It took explorers 130 years to find the treasure, but the millions of dollars worth of gold, silver, and jewels have caused much dispute.
A treasure of 20 tons of gold buried with 426 people under the sea off the coast of the United States – Part 1
The vast ocean is a hiding place for many mysterious treasures. Many treasures lie within ships that sank decades, even centuries ago. Therefore, shipwrecks at sea are not only fascinating to archaeologists but also to treasure hunters worldwide.
In 1988, treasure hunter Tommy Thompson and his colleagues discovered the Gold Ship – the famous American ship SS Central America, which had sunk to the bottom of the sea 130 years earlier.
During his expedition, Thompson recovered thousands of gold bars, coins, and valuable artifacts. Most of these precious metals were later sold for approximately $ 50 million
However, this was only a fraction of the enormous treasure aboard the SS Central America – the legendary gold-carrying ship that met its demise in 1857.
20 tons of gold sank to the bottom of the sea.
The SS Central America, an 85-meter-long ship, operated in Central America and the East Coast of the United States during the 1850s.
On September 3, 1857, 476 passengers and 102 crew members aboard the ship departed from Colon port in Panama bound for New York City.
However, on September 10th, the ship encountered a terrible storm, was damaged, and sank on September 12th off the coast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, USA. A total of 426 people died, according to the Telegraph.
A treasure of 20 tons of gold buried with 426 people under the sea in the US – Part 2
The SS Central America sank on September 12 off the coast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, USA.
The Telegraph reported that the SS Central America was carrying approximately 20 tons of gold at the time. It is believed to be the largest underwater treasure in American history.
The Richest magazine estimates that the entire stash of “gold, silver, and jewels” hidden in the ship is worth between $100 and $150 million
The sinking of the ship shocked the public and shook the economy. It contributed to the “Panic of 1857” in the United States as New York banks waited in vain for the gold that was being transported to them.
Treasure hunt
All attempts to find the massive gold hoard failed until 1988, when the Columbus-America Group (CAG) expedition, led by Tommy Thompson, located the shipwreck at the bottom of the sea, 2,400 meters below the surface.
Because the water was so deep, a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) was deployed to search, according to the National Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA). Although ROVs were not common technology at the time, they helped gather enough evidence to confirm that it was indeed the SS Central America.
A treasure of 20 tons of gold buried with 426 people under the sea in the US – 3
Tommy Thompson aboard a ship searching for the treasure of the SS Central America.
CAG subsequently recovered three tons of gold bars and coins worth approximately $50 million. Among this treasure was a gold bar weighing 28 kg and hundreds of ancient coins. Many of the ancient coins sold for $10,000 each, according to NUMA.
Thompson once described the moment he first saw the treasure in a book: “None of us thought it would be anything extraordinary. A part of America’s heritage, this is history hidden in the form of a national treasure. And we found it.”
However, Thompson’s joy was short-lived. Thirty-nine insurance companies began suing Thompson, claiming the gold was insured by them and therefore belonged to them, according to USA Today.
Salvage operations have been suspended while a legal dispute is resolved.
A treasure of 20 tons of gold buried with 426 people under the sea in the US – 4
CAG subsequently recovered three tons of gold bars and coins from the shipwreck.
According to NUMA, Thompson never shared the proceeds from the sale of the gold coin with the search team and investors. He said the money was used to pay for legal expenses and bank loans.
Later, the investors sued Thompson. The explorer fled when an arrest warrant was issued. During this time, the court appointed a new organization—Odyssey Marine Exploration—to search for and exploit the treasure.
In January 2015, Thompson was arrested on charges of defrauding investors. At the time, the 62-year-old man was found in a Florida hotel.
As of June 2017, he was still being held in a US prison for refusing to reveal the whereabouts of the mined gold, according to AP.
A treasure of 20 tons of gold buried with 426 people under the sea in the US – 5
Thompson poses for a photo with the gold he recovered from the SS Central America.
Endless treasure
After taking over the SS Central America for excavation, Odyssey recovered more than 15,500 gold and silver coins and 45 gold bars. They also found gold jewelry and many 19th-century artifacts such as glass containers, cigarettes, etc.
The shipwreck lies too deep for humans to dive to reach, but this won’t stop the salvage operation. Odyssey is also using an 8-ton remotely operated vehicle called Zeus to scan the ocean floor.
Odysse CEO Greg Stemm told FoxNews: “The SS Central America is one of the greatest shipwreck stories of all time.”
A treasure of 20 tons of gold buried with 426 people under the sea in the US – 6
Much gold is still lying at the bottom of the ocean, waiting to be salvaged.
A treasure of 20 tons of gold buried with 426 people under the sea in the US – 7