SS Gairsoppa Currently unauthorized re-posting
Odyssey Marine Exploration (NASDAQ CM:OMEX) announced on Tuesday that it had successfully retrieved 1,574 silver ingots weighing 80 pounds each for a total of almost 1.8 million troy ounces in total in July. Each 80 pound ingot at $20.00 oz (July 2013) is worth about $25,600.
The recoveries were made from a depth of 4.7 kilometers or some 3 miles below the ocean's surface, setting the record for the deepest and largest precious metals recovery from a shipwreck in history.
The 412-foot steel-hulled British merchant steam ship is situated a full kilometer deeper than the Titanic shipwreck. Odyssey's latest dive brings the Florida-based company's total haul to 2,792 silver ingots weighing 110 US tons (99.8 metric tonnes) or nearly 3.2 million troy ounces found aboard the SS Gairsoppa which was torpedoed approximately 300 miles southwest of Ireland by a German U-boat in February 1941.
The Gairsoppa was traveling from Calcutta in India (the bars were minted in what is now called Mumbai) to Liverpool, England.
According to the manifest, three lots of the insured cargo contained .917 fine silver ingots, and all of the silver recovered in 2012 was from these three lots.
The silver bars thus far recovered now comprise some 99% of the insured silver bars, although sources, including Lloyd’s Record of War Losses, indicate more uninsured government-owned silver may have been aboard the Gairsoppa when she sank.None of the uninsured cargo has been located, according to an Odyssey press statement.
New technologies for the recovery of sunken ships and cargo include tethered robots, lights and claws capable of withstanding the immense pressure of ocean depths, and computers capable of remote coordination.
Recovery is conducted aboard the Seabed Worker, which is equipped with specialized tools capable of surgically cutting through steel decks and which have the flexibility to remove cargo from tight spaces. Odyssey is retrieving bullion from the shipwreck as part of an agreement with the UK's Department of Transportation, under which the company independently bears the risk of search and retrieval while retaining 80% of the net salved value of silver cargo following recovery of expenses.
The contract to locate the ship and recover the silver was awarded following a competitive bid process in 2011.
According to CNBC - http://www.cnbc.com/id/100903743 "This is the heaviest amount of precious cargo ever recovered from the deepest depth," Odyssey's president Mark Gordon told "Squawk on the Street" on Monday. The wreck is the SS Gairsoppa, a 412-foot, steel-hulled British ship that sank in February 1941. It now sits nearly three miles below the ocean's surface. Odyssey said that it has recovered a total of 2,792 silver ingots, or 110 tons, from the site since 2012, including 1,574 ingots in the most recent recovery. Each ingot weighs about 1,100 ounces.
"It's obviously a high-risk venture." Gordon said. "We invest millions of dollars on the front end before we know that we're going to have a success." He expects that Odyssey's portion of the proceeds (which must be split with the U.K. government) will be invested in future projects.
Odyssey said that 99 percent of the insured silver believed to be on Gairsoppa has been recovered. According to its contract with the U.K. government, the company will retain 80 percent of the salvaged cargo's value. The cargo has been transported to a secure location in the U.K.
Odyssey said that it used remotely operated vehicles, heavy launch and recovery systems and other specialized deep-ocean equipment. Gordon pointed to a United Nations estimate that 3 million shipwrecks remain and said that their cargo represents "billions of dollars lying on the sea floor." "This is our fourth or fifth success," Gordon said. "This is what we do." Though he said earnings were "episodic" by nature of Odyssey's operations, he added that the company has "a portfolio of projects that will continue to yield these returns."
Odyssey hedges its positions in the commodities that it recovers. The price of silver has risen since the announcement, making the find increasingly valuable.
For the actual story see: http://www.mining.com/salvage-company-hauls-60-tons-of-silver-from-ww2-shipwreck-97929/
(Related slideshow: Cursed and haunted treasures)
(Related: Trial of Costa Concordia captain resumes in Italy)
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
The SS Central America 1852
SS Central America S.S. Central America Time Line
The S.S. Central America carried the most talked about treasure in American history. A book about the ship and its fabulous cargo, Ship of Gold, In The Deep Blue Sea, by Gary Kinder (Atlantic Monthly Press, 1998) was on the New York Times Best Seller List, and Warner Brothers has purchased the rights to produce a major motion picture. Tommy Thompson, who organized the expedition to locate the sunken steamship and recover the cargo, wrote a critically-acclaimed book, America’s Lost Treasure (Atlantic Monthly Press, 1998). For the first time, individuals now can own treasure from the Central America – extraordinary Gold Rush history you can hold in your hands! Here is a brief recap of the S.S. Central America story.
SS Central America October 28, 1852: Operated by the United States Mail Steamship Company, the legendary S.S. Central America is launched. Originally named, S.S. George Law, it was a three-masted, 272-feet long sidewheel steamship that made 43 round trips between New York City and Panama. Each leg of the voyage usually took between 19 to 24 days to complete.
SS Central America 1852 to1857: The Central America transported an estimated one-third of the entire California Gold Rush output. That one-third was valued at the time at approximately $150 million.
