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Wednesday, July 30, 1997

French government stakes claim for La Salle's wrecked ship

SAN ANTONIO (AP) - France is claiming it owns the ship of explorer La Salle, a wrecked vessel the state of Texas salvaged from Matagorda Bay, the San Antonio Express-News reported Tuesday in a copyright story.

French officials have notified the United States they will dispute any claim that the sailing ship La Belle, which sank off the Texas coast more than 300 years ago, now belongs to Texas.

Texas can keep the ship, but France wants to retain ownership, said Laurent Mellier, press attache of the French Consulate in Houston.

"It was the property of the king when La Salle was in Texas. That was the position of France, that the ship belonged to the French king," Mellier was quoted as saying in the Express-News.

French researchers determined from archival records in La Rochelle, France, that La Belle was on loan to famed explorer Rene Robert Cavelier sieur de La Salle, Mellier said.

France's claim to the ship is "just to clear things out and to be the ground for ... scientific, technological and cultural cooperation," according to Mellier.

Texas' position is that King Louis XIV gave La Belle to La Salle for discovering the mouth of the Mississippi River and thus was the explorer's personal property. The state claims La Belle is a Texas shipwreck since La Salle has no descendants who can claim ownership.

Divers discovered the wreckage in 1995.

The state of Texas spent $5.5 million salvaging La Belle. Its hull was disassembled during the excavation, which was finished a few months ago.

La Belle's wooden hull and a trove of artifacts, including highly decorated bronze cannons, are now at a Texas A&M University conservation laboratory.

Curtis Tunnell, executive director of the Texas Historical Commission, said state archaeologists worked closely with French scientists and researchers visiting the shipwreck site, and a traveling exhibit showcasing many of the ship's historical treasures could tour France.

"We have tried to cooperate all along with the scientists and others in France that are interested in this discovery," Tunnell said. "We can certainly enhance that collaboration."

The French government provided archival research to the U.S. State Department supporting its view that it owns the Belle, which sank in 1686, Tunnell said.

"I know the French government has contacted the State Department and the State Department has contacted the governor's office and the National Park Service, and it's kind of trickling down to us," Tunnell said.

Ray Sullivan, a spokesman for Gov. George W. Bush, confirmed the governor's office has received information regarding France's claim but has delegated the matter to the Texas Historical Commission. Send a Letter to the Editor about This Story | Start or Join A Discussion about This Story
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