MARINE RESEARCH
SMItHSoNIAN SHARES loNg
HIStoRy oN tREASuRE CoASt
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the research institute has expanded its
programs here over four decades
Dr. Mary E. Rice came to the Treasure Coast more
than 40 years ago to study worms. As curator for
the Department of Invertebrate Zoology for the
Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., Rice
wanted to expand her research to study living organisms,
and the Indian River Lagoon had them. Her specialty is the
study of sipuncula worms, which live in what scientists call
the substrate, or mud to the rest of us.
As a result, she was tapped to go on a field assignment to
run a Smithsonian animal life history program in Fort Pierce.
The result has been impressive.
Why would the Smithsonian come to Fort Pierce? The organization
had a link with the area, a gentleman named Edwin
A. Link, who was known for his expertise in oceanographic,
aeronautical and navigation equipment. Link invented the
first flight simulator, accumulated more than 27 patents and
his Link Trainer allowed pilots to practice without leaving
the ground.
“In 1953, Ed Link established the Link Foundation, which
was housed at the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C., on the
mall at the Art and Industry Building,’’ Rice says. “Ed was
building a submersible and wanted to give it to the Smithsonian.
Hearing what his friend was doing, J. Seward Johnson
Sr. set up a trust to fund the operation of Link’s submersible
and another for research in oceanography.”
The wrecks of Spanish treasure fleets brought Link to Florida
for underwater exploration. During a cruise of Florida
waters on his ship, the Sea Diver II, Link and his wife, Marion,
found and purchased property along the Indian River Lagoon
where a manmade channel was perfect for housing the
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BY CAMILLE S. YATES | PHOTOS BY ED DRONDOSKI