On the island of Nantucket in Massachusetts, wooden wreckage emerged from beneath the sand after a powerful storm. It may belong to a ship that sank as far back as the 19th century. Associated Press reports this, UNN writes.
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Marine experts went to the site to examine large wooden beams fastened with rusty iron fittings. The find will be handed over to the state's underwater archaeologists for study, as they try to determine which vessel it belonged to.
The wreckage was found near a site where parts of the wooden schooner "Warren Sawyer," which sank in 1884, had previously been discovered. At the same time, experts have not yet confirmed that the new find belongs to this particular ship.
The wreckage had been buried under the sand for more than a century
The "Warren Sawyer" ran aground on December 22, 1884, while carrying 1,115 bales of cotton and about 25 tons of scrap metal from New Orleans to Boston. The captain and seven crew members were rescued.
The ship remained on the beach for about two weeks, and local residents managed to salvage 700 bales of cotton. However, on January 6, 1885, a new storm broke the vessel apart and scattered the wreckage along the coast.
The new fragments appeared after a severe storm that caused significant coastal erosion. According to local journalist Jason Graziadei, the wreckage may have been lying just beneath the section of beach where vacationers drove throughout the summer.
This is not the first such discovery on Nantucket. In late 2022, archaeologists examined a roughly 13-meter section of a hull that, in their assessment, likely belonged to the "Warren Sawyer." Parts of the old vessel continue to emerge from beneath the sand from time to time due to changes in the shoreline.