North Carolina shipwreck remains a mystery after being revealed by waves

Museum posits mystery ship is the Schooner Joseph Rudd, which was grounded on 22 March 1890

A shipwreck has been revealed by the waves at a beach on the Outer Banks in North Carolina.

Pieces of a wooden ship kept together by nails and rusty pieces of iron appeared during the summer at Cape Lookout National Seashore.

“This shipwreck has been covered all summer but is currently out in all its glory! It shows up every so often on South Core Banks about 6 miles up beach from the lighthouse,” the National Park Service wrote on Facebook on 7 December.

But a week later, they added that “this shipwreck is once again covered by sand”.

The origins of the ship haven’t been identified, prompting debates on social media. Several theories have been put forward, such as the possibility that the shipwreck is the remnants of the Olive Thurlow that was taken by the sea during a storm in 1902, CBS News noted.

But the National Park Service has rejected that theory, saying that the Olive Thurlow is “underwater near the connection of Barden’s Inlet”.

The coastline of North Carolina is known as the Graveyard of the Atlantic because of its large amount of shipwrecks. Many have been identified and mapped.

Part of a shipwreck was revealed at a North Carolina beach (Cape Lookout National Seashore)

The North Carolina Maritime Museum in Beaufort wrote on Facebook on 7 December that “shipwrecks that ended up right on the beach many years ago eventually were torn apart and sanded over”.

“They can later be exposed depending on the movement of sand. Some wrecks like this have been positively identified by the State Office of Archaeology, if so, there is sometimes a tag on the wreck,” they added. “We are not exactly sure which one this is, but currently leaning toward the schooner Joseph Rudd, wrecked on the shoals March 22, 1890 but drifted on to the beach by the next morning to a spot about 4 miles north of the lighthouse. All 7 on board were saved by surfmen from Station Cape Lookout!”

According to the website North Carolina Shipwrecks, the Schooner “was loaded with lumber from Charleston, SC and bound for New York City”.

The wreck report stated that “a very heavy and dangerous sea was encountered rising from every direction making it very difficult to handle the boat as quickly as the sea would dash upon all sides and threaten to swamp her”.

“Her port side was stove, the sails (excepting foresail and jib) were blown away, deck load and after house washed off, and the foremast had settled,” the site adds.