WHEN? Friday · September 19
WHERE? Gulf Shores, Alabama · find us on the map
WHY? History swept ashore
After several days of rumors that Hurricane Ike's storm surge had washed an old wrecked ship ashore near Fort Morgan, curiosity got the best of us and we drove over to Gulf Shores to check it out.
Once we were in the area where we thought the ship ruins were, we stopped at a small grocery store located at 5160 West Fort Morgan Road (State Highway 180) to ask directions. Tequila Bay Bar & Grill is what you see first from the road, and just west of there is a road named OUR ROAD, on which you can turn south (only way it runs) and get close enough to view the ruins.
Several beachgoers are poking through the wreckage
Click on the photo for a closeup size comparison
There's a good bit of speculation about what ship it is. Although some suggest it's a Civil War schooner that ran aground in 1862, others have said it might be the schooner Rachel, built at Moss Point, Mississippi in 1919, and wrecked near Fort Morgan in 1933. I vote for the second possibility.
Newswires have been buzzing with stories about the area's newfound relic:
- Associated Press:
Waves from Ike reveal shipwreck on Ala. beach that could be Civil War schooner - CNN coverage:
Mystery ship washes ashore in Alabama after Hurricane Ike - Yahoo News includes video footage:
Ike helps uncover mystery vessel on Ala. Coast
See our photos on flickr:
Ship Washed Ashore Near Fort Morgan
Update from Hurricane Isaac
Associated Press/Press-Register, Brian Kelly - In Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2012 photo, the ghostly remains of an old wooden ship rest along a private beach at Fort Morgan, Ala. The ship is the Rachel, a schooner built in Pascagoula, Miss., during World War I, according to Mike Bailey, historian with the Fort Morgan Historical Society. The ship was lost in a storm in 1923. The remains of the the Rachel have been uncovered by hurricanes in the past, but more of the wreck was revealed in the wake of Hurricane Isaac. (AP Photo/Press-Register, Brian Kelly)
Read the Yahoo story regarding this.
Shifting sands from Isaac reveal 1923 wreck
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