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Beach Find Launches Quest

Chicago man finds message in a bottle sent by Fredericksburg couple on their first wedding anniversary

Date published: 7/9/2008

By CATHY DYSON

Clint Buffington is searching for a couple who married in Fredericksburg, then tossed a bottle into the ocean on their first anniversary.

Buffington found their message eight years later--more than 1,000 miles from where it was released.

"The bottle was, literally, right there on top of the sand like somebody had just put it there," he said. "It was really exciting."

In May 2007, after Buffington graduated from college in Illinois, he went with his parents to the Turks and Caicos Islands. The chain of 40 small islands is in the Atlantic Ocean, about 550 miles southeast of Miami.

Buffington, a 23-year-old Chicago resident, always hoped to find a message in a bottle. The idea of someone tossing a capsule into the water--and someone else finding it on a distant shore--intrigued him because it seemed so improbable.

But not impossible, as he found out last spring.

After he spotted the green wine bottle on the white sand, he popped the cork and chunks of something fell out. Once the letter dried out enough to be removed, Buffington realized the couple included some of their wedding cake.

The note was faded, but still legible. It was written on hotel stationery and read:

"Carol and Ed Meyers celebrated their first wedding anniversary at the San-derling Inn Resort on Feb. 14, 1999. They were wed on Valentine's Day 1998 in Fredericksburg, Virginia, USA."

The note was smeared with cake icing and ended with: "Peace and love to you. We wish you happiness. Ed and Carol Meyers."

The Sanderling resort is in Duck, N.C. As the crow flies, Duck is 1,051 miles from the island where the message landed.

The bottle probably traveled even farther, said Arthur Mariano, a physical oceanography professor at the University of Miami. Ocean flow is highly variable, but, if the bottled followed a subtropical current--which is Mariano's best guess--it bobbed in the waves for about 8,000 miles.

Buffington found two other messages in bottles on his 2007 trip and went back this year to search for more. He also regularly scans the shoreline around Lake Chicago, where he's working on a tour boat this summer.

He's found 12 bottles and has contacted five people. Most are thrilled to hear from him.

"Generally, anyone who is whimsical enough to throw a message in a bottle is pretty excited to hear from someone who found it," he said.

Buffington likes the message from the Fredericksburg couple so much--because it's the first bottle that contained wedding cake--he had it framed. He would like to contact Carol and Ed Meyers, and asks that anyone with information call him at 618/967-7108 or e-mail him at
Email: clintbuffington@gmail.com.

He plans to keep looking for bottles when he can afford to visit other remote islands. Eventually, he'd like to open a museum and set up a database for anyone who has ever tossed a message into the water--or found one.

"I know that sounds kind of weird and far-fetched," he admitted, "but finding a message in a bottle is kind of weird and far-fetched."

Cathy Dyson: 540/374-5425
Email: cdyson@freelancestar.com

SEALING THE BOTTLE TIMELY MESSAGES The first person known to drop a message into the sea was the Greek philosopher Theophrastus. About 310 B.C., he threw sealed bottles into the Mediterranean Sea to prove it was connected to the Atlantic Ocean. Queen Elizabeth I of England appointed an official "Uncorker of Ocean Bottles," making it a capital crime for anyone else to open them. It was assumed the bottles contained secret messages from spies and information on the British fleet. One of the most touching letters found was from a passenger on the Lusitania, which sank in May 1915 after being torpedoed. Amid the mayhem, the message-sender calmly wrote: "Still on deck with a few people. The last boats have left. We are sinking fast. Some men near me are praying with a priest. The end is near. Maybe this note will "--then it ended abruptly. --Turks & Caicos National Museum Clint Buffington, the Chicago resident who has found 12 messages in bottles, has suggestions for would-be senders: Glass wine bottles with original corks work best. Put the cork in all the way, then cover it with glue or sealant. One sender used caulk, which kept the note in the bottle dry for 10 years until it was found. Use a clear or light-colored bottle so people can see the message. Some senders add glitter or other sparkly items. One included a dollar bill, which caught Buffington's eye. Roll the message up tightly, tie with string or dental floss and let the string come up beside the cork. When the finder removes the cork, he'll lift out the note in one piece.

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Date published: 7/9/2008

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