SS Central America September 3, 1857: The Central America left Aspinwall (now Colón), Panama carrying 476 passengers, 102 crew members and over three tons of gold. The precious cargo included approximately 5,200 recently-minted $20- denomination ("Double Eagle") gold pieces produced in 1857 at the San Francisco Mint. The gold for these coins was mined during the California Gold Rush. There also was a much smaller quantity of other historic gold coins that circulated in the Wild West. (These will be released later for purchase by individuals).
The cargo also contained privately-made gold coins and ingots produced by such historic, government-supervised San Francisco Gold Rush-era assayers as Blake & Co.; Kellogg & Humbert; Wass Molitor & Co.; Harris, Marchand & Co.; and Justh & Hunter.
The largest ingot recovered is an astonishing gold brick that weighs 933 ounces, nearly 80 pounds, made by assayers Kellogg & Humbert. SS Central America Friday, September 11, 1857: In the second day of a hurricane the ship sprang a leak at 9 a.m. Passengers were ordered to assist the crew in bailing. The ship sank at about 8 p.m. on Saturday, September 12, about 160 miles east of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, drowning a total of 426 passengers and crew, including Captain William Lewis Herndon.
Unable to meet payrolls or pay creditors because of the loss of the gold cargo, New York banks began to fail and stores and factories began to close, touching off a financial crash in the United States and Europe. It was "The Panic of 1857."
SS Central America 1985: An ocean engineer with Battelle Memorial Institute in Columbus, Ohio, Thomas G. Thompson, founded the Columbus-America Discovery Group to research and locate the Central America shipwreck. The 161 investors raised more than $10 million.
SS Central America 1986: The group, based in landlocked Columbus, began exploring 1,400 square miles of the Atlantic Ocean and located the ship’s bell in 8,500 feet of water.
SS Central America After successfully using state-of-the art technology to recover the treasure and other important artifacts, the Columbus-America Discovery Group began a decade of litigation to retain the historic find. Eventually, courts awarded approximately 92 percent of the treasure to the Columbus group with the remainder awarded to insurance companies. ·
SS Central America July 1998: A casual conversation at a country club (Big Canyon C.C., Newport Beach, California) sets the stage for the world’s largest numismatic transaction. Rare coin dealer Larry Goldberg of Beverly Hills, told coin expert-turned-sports agent, Dwight Manley, that the Columbus group wanted to sell intact its portion of the treasure.
SS Central America July 1998 - January 2000: Intrigued and determined to "do the deal," Manley, now Managing Partner of California Gold Group, Newport Beach, then undertook nearly two years of complex negotiations with Columbus-America Discovery Group, Union Bank of California and Christie’s auction house to acquire the $100+ million worth of historic gold coins and bars. He earlier obtained a $70 million contract for Utah Jazz basketball star Karl Malone, but now declares the treasure project involved the biggest and most complicated negotiations he’s ever undertaken. Manley accomplished what no else could do.
SS Central America January 2000 - present: The coins are being certified by Collectors Universe Professional Coin Grading Service (NASDAQ: CLCT), the world’s largest rare coin authentication company. Each coin is sonically sealed in a protective holder, then placed inside a custom-made leather bound book.
For future academic study, some historic gold coins from the S.S. Central America will be donated by Manley to the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC; the New York Historical Society, New York City; the San Francisco Historical Society, San Francisco; and the American Numismatic Association Money Museum, Colorado Springs, Colorado.
SS Central America February 10 - 13, 2000: The first public exhibit of this previously unseen treasure is scheduled at the Long Beach, California Convention Center (100 S. Pine Ave.) in conjunction with the Long Beach Coin & Collectibles Expo. Future Long Beach exhibits also are planned, June 8 - 11 and October 5 -8, and in Philadelphia at the Pennsylvania Convention Center (1201 Arch St.), August 9 - 13, in conjunction with the American Numismatic Association’s World’s Fair of Money®. (Public exhibits elsewhere also may be planned.) SS Central America March 1, 2000: For the first time in history, individuals will be able to purchase historic gold coins from the S.S. Central America treasure (www.SSCentralAmerica.com). They will be sold by the largest, best-known numismatic dealership in the country:
Here's the story:
SS Central America, Ship of Gold', was a 280-foot (85 m) side wheel steamer that operated between Central America and the eastern coast of the United States during the 1850s. She was originally named the SS George Law, after Mr. George Law of New York. The ship sank in a hurricane in September 1857, along with more than 550 passengers and crew and 30,000 pounds of gold, contributing to the Panic of 1857. On 3 September 1857, 477 passengers and 101 crew left the Panamanian port of Colón, sailing for New York City under the command of William Lewis Herndon. The ship was heavily laden with 10 tons of gold prospected during the California Gold Rush. After a stop in Havana, the ship continued north. On 9 September, the ship was caught up in a Category 2 hurricane while off the coast of the Carolinas. By 11 September, the 105 mph (165 km/h) winds and heavy surf had shredded her sails, she was taking on water, and her boiler was threatening to go out. A leak in one of the seals to the paddle wheels sealed her fate, and, at noon that day, her boiler could no longer maintain fire. Steam pressure dropped, shutting down both the pumps keeping the water at bay and the paddle wheels that kept her pointed into the wind as the ship settled by the stern. The passengers and crew flew the ship's flag upside down (a universal sign of distress) to try to signal a passing ship. No one came. A bucket brigade was formed and her passengers and crew spent the night fighting a losing battle against the rising water. During the calm of the hurricane, attempts were made to get the boiler running again, but these all failed. The second half of the storm then struck. The ship was now on the verge of foundering. Without power, the ship was carried along with the storm, so the strong winds would not abate. The next morning, two ships were spotted, including the brig Marine. 153 people, primarily women and children, managed to make their way over in lifeboats. However, the ship remained in an area of intense winds and heavy seas that pulled the ship and most of her company away from rescue and eventually took the ship and many of the roughly 425 people still on board to the bottom at around 8 pm that night. A Norwegian bark, Ellen, rescued an additional fifty from the waters. Another three were picked up over a week later in a lifeboat.
