Is this the Samuel Wright?

WA Museum staff are expected to confirm this week if the wreck they have been digging up in Bunbury is the US whaling ship Samuel Wright.

An area along Koombana Drive near the site of the proposed Department of Parks and Wildlife offices is being dug up after geomagnetic surveys revealed a big wreck.

Two big trenches have been dug at the site and timber from the ship has been exposed.

The public had the chance to visit the site on Saturday and Sunday and a talk about the ship was presented at the Bunbury and Heritage Museum on Saturday night.

WA Museum maritime archaeologist Ross Anderson said evidence from the site had been sent for testing that would confirm early this week if the wreck was the Samuel Wright.

"We've got about 20 people from the WA Museum, the National Maritime Museum and archaeological students working at the site," he said.

Mr Anderson said he expected the dig to be finished today and the ship would be returned to the state it was found in to help preserve it.

Archaeologists took samples, collected artefacts and created photographic records during the dig.

The Samuel Wright, which ran aground in 1840, is an important part of Bunbury's maritime history and was used as a triangulation point when Bunbury was mapped.

When the dig was announced on February 8, Bunbury MLA John Castrilli said the ship could play a role in an "interpretive component" of the Department of Parks and Wildlife headquarters.

He did not expect the discovery of the ship to affect the construction of the new department headquarters, which was expected to start this year.