"Search For Trouvadore"

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In August 2004, with information gathered from archival records, archeologists  located the remains of a wooden ship that matches the description of the Trouvadore, an illegal Spanish slave ship that  wrecked in the TCI in 1841.The next phase of the investigation, in 2006, consisted of a test excavation and analysis to determine if the wreckage is indeed that of the slaveship Trouvadore.  

As part of the project,  present day  Turks and Caicos  Islanders, many  possibly descended from survivors of the Trouvadore, will participate in DNA studies,  hoping to  confirm their  connection to the David Bowen and TCI Performing Group ship, and ultimately to Africa. As a result of the genetic research, the islanders hope to discover  their African origins, and perhaps in the process, redefine their own country’s true cultural  identity. 

In the documentary Search For Trouvadore, filmmakers follow the  historical and scientific investigation as it unfolds over a ten-year period, on three continents, in Cuba, and in the British West Indies. 

Part detective story, part  scientific investigation, the story will be told as two intertwining threads, from two  distinct viewpoints. The objective story is that of the Trouvadore itself, past and present, and it will examine the role  of science in understanding both history and modern culture. The film's  personal story will follow one descendant of survivors of the wreck as he searches for his family's ancestral origins. At its heart, this is a story about humanity and the strength of the human spirit, and its focus will be on the impact of the events of 1841 on people’s lives, then and now. 

© 2006 Windward Media / HoustonPBS