Alexander McKee OBE will be honoured for the integral role he played in salvaging the Mary Rose with a statue erected and displayed at the Hayling Island Library.
Mr McKee lived on the island and is a regarded author. He dedicated a good portion of his later life to the Mary Rose project which nearly cost him his marriage and livelihood. McKees original proposal to search for the ship was met with humiliating rejection. He was forced to pay the Crown Estate Commissioners out of his own pocket to protect the Mary Rose wreck site from wanton pillage.
In 1973 McKee published King Henry VIIIs Mary Rose the first book about the project for nearly a decade. Unfortunately the work is seldom referenced even though it detailed many visions McKee had for the project including the Mary Rose Museum. A more recent book How We Found The Mary Rose was published in 1982 and contains detailed excerpts from his diving log and is more widely referenced.
Alexander McKees statue will be unveiled this Friday at 1pm. Frank Pearce Hayling councillor has helped pay for the bust through the councils budget. The bronze bust will then be on permanent display.
