William R. Royal
William R. Royal | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | William Robert Royal |
| Born | March 16, 1905 Bay City, Michigan |
| Died | May 8, 1997 (aged 92) |
| Ashes interred | 27°3′32″N 82°15′39″W / 27.05889°N 82.26083°W |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Service | United States Air Force |
| Rank | Lieutenant colonel |
| Spouse(s) | Shirley E. Royal |
| Other work | Underwater diver and amateur archeologist |
Lt. Col. William Robert Royal (March 16, 1905 – May 8, 1997) was an American scuba diver in the United States Air Force and amateur archeologist. In 1959, Royal and Eugenie Clark found archaeologically, pale-ontologically, and geologically significant artifacts and human bones from at least 30 individuals in Little Salt Spring and Warm Mineral Springs. A partially burned log found in association with some of the human bones was radiocarbon dated to about 10,000 years ago. If the bones were the same age as the log, then the bones were the oldest known evidence of human occupation in Florida at the time.