Latest news with #shipwreck
The Independent
a day ago
- Science
- The Independent
Remains found washed up on Jersey shore identified as missing 19th-century boat captain
A decades-old cold case at the Jersey Shore has been cracked after experts confirmed that skeletal remains found on three beaches belong to a 19th-century ship captain. Undergraduate student researchers at Ramapo College of New Jersey used advanced DNA technology to determine that bones from a leg, arm and fragments of a cranium all belonged to Captain Henry Goodsell - who died at sea 181 years ago at age 29. The bones were found separately on Ocean City, Margate and Longport beaches between 1995 and 2013. New Jersey State Police turned them over to researchers at the college's Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center last year. "We kind of kept going back and forth between, are they historic? Are they not historic?' NJSP Forensic Anthropologist Dr. Anna Delaney told NBC New York. "This is absolutely amazing because after all of this time, Henry has his name." While examining New Jersey shipwreck records, students uncovered newspaper articles from December 20 and 24, 1844. They learned that the Oriental, captained Goodsell, was carrying five crew members and 60 tons of marble to Philadelphia for Girard College when it sank near Brigantine Shoal in 1844, killing everyone on board. Researchers traced Goodsell's genetic relatives back to the 1600s and built family trees, revealing ancestral ties to Connecticut. They eventually located Goodsell's great-great-granddaughter in Maryland, whose DNA sample confirmed the captain's identity. Goodsell's family said they do not want his remains, so they will stay at a state repository indefinitely. 'Identifying human remains is one of the most solemn and challenging responsibilities law enforcement is charged with,' said Chief of County Detectives Patrick Snyder at the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office in a news release. 'Law enforcement works hard knowing that behind every case is a promise: that no one will be forgotten, and that we will pursue the truth until families have the answers they deserve,' he added.
Fox News
3 days ago
- Health
- Fox News
Mysterious bones that washed up on Jersey Shore finally identified 180 years after tragedy
Bones that mysteriously washed up on the Jersey Shore over the past three decades were recently identified, thanks to cutting-edge technology and diligent students. Ramapo College announced the discovery in a May 21 press release. The remains were identified as belonging to Henry Goodsell, a captain who died in an 1844 shipwreck off the coast of South Jersey's Brigantine Shoal. (See the video at the top of this article.) The ship was carrying 60 tons of marble for Girard College, a preparatory school, when it sprung a leak and sank. Goodsell's bones didn't wash up until over a century later, when they were found on various beaches in the Garden State. "A skull washed ashore in Longport in 1995, and more bones were found in Margate in 1999, both in Atlantic County," Ramapo College's statement noted. "In 2013, additional remains were found in Ocean City, Cape May County." "Scattered Man John Doe went without a name for 30 years since traditional methods of investigation could not deliver an identification." Cairenn Binder, assistant director of the Ramapo College Investigative Genetic Genealogy (IGG) Center, told Fox News Digital that her team conducted traditional DNA testing to find a matching profile in the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), a national DNA profile database. "More identifications like these will be made now that we have advances in technology." "While there was no missing person sample on file that matched with the profiles from the bones, the bones all matched one another, so that's how [the New Jersey State Police] learned they were all connected before we began working on the case," she said. Over the past several months, Ramapo students have gleaned various details about Goodsell's life from old newspapers. He was 29 years old when he died, and his ancestors were among the earliest settlers in Connecticut. "Capt. Goodsell's ancestors lived in Litchfield and Fairfield Counties in Connecticut and had all been there since the 1600s – some of the earliest European Americans," Binder said. "He was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, but lived in Boston from at least the late 1830s." Goodsell also left behind a wife and two children when he perished; his family was financially devastated by the shipwreck. "The news reported that his family was left in 'very embarrassed' circumstances after the captain's death," Binder said. "There was a fundraiser held for Capt. Goodsell's widow a year after his death," she also said. Reports were that "she was destitute." Five or