At the time of her sinking, the Central America carried gold then valued at approximately $2 million USD. The loss shook public confidence in the economy, and contributed to the Panic of 1857. Commander William Lewis Herndon, a distinguished officer who had served during the Mexican-American War and explored the Amazon Valley, was captain of the Central America. Commander Herndon went down with his ship. Two US Navy ships were later named USS Herndon in his honor, as was the town of Herndon, Virginia. Two years after the sinking, his daughter Ellen married Chester Alan Arthur, later the 21st President of the United States. Several books were written about this historic ship. One book is America's Lost Treasure, a pictorial chronicle of the sinking and recovery. Gary Kinder's Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea is an account of the recovery efforts. The ship was located by the use of Bayesian search theory and a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) operated by the Columbus-America Discovery Group of Ohio, that was sent down on September 11, 1987. Significant amounts of gold and artifacts were recovered and brought to the surface by another ROV built specifically for the recovery. Tommy Thompson[who?] led the group. 39 insurance companies filed suit, claiming that because they paid damages in the 19th century for the lost gold, they had the right to it. The team that found it argued that the gold had been abandoned. After a legal battle, 92% of the gold was awarded to the discovery team in 1996. The total value of the recovered gold was estimated at $100–150 million. A recovered gold ingot weighing 80 lb.(36 kg) sold for a record $8 million and was recognized as the most valuable piece of currency in the world at that time.
Interesting conclusion to a very interesting treasure find. By Joshua Rhett MillerPublished August 27, 2012 FoxNews.com
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/08/23/engineer-who-found-hip-gold-now-sought-by-us-marshals/#ixzz2Sedx4nlh
Treasure hunter who found 'Ship of Gold' now sought by US Marshals
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/08/23/engineer-who-found-hip-gold-now-sought-by-us-marshals/#ixzz2SecrZVF5
Tommy G. Thompson had a silver tongue when it came to attracting investors and a Midas touch for locating sunken treasure off the Carolina coast. But like a pirate captain who refuses to share the booty, Thompson stiffed his crew and investors, according to a lawsuit — and now, no one knows where to find him. Thompson promised huge returns to investors who backed his search for the SS Central America, which was dubbed in maritime lore as the “Ship of Gold.” The 280-foot ship sank during a hurricane off the North Carolina coast in 1857, taking 425 souls and up to 21 tons of gold to the ocean floor some 8,000 feet deep. The gold had been shipped from San Francisco down to the west coast of Panama, then sent by rail to the Central American nation's east coast and finally loaded onto the steamship bound for New York. When Thompson, an ocean engineer by trade, announced his Columbus, Ohio-based team had found the wreck in 1988, his gleeful backers awaited a big payday.
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/08/23/engineer-who-found-hip-gold-now-sought-by-us-marshals/#ixzz2SedCAgqw
It never came. How much of the Central America's gold was recovered is unclear, though Thompson sold bars and coins to a California mint for $52 million. Investors, including a Columbus newspaper magnate and a prominent auto dealer, say they are due millions. His team of nine technicians, who held find the wreck and recover the gold, say they are due more than $2 million. They've been fighting for their money in court for years. “There is very little reason to doubt that these plaintiffs will prevail and in an amount in excess of $2 million,” Michael Szolosi, an attorney for the technicians, told FoxNews.com. “And all they see from the defendants is delay, delay, delay.”
Earlier this month, U.S. District Judge Edmund Sargus issued a warrant for Thompson, who is now 60. U.S. Marshals are searching for the reclusive treasure hunter, but their task is daunting. They have no current photo of him, and his trail went cold years ago in a trailer park in Florida. Szolosi said Thompson has never shown up in court, and confesses he's never laid eyes on him. His own attorney, meanwhile, says Thompson is "at sea."
Supervisory Deputy U.S. Marshal Drew Shadwick told FoxNews.com investigators are pursuing a “number of leads” and hope to have Thompson in custody shortly. “When he is located, it could take anywhere from a few hours up to a couple of months to get him to federal court in Columbus depending on where he is arrested and how he, his attorneys, and the judges in his district of arrest choose to handle the situation,” Shadwick said.
