Treasure Hunter

 
 Dave Hawley stands in the Heinz History Center's exhibit "Pittsburgh's Lost Steamboat: Treasures of the Arabia." The exhibit features some of the nearly one million objects he found on the locally-built steamboat that sunk in 1856 on the Missouri River near Kansas City, Mo.  The Arabia was found in the late 1980s by Hawley and his family with many of its contents perfectly preserved by the oxygen-free environment 45 feet below a cornfield.
Heinz History Center CEO and President Andy Masich, right, holds the 158-year-old jar of pickles  as Paula Andras, collections technician, center, holds a light and Dave Hawley, left, takes a photo on Thursday, June 12, 2014.  Hawley and his family discovered the lost riverboat 45 feet below a cornfield near Kansas City, Mo.
Justin Merriman

Justin Merriman is a freelance photojournalist, commercial photographer, licensed drone pilot, and filmmaker based in Pittsburgh. His career began in Southwestern Pennsylvania, where he worked as a newspaper photographer dedicated to community storytelling and politics. Since then, his work has been recognized with regional, national, and international awards and has appeared in publications around the world.

After covering the crash of United Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, on September 11, 2001, Merriman committed to documenting the U.S. military’s War on Terror, reporting from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, and across the United States. His international assignments have also included life in Fidel Castro’s Cuba, India’s campaign to eradicate polio, the aftermath of Haiti’s 2010 earthquake, Pope Benedict XVI’s visit to Cuba in 2012, the 2013 conclave that elected Pope Francis in Rome, the second anniversary of Egypt’s revolution, Russia’s 2014 invasion of Crimea, and the uncertain future of Guantanamo Bay in 2015. That same year, he traveled the full U.S.–Mexico border to document immigration issues.

In addition to photography, Merriman works as a director and filmmaker, creating recent films on refugees in Turkey, Jordan, India, and South Africa.

Closer to home, he frequently covers stories across Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia, focusing on the intersections of economic, environmental, and political life. Most recently, he reported on the Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, and its impact on the community.

Born in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, Merriman graduated from the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg with a B.A. in English Writing. In 2009, the university awarded him its prestigious Alumnus of Distinction award. He is a founding member of Argo Collective, a group of photographers sharing diverse visions of America. He lives outside Pittsburgh with his wife, Stephanie Strasburg, a photojournalist with PublicSource.

http://www.justinmerriman.com
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