six other crew members were on the vessel, Binder noted, and all of them are believed to have died. One was found and buried while the others were lost at sea. Binder described the discovery as "extremely rare," noting that Ramapo researchers have not been able to find an older case where IGG was used to successfully identify remains. "There are a handful of cases where remains more than 100 years old have been identified with IGG, but this is the oldest we have been able to find," she said. "We believe that more identifications like these will be made now that we have the advances in technology to make them happen," she added. Authorities from various New Jersey law enforcement offices were also involved in the research. In a statement, Cape May County prosecutor Jeffrey Sutherland said the same technology is used to "bring offenders to justice." CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP" "The hard work of Ramapo College's IGG Center and working with the New Jersey State Police Cold Case Unit has demonstrated the power and accuracy of this new technology combined with classic detective work in solving complex cold cases that will bring offenders to justice and provide closure to victims' families," he noted.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Bayesian's watery grave: Wreck where billionaire Mike Lynch, his daughter and five others died is pictured... and the hatch that was initially blamed for disaster
Clearly visible through the murky depths 150ft below the surface, this is the first time British superyacht Bayesian has been seen since it sank beneath the waves last August. Captured in astonishing detail by a renowned photographer, it shows the gold letters of the doomed vessel's name still proudly displayed on the submerged stern. After just nine months at the bottom of the Mediterranean, the images also show how the wreck is already being reclaimed by nature, with seaweed colonising its once-pristine deck as fish explore the new habitat. As investigations continue into how the 'unsinkable' £30million yacht could sink so suddenly - with the loss of seven lives, including those of British billionaire Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah - the images appear to rule out one theory. According to photographer Massimo Sestini, who captured these exclusive images, the Bayesian's stern hatch remains firmly closed. That is despite the initial claim by shipbuilders that it had been left open on the night of the tragedy, allowing water to surge in when a freak storm struck. His photos also show how the wreck lies largely intact on the sea bed off the coast of Sicily as a £20million salvage operation continues to raise it to the surface. The Bayesian - famous for its trademark 236ft mast, one of the world's tallest - took just 16 minutes to sink in the early hours of the morning. Although the Bayesian's tragic sinking with the loss of seven lives happened just nine months ago, Massimo Sestini's images show how the wreck is already being colonised by seaweed and fish It had been hit by a fierce storm with 100mph winds while at anchor off the fishing village of Porticello. Earlier this month an interim report by British investigators highlighted 'vulnerabilities' in the yacht's stability which meant its crew were unable to prevent the 184ft luxury sailing boat from tilting violently on its side. The captain and crew would have been unaware as the information was not laid out in a safety booklet onboard, the Marine Accident Investigation Branch said. Earlier this month the vessel – which locals say is cursed – claimed the life of an eighth person, a Dutch diver who was working on the £20million salvage operation. In response, all manned diving operations were temporarily suspended, with exploration instead carried out by undersea robots. Diving the wreck before the latest tragedy, Mr Sestini said conditions on the seabed were treacherous. A lack of sunlight at that depth combined with sediment swirling in the current combined to reduce visibility to as little as one metre. 'When I connected my camera to the computer and saw the images of the wreck on the screen, my heart sank,' said the photographer, who himself almost drowned while diving beneath a frozen Italian lake earlier this year. Divers can only spend ten minutes at a time on the wreck - with the dangers of the unforgiving conditions and poor visibility 150ft below the surface underlined by the tragic loss of a Dutch diver on May 9 during recovery efforts Sicilian fishermen say the benign waters of the Mediterranean on a calm day belie the fearsome winds which can be whipped up by sudden storms His photographs of the Bayesian's wreck shows its sinking was 'truly a great mystery', he told Italian publication Oggi. 