviation, World War I, and World War II. NOAA is proposing a boundary expansion to protect and honor these additional resources. MNMS expansion represents an ideal opportunity to celebrate, study, and preserve a nationally significant collection of shipwrecks and would serve as a uniquely accessible underwater museum and memorial to WWII’s Battle of the Atlantic. MNMS's expansion boundaries will contain the most publicly accessible collection of WWII shipwrecks near America's shore and would constitute the largest area designated as a WWII battlefield anywhere in the United States. With the 75th anniversary of the close of WWII this is the time to honor the history and sacrifice of Allied servicemen and the U.S. Merchant Marine.
In 1992, David Alberg began his career as the first curator for the Virginia Air & Space Center in Hampton, VA; then served as the Director of Exhibits & Collections for the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, AL. In 2001, he served as the Deputy Director for Nauticus (The National Maritime Center in Norfolk, VA). He holds a BD in mu-seum studies from George Mason University and a MD in museum education from the College of William and Mary. In 2017, he was appointed as a Board Member of the Maryland Historical Trust.