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Welcome to the World Wide Association of Treasure Seekers!
Our Mission Statement: Preserve, Promote and Protect the right to the use of the Land and Natural Resources for “We the People” now and in the future. Don't forget to sign up for our Newsletter to be notified of new content on this site. If you have any problems with or suggestions for this site please contact the webmaster@wwats.org 2009 WWATS MINI-HUNT PHOTOS! Click to View 2008 WWATS Rally & Hunt Photos WHO IS REALLY INTERESTED IN OUR HOBBY? It is so dis-heartening that in this day and time so many in our great hobby will do very little to want to help keep our rights to continue the great past time we enjoy now. I know several years back we at WWATS asked the membership to donate just one dollar each to help us help you. We never saw the first dollar and this speaks volumes to those of us that are serious in fighting for our rights. Ok, so maybe you don’t wish to support WWATS by a one dollar donation, but there is another group newly formed that originated from the notice we posted on WWATS for support in their challenge and according to them, hundreds of you responded to the “call to arms” by the New York Task Force when they closed all the city parks in that city to metal detecting. In contact with them I was told that my post on WWATS and your support to the call caused the change towards detectorists by the city fathers and they have re-opened most of the parks there now. Those dedicated detectorists have seen the need for such help in other parts of America and they have created a new website at: www.DetectingRights.com to enlist a strong mailing list of folks that do sincerely care about the future of metal detecting and wish a positive future for our children to enjoy the same fun we have today. I ask you to go to the website, click on: "HAVE YOUR VOICE HEARD" box and get your name on the mailing list today. These are some of the finest dedicated folks to support us in our fight for the rights we deserve as Americans with responsible ethics for all. Some of the manufacturers and dealers are also supporting this, you should too. Keith Wills, president Thanks to our members we now have over 1500 stories or links to stories online , over 750 treasure links , and hundreds of photos ! Of course we can't show all of this stuff on the home page so be sure to explore the site and look at everything. You can see all stories in our Story Archives Check out our Treasure Links Don't miss our Photo Albums and Contest Photos And you can also Search the Entire Site
| Important Newsletter Notice: Since we do not send out newsletters via postal mail because of costs involved, our newsletter is only available in e-mail format and on the web site as web pages. This means that if you want to receive our news then we must have your e-mail address entered on your membership form! We will not sell or give your e-mail address to anyone else and it will only be used to send out newsletters or important announcements about legal issues affecting your rights. JOIN WWATS TODAY! |
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| Legislation Alerts - Threats to our Hobby! |
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What do you think WWATS should be doing to help improve our hobby?
| E-Newsletter | 16% | | Visiting Clubs | 13% | | Having more outings | 13% | | Visit Washington D.C. more | 16% | | All of the above | 40% |
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| Public Lands and Waters | | Author: Webmaster |
Public Lands and Waters My sons and I have helped introduce a new bill in the Alabama Senate, SB-81, that will make the current law easier to understand. The public currently has the right to find isolated underwater finds, but some professional archaeologists and their cronies at the Alabama Historical Commission have misled some law enforcement officers into believing that it is illegal to find and keep isolated finds such as an arrowhead, a coke bottle, or a coin. This is not true, but people have been harassed, detained, and their property confiscated on the Tennessee and Alabama Rivers, and in Mobile Bay. Our bill does three things: Deletes (whether or not) from the definition of Cultural Resources Adds a definition for an artifact where no definition currently exists Adds the already existing state and federal law numbers to the bill, so that it protects Indian burial grounds and any other cemeteries that are underwater All historic shipwrecks are currently controlled by the AHC, and we are not trying to change that at all. SB-81 does not increase or decrease any current or future cultural resources that are to be permitted by the Alabama Historical Commission. We just don’t want our law enforcement officers to be used by professional archaeologists to stop divers from legal diving. Please read SB-81An article was in ...[read more]
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Public Lands and Waters My sons and I have helped introduce a new bill in the Alabama Senate, SB-81, that will make the current law easier to understand. The public currently has the right to find isolated underwater finds, but some professional archaeologists and their cronies at the Alabama Historical Commission have misled some law enforcement officers into believing that it is illegal to find and keep isolated finds such as an arrowhead, a coke bottle, or a coin. This is not true, but people have been harassed, detained, and their property confiscated on the Tennessee and Alabama Rivers, and in Mobile Bay. Our bill does three things: Deletes (whether or not) from the definition of Cultural Resources Adds a definition for an artifact where no definition currently exists Adds the already existing state and federal law numbers to the bill, so that it protects Indian burial