Sargus temporarily blocked the sale or transfer of 500 restrike gold coins made from some of the discovered gold. Those coins were included in part of a deal in 2000 to sell rights to the remaining treasure to the California Gold Marketing Group for $52 million, leaving about $30 million after the cost of recovery efforts. The judge also ordered Thompson to disclose the location of those coins, as well as funds from a trust. “We have reason to believe that the 500 coins still exist somewhere and that’s why it’s so important for [Thompson] to come to court as he’s been ordered and to answer what the plaintiffs and the judge want answered,” Szolosi said of the 2.5-ounce coins. “We want those assets held.” Thompson is unaware of the warrant issued for his arrest, according to one of his recently-hired attorneys. “Mr. Thompson has not been made aware of and has no knowledge of the warrant out against him and it’s my understanding when he does come back from sea he has every intention of complying with that court’s order,” attorney Avonte Campinha-Bacote told FoxNews.com. “Obviously, he will return.” Thompson, who is believed to have a home in eastern Florida, has faced several other legal battles over claims to the gold by insurance companies, rival salvagers and regarding returns that were expected by a group of 161 investors who paid $12.7 million in the mid-1980s to find the historic wreck, including The Dispatch Printing Co., which publishes The Columbus Dispatch. In 1998, after years of litigation, Thompson and his companies were rewarded 92 percent of the recovered gold, with the remainder going to insurance companies that paid claims after the steamship sank, according to the Dispatch. Eight years later, led by Michael Williamson of Seattle, the team of nine technicians sued in federal court to seek the millions they claim is due to them for locating the most famous shipwreck of its time. Those technicians and investors who funded Thompson’s dream have yet to see a penny in profit from the high-tech recovery mission and the “bizarre” legal battle that has followed, Szolosi said.
Michael Frevola, a maritime attorney in the case, told FoxNews.com he had a copy of author Gary Kinder’s 1999 book “Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea” on desk during an interview with FoxNews.com. The 507-page national best-seller details Thompson’s trip to the bottom of the Atlantic, but the ensuing legal fight is worth another book, he said. “It’s at a point that a book could be written about this is not unfathomable,” Frevola said. “It’s a good read.” The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The S.S. Central America carried the most talked about treasure in American history. A book about the ship and its fabulous cargo, Ship of Gold, In The Deep Blue Sea, by Gary Kinder (Atlantic Monthly Press, 1998) was on the New York Times Best Seller List, and Warner Brothers has purchased the rights to produce a major motion picture. Tommy Thompson, who organized the expedition to locate the sunken steamship and recover the cargo, wrote a critically-acclaimed book, America’s Lost Treasure (Atlantic Monthly Press, 1998). For the first time, individuals now can own treasure from the Central America – extraordinary Gold Rush history you can hold in your hands! Here is a brief recap of the S.S. Central America story.
SS Central America October 28, 1852: Operated by the United States Mail Steamship Company, the legendary S.S. Central America is launched. Originally named, S.S. George Law, it was a three-masted, 272-feet long sidewheel steamship that made 43 round trips between New York City and Panama. Each leg of the voyage usually took between 19 to 24 days to complete.
SS Central America 1852 to1857: The Central America transported an estimated one-third of the entire California Gold Rush output. That one-third was valued at the time at approximately $150 million.
SS Central America September 3, 1857: The Central America left Aspinwall (now Colón), Panama carrying 476 passengers, 102 crew members and over three tons of gold. The precious cargo included approximately 5,200 recently-minted $20- denomination ("Double Eagle") gold pieces produced in 1857 at the San Francisco Mint. The gold for these coins was mined during the California Gold Rush. There also was a much smaller quantity of other historic gold coins that circulated in the Wild West. (These will be released later for purchase by individuals).
The cargo also contained privately-made gold coins and ingots produced by such historic, government-supervised San Francisco Gold Rush-era assayers as Blake & Co.; Kellogg & Humbert; Wass Molitor & Co.; Harris, Marchand & Co.; and Justh & Hunter.
The largest ingot recovered is an astonishing gold brick that weighs 933 ounces, nearly 80 pounds, made by assayers Kellogg & Humbert. SS Central America Friday, September 11, 1857: In the second day of a hurricane the ship sprang a leak at 9 a.m. Passengers were ordered to assist the crew in bailing. The ship sank at about 8 p.m. on Saturday, September 12, about 160 miles east of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, drowning a total of 426 passengers and crew, including Captain William Lewis Herndon.
Unable to meet payrolls or pay creditors because of the loss of the gold cargo, New York banks began to fail and stores and factories began to close, touching off a financial crash in the United States and Europe. It was "The Panic of 1857."
SS Central America 1985: An ocean engineer with Battelle Memorial Institute in Columbus, Ohio, Thomas G. Thompson, founded the Columbus-America Discovery Group to research and locate the Central America shipwreck. The 161 investors raised more than $10 million.
SS Central America 1986: The group, based in landlocked Columbus, began exploring 1,400 square miles of the Atlantic Ocean and located the ship’s bell in 8,500 feet of water.
SS Central America After successfully using state-of-the art technology to recover the treasure and other important artifacts, the Columbus-America Discovery Group began a decade of litigation to retain the historic find. Eventually, courts awarded approximately 92 percent of the treasure to the Columbus group with the remainder awarded to insurance companies. ·
SS Central America July 1998: A casual conversation at a country club (Big Canyon C.C., Newport Beach, California) sets the stage for the world’s largest numismatic transaction. Rare coin dealer Larry Goldberg of Beverly Hills, told coin expert-turned-sports agent, Dwight Manley, that the Columbus group wanted to sell intact its portion of the treasure.
