Diver's heritage stems from family of Lincolnshire farmers

DIVER Valerie van Heest grew up in the Great Lakes region of North America, but her father's ancestors, the Tillsons, were farmers here in Lincolnshire.

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She learned to dive at age 16 in the deep water of Lake Michigan near her home.

Unlike the ocean, the freshwaters of the Great Lakes where she lived do not have coral reefs or colourful fish to explore.

However there are some 6,000 shipwrecks lost in these dangerous inland seas over the 250 years of commercial shipping taking with them approximately 30,000 people total.

Valerie became captivated by shipwrecks because the freshwaters of the Great Lakes often preserve them in excellent intact condition.

In 1990, she founded the Underwater Archaeological Society of Chicago leading a team to research, and document the many shipwrecks lost while sailing to and from Chicago, the Great Lakes busiest port at the time.

Valerie said: “The Lady Elgin, found by a Chicago diver in 1989, captivated my interest because everything about it was superlative.