grounds and any other cemeteries that are underwater All historic shipwrecks are currently controlled by the AHC, and we are not trying to change that at all. SB-81 does not increase or decrease any current or future cultural resources that are to be permitted by the Alabama Historical Commission. We just don’t want our law enforcement officers to be used by professional archaeologists to stop divers from legal diving. Please read SB-81 An article was in the Birmingham News this week that brought attention to the matter, and some of the professional archaeologists have been emailing and calling the Senators and Representatives asking them to kill our bill. These professional archaeologists and their cronies want exclusive rights to our 77,000 miles of waterways and to everything underwater. They could just as well claim all fish belong to the state, so no one could keep a fish. Alabama has over 100,000 divers who work and pay taxes. We are permitted and certified. We have our boats permitted, and we support Alabama. Divers should find isolated items and save as much of our lost history as possible, and we need them to not be afraid to tell what they find because they fear harassment. Significant finds will be made in the future and we all want to learn from these finds. Other states have friendly dive laws that encourage divers to search and share what they have found, and we don't want Alabama divers to feel they must keep their finds secret. These items are rusting and eroding away and need saving. We divers do not want to limit the efforts of the professionals, but we don’t want them to be our masters or regulators. We are the public and the public waters are ours individually as much as theirs. Individual Rights are what our constitution guarantees, not that the mob rules. Items that are found are often placed in museums such as Tannehill State Park. All reference books identifying relics and artifacts have been written by authors using collectors such as our family, and over twelve reference books have been written using Steve’s collection alone. Professional Archaeologists have written none of these, or any other, Civil War reference books. Hunters, fishermen, arrowhead collectors, fossil hunters, relic hunters, gold prospectors, historians, museums, and amateur archaeologists, as well as divers, have a common interest in using our public lands and waters. Being amateur archaeologists or historians does not mean that we are lesser people, it just means that we are not paid. We don’t want grants or contracts as the professionals try to get for anything they do. Amateurs are good. The best golfer in history was an amateur. His name was Bobby Jones and he golfed for love of the game, not money. We, the public, use our waters for love, not money. SB-81 is supported by the Alabama Tourism Department and the Indian Tribes. We need your individual support to help us pass this bill. A State Senator told me in email this week: Steve, another barrage of emails have gone out around the state today to legislators about our bill. I have had four committee members contact me and ask that we not even bring our bill up for a vote in committee because of such strong opposition they are hearing. We really need to get some people contacting their legislators to support this or I am afraid it will be soundly defeated in a committee vote.
Please take a moment and contact ALL Senators and Representatives and ask them to Support SB-81. You can find their contact info on these pages: For people in other states . We want you to feel welcome in Alabama. Please email all the Alabama Representatives and Senators To Support SB-81.
THE ALABAMA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES THE ALABAMA STATE SENATE Please Support SB-81 Save our lost history Steve, Forrest and Spencer Phillips Southern Skin Diver Supply www.ssdsupply.com 205-595-3052 work 205-672-9310 home Here are a some additional links from the past that relate to this issue: Historical Commission Letter to the Alabama Gun Collectors Association Archaeology Heist By Professional Archaeologists Revealed In Alabama
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| Wednesday, January 18 |
| · | Cowtown Treasure Hunters January 2012 Newsletter (0) |
| Tuesday, January 17 |
| · | Southwestern Treasures News February 2012 (0) |
| Friday, January 13 |
| · | Proposed San Gabriel Mountains NRA and the proposed adjoining and overlapping Ri (0) |
| Thursday, January 12 |
| · | Midwest Coinshooters Newsletter November 2011 (0) |
| Wednesday, January 11 |
| · | CALL TO ACTION: Louisville KY needs your support starting today! (0) |
| · | College Professor unjustly accusing Detectorists (0) |
| Tuesday, January 10 |
| · | Austin Metal Detecting Club News January 2012 (0) |
| Monday, January 09 |
| · | Golden Triangle Explorers Society Newsletter January 2012 (0) |
| Tuesday, January 03 |
| · | Southwestern Treasures News January 2012 (0) |
| Sunday, December 11 |
| · | Relic Round Up Show (0) |
| Saturday, December 10 |
| · | Reprinted with the Permission of UK Detector Finds Database (0) |
| Wednesday, December 07 |
| · | WHO IS REALLY INTERESTED IN OUR HOBBY? (0) |
| Tuesday, December 06 |
| · | Southwestern Treasures News December 2011 (0) |
| Monday, December 05 |
| · | Golden Triangle Explorers Society Newsletter December 2011 (0) |
| Thursday, November 24 |
| · | Gold Coast Treasure Club Newsletter December 2011 (0) |
| Monday, November 14 |
| · | Midwest Coinshooters Newsletter October 2011 (0) |
| · | Cowtown Treasure Hunters November 2011 Newsletter (0) |
| Saturday, November 12 |
| · | EAST TEXAS GPAA NOVEMBER 2011 NEWSLETTER (0) |
| Wednesday, November 09 |
| · | Golden Triangle Explorers Society Newsletter November 2011 (0) |
| · | Gold Coast Treasure Club Newsletter November 2011 (0) |
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