SS Central America July 1998 - January 2000: Intrigued and determined to "do the deal," Manley, now Managing Partner of California Gold Group, Newport Beach, then undertook nearly two years of complex negotiations with Columbus-America Discovery Group, Union Bank of California and Christie’s auction house to acquire the $100+ million worth of historic gold coins and bars. He earlier obtained a $70 million contract for Utah Jazz basketball star Karl Malone, but now declares the treasure project involved the biggest and most complicated negotiations he’s ever undertaken. Manley accomplished what no else could do.
SS Central America January 2000 - present: The coins are being certified by Collectors Universe Professional Coin Grading Service (NASDAQ: CLCT), the world’s largest rare coin authentication company. Each coin is sonically sealed in a protective holder, then placed inside a custom-made leather bound book.
For future academic study, some historic gold coins from the S.S. Central America will be donated by Manley to the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC; the New York Historical Society, New York City; the San Francisco Historical Society, San Francisco; and the American Numismatic Association Money Museum, Colorado Springs, Colorado.
SS Central America February 10 - 13, 2000: The first public exhibit of this previously unseen treasure is scheduled at the Long Beach, California Convention Center (100 S. Pine Ave.) in conjunction with the Long Beach Coin & Collectibles Expo. Future Long Beach exhibits also are planned, June 8 - 11 and October 5 -8, and in Philadelphia at the Pennsylvania Convention Center (1201 Arch St.), August 9 - 13, in conjunction with the American Numismatic Association’s World’s Fair of Money®. (Public exhibits elsewhere also may be planned.) SS Central America March 1, 2000: For the first time in history, individuals will be able to purchase historic gold coins from the S.S. Central America treasure (www.SSCentralAmerica.com). They will be sold by the largest, best-known numismatic dealership in the country:
Here's the story:
SS Central America, Ship of Gold', was a 280-foot (85 m) side wheel steamer that operated between Central America and the eastern coast of the United States during the 1850s. She was originally named the SS George Law, after Mr. George Law of New York. The ship sank in a hurricane in September 1857, along with more than 550 passengers and crew and 30,000 pounds of gold, contributing to the Panic of 1857. On 3 September 1857, 477 passengers and 101 crew left the Panamanian port of Colón, sailing for New York City under the command of William Lewis Herndon. The ship was heavily laden with 10 tons of gold prospected during the California Gold Rush. After a stop in Havana, the ship continued north. On 9 September, the ship was caught up in a Category 2 hurricane while off the coast of the Carolinas. By 11 September, the 105 mph (165 km/h) winds and heavy surf had shredded her sails, she was taking on water, and her boiler was threatening to go out. A leak in one of the seals to the paddle wheels sealed her fate, and, at noon that day, her boiler could no longer maintain fire. Steam pressure dropped, shutting down both the pumps keeping the water at bay and the paddle wheels that kept her pointed into the wind as the ship settled by the stern. The passengers and crew flew the ship's flag upside down (a universal sign of distress) to try to signal a passing ship. No one came. A bucket brigade was formed and her passengers and crew spent the night fighting a losing battle against the rising water. During the calm of the hurricane, attempts were made to get the boiler running again, but these all failed. The second half of the storm then struck. The ship was now on the verge of foundering. Without power, the ship was carried along with the storm, so the strong winds would not abate. The next morning, two ships were spotted, including the brig Marine. 153 people, primarily women and children, managed to make their way over in lifeboats. However, the ship remained in an area of intense winds and heavy seas that pulled the ship and most of her company away from rescue and eventually took the ship and many of the roughly 425 people still on board to the bottom at around 8 pm that night. A Norwegian bark, Ellen, rescued an additional fifty from the waters. Another three were picked up over a week later in a lifeboat.
At the time of her sinking, the Central America carried gold then valued at approximately $2 million USD. The loss shook public confidence in the economy, and contributed to the Panic of 1857. Commander William Lewis Herndon, a distinguished officer who had served during the Mexican-American War and explored the Amazon Valley, was captain of the Central America. Commander Herndon went down with his ship. Two US Navy ships were later named USS Herndon in his honor, as was the town of Herndon, Virginia. Two years after the sinking, his daughter Ellen married Chester Alan Arthur, later the 21st President of the United States. Several books were written about this historic ship. One book is America's Lost Treasure, a pictorial chronicle of the sinking and recovery. Gary Kinder's Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea is an account of the recovery efforts. The ship was located by the use of Bayesian search theory and a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) operated by the Columbus-America Discovery Group of Ohio, that was sent down on September 11, 1987. Significant amounts of gold and artifacts were recovered and brought to the surface by another ROV built specifically for the recovery. Tommy Thompson[who?] led the group. 39 insurance companies filed suit, claiming that because they paid damages in the 19th century for the lost gold, they had the right to it. The team that found it argued that the gold had been abandoned. After a legal battle, 92% of the gold was awarded to the discovery team in 1996. The total value of the recovered gold was estimated at $100–150 million. A recovered gold ingot weighing 80 lb.(36 kg) sold for a record $8 million and was recognized as the most valuable piece of currency in the world at that time.
