Current:Home > FinanceWreck of French steamship that sunk in 1856 discovered off New England coast-LoTradeCoin
Wreck of French steamship that sunk in 1856 discovered off New England coast
View Date:2024-12-24 07:03:08
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — The French steamship Le Lyonnais, a marvel for its time, was feared lost forever when a maritime disaster in 1856 sent her to the bottom of the ocean off Massachusetts.
Generations later, a marine salvage crew is ready to write the next chapter in the history of the passenger liner, which was built as the Age of Sail was yielding to steamships. New Jersey marine salvage firm Atlantic Wreck Salvage found the wreck of Le Lyonnais about 200 miles (off New Bedford, Massachusetts, in late August.
The discovery of the steamship follows years of work to locate it, but it also represents a new beginning, said Jennifer Sellitti, a spokesperson for Atlantic Wreck Salvage and a crew member on D/V Tenacious, the vessel the company uses for dives and salvages. The next steps are to document the wreck site, map it and determine what artifacts can be brought to the surface, Sellitti said.
“Finding it in some ways is closure, in some ways is the end. In some ways it’s the beginning — documenting it, determining what is down there and what should be brought up,” Sellitti said. “This was a very early example of a steam engine.”
Le Lyonnais was about 260 feet (79 meters) in length and tasked with carrying passengers and cargo between New York and France, Sellitti said. The ship had sails but was also outfitted with a horizontal steam engine and an iron hull, making her an example of the way innovation was changing shipping in the mid-19th century.
But disaster struck during the ship’s first return voyage back to the French city of Le Havre from the U.S. The ship collided with the Maine-built barque Adriatic, which was en route from Belfast, Maine, to Savannah, Georgia, according to Atlantic Wreck Salvage’s research, which Sellitti is using as the basis for a book on the ship called “The Adriatic Affair.”
The collision left Le Lyonnais bearing a hole in the hull that would eventually sink the boat. Of the 132 passengers and crew, 114 died. The Adriatic made it back to New England for repairs.
The salvage crew was able to find Le Lyonnais by doing historical research and using sonar to narrow down the site of its final resting place. The ship is likely too deteriorated to be raised, Sellitti said.
However, the historic nature of the ship makes its discovery significant, said Eric Takajian, a member of the crew that found the ship.
“Being one of the first French passenger steamships to have a regularly scheduled run crossing the Atlantic and an early transitional steamship make Le Lyonnais’ discovery significant,” he said.
veryGood! (46)
Related
- 'Wanted' posters plastered around University of Rochester target Jewish faculty members
- How does the Men's College World Series work? Explaining the MCWS format
- Exonerated after serving 8 years for 2013 murder, a 26-year-old is indicted again in a NYC shooting
- After Lahaina, Hawaii fire crews take stock of their ability to communicate in a crisis
- 'Bizarre:' Naked man arrested after found in crawl space of California woman's home
- Private investment firms partner to potentially cash in following sweeping changes in college sports
- Patrick Mahomes responds to controversial comments made by Chiefs teammate Harrison Butker
- Israel says it will return video equipment seized from The Associated Press, hours after shutting down AP's Gaza video feed
- Dozens indicted over NYC gang warfare that led to the deaths of four bystanders
- 3 young men drown in Florida's Caloosahatchee River while trying to save someone else
Ranking
- Ford agrees to pay up to $165 million penalty to US government for moving too slowly on recalls
- A lot of people chew ice. Here's why top dentists say you shouldn't.
- Beyoncé, Jay-Z, Big Freedia accused of copyright infringement over 'Break My Soul' lyric
- 'The Kardashians' Season 5: Where to watch, episode schedule, date, time, streaming info
- Olivia Munn Randomly Drug Tests John Mulaney After Mini-Intervention
- Former UMA presidential candidate has been paid more than $370K under settlement
- Remember last year’s Memorial Day travel jams? Chances are they will be much worse this year
- Judge signs off on $600 million Ohio train derailment settlement but residents still have questions
Recommendation
-
Utah AD Mark Harlan fined $40,000 for ripping referees and the Big 12 after loss to BYU
-
Nikki Haley says she'll vote for Trump, despite previously saying he's not qualified to be president
-
Colorado the first state to move forward with attempt to regulate AI’s hidden role in American life
-
Someone mailed a live rattlesnake to a California man. He thinks it was attempted murder.
-
Advance Auto Parts is closing hundreds of stores in an effort to turn its business around
-
Arizona Senate advances proposed ballot measure to let local police make border-crossing arrests
-
Most in Houston area are getting power back after storm, but some may have to wait until the weekend
-
Judge agrees to delay Hunter Biden trial in California tax fraud case as Delaware trial looms