Interesting conclusion to a very interesting treasure find. By Joshua Rhett MillerPublished August 27, 2012 FoxNews.com
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/08/23/engineer-who-found-hip-gold-now-sought-by-us-marshals/#ixzz2Sedx4nlh
Treasure hunter who found 'Ship of Gold' now sought by US Marshals
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/08/23/engineer-who-found-hip-gold-now-sought-by-us-marshals/#ixzz2SecrZVF5
Tommy G. Thompson had a silver tongue when it came to attracting investors and a Midas touch for locating sunken treasure off the Carolina coast. But like a pirate captain who refuses to share the booty, Thompson stiffed his crew and investors, according to a lawsuit — and now, no one knows where to find him. Thompson promised huge returns to investors who backed his search for the SS Central America, which was dubbed in maritime lore as the “Ship of Gold.” The 280-foot ship sank during a hurricane off the North Carolina coast in 1857, taking 425 souls and up to 21 tons of gold to the ocean floor some 8,000 feet deep. The gold had been shipped from San Francisco down to the west coast of Panama, then sent by rail to the Central American nation's east coast and finally loaded onto the steamship bound for New York. When Thompson, an ocean engineer by trade, announced his Columbus, Ohio-based team had found the wreck in 1988, his gleeful backers awaited a big payday.
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/08/23/engineer-who-found-hip-gold-now-sought-by-us-marshals/#ixzz2SedCAgqw
It never came. How much of the Central America's gold was recovered is unclear, though Thompson sold bars and coins to a California mint for $52 million. Investors, including a Columbus newspaper magnate and a prominent auto dealer, say they are due millions. His team of nine technicians, who held find the wreck and recover the gold, say they are due more than $2 million. They've been fighting for their money in court for years. “There is very little reason to doubt that these plaintiffs will prevail and in an amount in excess of $2 million,” Michael Szolosi, an attorney for the technicians, told FoxNews.com. “And all they see from the defendants is delay, delay, delay.”
Earlier this month, U.S. District Judge Edmund Sargus issued a warrant for Thompson, who is now 60. U.S. Marshals are searching for the reclusive treasure hunter, but their task is daunting. They have no current photo of him, and his trail went cold years ago in a trailer park in Florida. Szolosi said Thompson has never shown up in court, and confesses he's never laid eyes on him. His own attorney, meanwhile, says Thompson is "at sea."
Supervisory Deputy U.S. Marshal Drew Shadwick told FoxNews.com investigators are pursuing a “number of leads” and hope to have Thompson in custody shortly. “When he is located, it could take anywhere from a few hours up to a couple of months to get him to federal court in Columbus depending on where he is arrested and how he, his attorneys, and the judges in his district of arrest choose to handle the situation,” Shadwick said.
Sargus temporarily blocked the sale or transfer of 500 restrike gold coins made from some of the discovered gold. Those coins were included in part of a deal in 2000 to sell rights to the remaining treasure to the California Gold Marketing Group for $52 million, leaving about $30 million after the cost of recovery efforts. The judge also ordered Thompson to disclose the location of those coins, as well as funds from a trust. “We have reason to believe that the 500 coins still exist somewhere and that’s why it’s so important for [Thompson] to come to court as he’s been ordered and to answer what the plaintiffs and the judge want answered,” Szolosi said of the 2.5-ounce coins. “We want those assets held.” Thompson is unaware of the warrant issued for his arrest, according to one of his recently-hired attorneys. “Mr. Thompson has not been made aware of and has no knowledge of the warrant out against him and it’s my understanding when he does come back from sea he has every intention of complying with that court’s order,” attorney Avonte Campinha-Bacote told FoxNews.com. “Obviously, he will return.” Thompson, who is believed to have a home in eastern Florida, has faced several other legal battles over claims to the gold by insurance companies, rival salvagers and regarding returns that were expected by a group of 161 investors who paid $12.7 million in the mid-1980s to find the historic wreck, including The Dispatch Printing Co., which publishes The Columbus Dispatch. In 1998, after years of litigation, Thompson and his companies were rewarded 92 percent of the recovered gold, with the remainder going to insurance companies that paid claims after the steamship sank, according to the Dispatch. Eight years later, led by Michael Williamson of Seattle, the team of nine technicians sued in federal court to seek the millions they claim is due to them for locating the most famous shipwreck of its time. Those technicians and investors who funded Thompson’s dream have yet to see a penny in profit from the high-tech recovery mission and the “bizarre” legal battle that has followed, Szolosi said.
Michael Frevola, a maritime attorney in the case, told FoxNews.com he had a copy of author Gary Kinder’s 1999 book “Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea” on desk during an interview with FoxNews.com. The 507-page national best-seller details Thompson’s trip to the bottom of the Atlantic, but the ensuing legal fight is worth another book, he said. “It’s at a point that a book could be written about this is not unfathomable,” Frevola said. “It’s a good read.” The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The Atocha - 1622
Atocha - 1622
Nuestra Señora de Atocha ("Our Lady of Atocha") was the most famous of a fleet of Spanish ships that sank in 1622 off the Florida Keys while carrying copper, silver, gold, tobacco, gems, jewels, jewelry, and indigo from Spanish ports at Cartagena and Porto Bello in New Granada (current Colombia and Panama, respectively) and Havana bound for Spain. The ship was named for the parish of Atocha in Madrid.
An unfortunate series of complications kept the Atocha in Veracruz before she could rendezvous in Havana with the vessels of the Tierra Firme (Mainland) Fleet. The treasure arriving by mule to Panama City was so immense that summer in 1622 that it took 2 months to record and load the precious cargo on the "Atocha". After still more delays in Havana, what was ultimately a 28-ship convoy did not manage to depart for Spain until September 4, 1622, six weeks behind schedule. Claimed to be on the manifest was 100 gold bars, 180,000 silver coins & 24Tons of silver bullion
On September 6, the Atocha was driven by a severe hurricane onto the coral reefs near the Dry Tortugas, about 35 miles (56 kilometers) west of Key West. With her hull badly damaged, the vessel quickly sank, drowning everyone on board except for three sailors and two slaves. It sank in only 50' of water. Along with sinking the Atocha was the sinking of 7 other ships, one of which was the Santa Margurita killing 143 of her 211 passengers & crew. In 1980 Mel Fisher & his crews found a potion of the hull of the Santa Margurita along with $50mil in gold bars, silver and gold coins. Assisted in the Mel Fisher dives is a boat called The Blue Water Rose.
American treasure hunter Mel Fisher and a team of sub-contractors, funded by investors and others in a joint venture, searched the sea bed for the Atocha for 16 and a half years; Fisher had earlier recovered portions of the wrecked cargo of the sister ship Santa Margarita in 1980. He also proposed the idea to several other potential helpers who were discouraged by the fact that this dangerous professional diving job was at minimum wage unless the ship was found. The Atocha wreck and its mother lode of silver, gold, and emeralds was finally discovered in the spring of 1971. It was Mel's son, Kane, who radioed the news to Treasure Salvors headquarters on the Florida coast, from the salvage boat Dauntless. It is understood by experts that The Sterncastle, the part of the ship that would hold most of the gold and rare Muzo emeralds, is still missing from the shipwreck. These and other valuable items would have been stored in the Captain's cabin for safekeeping in the rear part of the Atocha.
The salvaged coins, both gold and silver, were minted primarily between 1598 and 1621, although numerous earlier dates were represented too, some of the dates extending well back into the 16th century. Many of the dates and types of the period had been either rare or unknown prior to the salvage of the wreck.
In June 2011, treasure divers from Mel Fisher's Treasure found an antique emerald ring believed to be from the Spanish boat. It is said the ring is worth an estimated $500,000. The ring was found 35 miles from Key West, along with two silver spoons and other artifacts.
Since the recovery, many jewelry and tourism-businesses have attempted to create pendants, bracelets, and rings out of both genuine and replica coins from the Atocha wreck. Framed in both gold and silver, many of the coin pieces are made with actual silver found in the Atocha motherload. Often, these come with "certificates of authenticity" containing the silver bar manifest number used in its creation. On the internet can be found some of these authentic silver pieces for less than $30.
After the discovery, the State of Florida claimed title to the wreck and forced Fisher into a contract giving 25% of the found treasure to the state. After eight years of litigation, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of Fisher on July 1, 1982. The find was claimed to be worth approx. $400mil. Fisher died on December 19, 1998.
On another YouTube site showing Sean Fisher (the grandson of Mel Fisher) said that the mother load of the Atocha Shipwreck was found July 20, 1985 on the vessel named: The J B Macgruder. According to this report the treasure found was 200 lbs in gold bars and discs, 300 emeralds, 114,000 loose silver coins and over 30Tons of silver bars and many gold chains. The entire find filled a 2,500 page inventory list. It is claimed that based on the manifest log of the Atocha that there are still hundreds of millions of dollars still out there that has not been found according to Gary Randolph VP and Director of Operations for Mel Fishers Treasures. This remaining part of the Mother Load has been dubbed The Other Mother. The story is found here on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RS0MKmW_SGQ
Here are some YouTube sites that discuss these finds in http://www.AquaSurvey.com:
The Spanish Ship Atocha Shipwreck Found - Gold Treasure Discovery - Mel Fisher Story 9.54min claiming some 47tons of gold & silver. Meritime Museum may be located in Keywest Florida. Also www.MelFisher.org
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNdi4pbUIwc
Mel Fisher's Treasure Museum 8.57min
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b83vOGd2nac&feature=endscreen&NR=1
Atocha Episode 1 1.43min
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXN4idWDGHI&feature=related
Atocha Episode 2 3.41min
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=id-A_EMtGCM&feature=relmfu
Atocha Episode 3 5.18min
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPnrDEwjtDM&feature=relmfu
Atocha diver Bill Moore recovered more than 165 pounds of gold in one day which included 77gold bars, 7gold disc & 7gold chains all in varying sizes and weights. Mel Fisher died in 1998 but never found the other mother load.
Nuestra Señora de Atocha ("Our Lady of Atocha") was the most famous of a fleet of Spanish ships that sank in 1622 off the Florida Keys while carrying copper, silver, gold, tobacco, gems, jewels, jewelry, and indigo from Spanish ports at Cartagena and Porto Bello in New Granada (current Colombia and Panama, respectively) and Havana bound for Spain. The ship was named for the parish of Atocha in Madrid.
An unfortunate series of complications kept the Atocha in Veracruz before she could rendezvous in Havana with the vessels of the Tierra Firme (Mainland) Fleet. The treasure arriving by mule to Panama City was so immense that summer in 1622 that it took 2 months to record and load the precious cargo on the "Atocha". After still more delays in Havana, what was ultimately a 28-ship convoy did not manage to depart for Spain until September 4, 1622, six weeks behind schedule. Claimed to be on the manifest was 100 gold bars, 180,000 silver coins & 24Tons of silver bullion
On September 6, the Atocha was driven by a severe hurricane onto the coral reefs near the Dry Tortugas, about 35 miles (56 kilometers) west of Key West. With her hull badly damaged, the vessel quickly sank, drowning everyone on board except for three sailors and two slaves. It sank in only 50' of water. Along with sinking the Atocha was the sinking of 7 other ships, one of which was the Santa Margurita killing 143 of her 211 passengers & crew. In 1980 Mel Fisher & his crews found a potion of the hull of the Santa Margurita along with $50mil in gold bars, silver and gold coins. Assisted in the Mel Fisher dives is a boat called The Blue Water Rose.
American treasure hunter Mel Fisher and a team of sub-contractors, funded by investors and others in a joint venture, searched the sea bed for the Atocha for 16 and a half years; Fisher had earlier recovered portions of the wrecked cargo of the sister ship Santa Margarita in 1980. He also proposed the idea to several other potential helpers who were discouraged by the fact that this dangerous professional diving job was at minimum wage unless the ship was found. The Atocha wreck and its mother lode of silver, gold, and emeralds was finally discovered in the spring of 1971. It was Mel's son, Kane, who radioed the news to Treasure Salvors headquarters on the Florida coast, from the salvage boat Dauntless. It is understood by experts that The Sterncastle, the part of the ship that would hold most of the gold and rare Muzo emeralds, is still missing from the shipwreck. These and other valuable items would have been stored in the Captain's cabin for safekeeping in the rear part of the Atocha.
The salvaged coins, both gold and silver, were minted primarily between 1598 and 1621, although numerous earlier dates were represented too, some of the dates extending well back into the 16th century. Many of the dates and types of the period had been either rare or unknown prior to the salvage of the wreck.
In June 2011, treasure divers from Mel Fisher's Treasure found an antique emerald ring believed to be from the Spanish boat. It is said the ring is worth an estimated $500,000. The ring was found 35 miles from Key West, along with two silver spoons and other artifacts.
Since the recovery, many jewelry and tourism-businesses have attempted to create pendants, bracelets, and rings out of both genuine and replica coins from the Atocha wreck. Framed in both gold and silver, many of the coin pieces are made with actual silver found in the Atocha motherload. Often, these come with "certificates of authenticity" containing the silver bar manifest number used in its creation. On the internet can be found some of these authentic silver pieces for less than $30.
After the discovery, the State of Florida claimed title to the wreck and forced Fisher into a contract giving 25% of the found treasure to the state. After eight years of litigation, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of Fisher on July 1, 1982. The find was claimed to be worth approx. $400mil. Fisher died on December 19, 1998.
On another YouTube site showing Sean Fisher (the grandson of Mel Fisher) said that the mother load of the Atocha Shipwreck was found July 20, 1985 on the vessel named: The J B Macgruder. According to this report the treasure found was 200 lbs in gold bars and discs, 300 emeralds, 114,000 loose silver coins and over 30Tons of silver bars and many gold chains. The entire find filled a 2,500 page inventory list. It is claimed that based on the manifest log of the Atocha that there are still hundreds of millions of dollars still out there that has not been found according to Gary Randolph VP and Director of Operations for Mel Fishers Treasures. This remaining part of the Mother Load has been dubbed The Other Mother. The story is found here on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RS0MKmW_SGQ
Here are some YouTube sites that discuss these finds in http://www.AquaSurvey.com:
The Spanish Ship Atocha Shipwreck Found - Gold Treasure Discovery - Mel Fisher Story 9.54min claiming some 47tons of gold & silver. Meritime Museum may be located in Keywest Florida. Also www.MelFisher.org
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNdi4pbUIwc
Mel Fisher's Treasure Museum 8.57min
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b83vOGd2nac&feature=endscreen&NR=1
Atocha Episode 1 1.43min
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXN4idWDGHI&feature=related
Atocha Episode 2 3.41min
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=id-A_EMtGCM&feature=relmfu
Atocha Episode 3 5.18min
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPnrDEwjtDM&feature=relmfu
Atocha diver Bill Moore recovered more than 165 pounds of gold in one day which included 77gold bars, 7gold disc & 7gold chains all in varying sizes and weights. Mel Fisher died in 1998 but never found the other mother load.
Treasures found at Vero Beach Florida
Treasures found at Vero Beach in Florida
Douglas Beach wrecksite by Capt. Harold Holden of the m/v Tameron 1987 and also by Capt. John Brandon of the Endeavor in the 2009 salvage season
Douglas Beach wrecksite by Capt. Harold Holden of the m/v Tameron 1987 and also by Capt. John Brandon of the Endeavor in the 2009 salvage season
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