'The wreck seems intact,' he added. Mr Sestini said while it was 'said at the beginning' that an open stern hatch caused 'huge amounts' of water to inundate the yacht when the storm struck, 'my photos show that the door is closed'. Within days of the disaster on August 19 last year, the CEO of Italian Sea Group - which bought the Bayesian's constructors Perini Navi two years ago - blamed 'human error'. The stern hatch was 'clearly' open, Giovanni Costantino told Italian media. The firm has yet to comment on the MAIB report. Bayesian was legally owned by Mr Lynch's wife Angela Bacares, who survived the disaster. The other victims were banking executive Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy Bloomer, lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo and the yacht's chef, Recaldo Thomas. The tragedy last August killed seven people including British billionaire and tech tycoon Mike Lynch and his daughter Hannah The moment the doomed Bayesian sank in the early hours of August 19 last year was captured by security cameras of a nearby villa on the coast Three crew members are currently facing possible charges of manslaughter and causing a disaster under an Italian criminal investigation. However Under Italian law the fact the men - captain James Cutfield, chief engineer Timothy Parker Eaton and deckhand Matthew Griffiths - have been placed under investigation does not imply guilt and does not necessarily mean that charges will be brought against them. Minute by minute, how the Bayesian tragedy unfolded August 18 - PM: The Bayesian was anchored at Cefalù on the northern coast of Sicily to shelter from the forecast weather and to allow for easy disembarkation of guests the following day. August 19 - 00.30am: Having checked the weather the captain and the last guest had retired, leaving deckhand (DH1) and the evening steward (S1) on duty. 01.00am: The second deckhand (DH2) took over the watch. The wind at this time was noted as being no more than 8kts (9.2pmh). 03.00am: DH2 noted the wind as being at 8kts (9.2pmh) from the west but thought that the thunderclouds and lightning seemed to be getting closer. 03.55am: The deckhand 'videoed the advancing storm and posted it to their social media feed' before closing the hatches and cockpit windows. 03.57am: The winds had picked up to 30kts (35mph) and the Bayesian was listing and dragging its anchor. 04.00am: The deckhand ran to wake up the skipper and the crew leapt into action and began preparing to manoeuvre the Bayesian by starting the generators and steering pumps. The rest of the crew, woken by either the captain or the yacht's change of motion, got up and made their way out of the crew accommodation. Chef Recaldo Thomas was spotted in the galley stowing cutlery, pots and pan and called out 'Good morning!' to nearby stewards. The Bayesian was lying with the wind about 60 degree off the port bow and moving at 1.8kts south-south-east of its original position. Two guests – a British couple – had been woken by the movements and decided to head to the saloon with their baby. 4.06am: Disaster struck as the wind suddenly increased to more than 70kts (80.5mph) ripping the awning away. The Bayesian 'violently heeled over' in less than 15 seconds to a 90-degree angle. The sudden movement sent people as well as furniture flying across the deck leaving five people including the captain injured while a deckhand was thrown into the sea. Two guests trapped in their cabin were forced to used furniture drawers as an improvised ladder to escape into the saloon area. The yacht's crew were able to push four guests through the cascading water up to the skipper on the flying bridge. The captain called for the guests and crew to swim clear of the mast and boom as the vessel sank. 04.22am: The crew had launched the Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons (EPIRB). They noted that the wind had eased and that Bayesian was only a short distance from shore. In the water, a deckhand(DH2) improvised a tourniquet for one of the guest's gashed arm while a cushion was used as a flotation device foe the baby. Some of the survivors were treading water and others held on to some cushions that had floated free from Bayesian. One of the guests frantically searched for other survivors in vain using the torch from their phone - while the captain and chief officer frantically freed the life raft from the sinking wreck. 04.24am: The captain and chief officer frantically freed the life raft from the sinking wreck. It was was inflated and the survivors were able to get inside it where the crew began administering first aid. The skipper tried to raise the alarm by shouting at and then paddling towards the nearby vessel the Sir Robert Baden Powell. 04.34am: The Chief Engineer fired a red parachute flare from the life raft. Despite the winds being calm at the surface, the flare was carried sideways. He then used the life raft's torch to signal towards a hotel on the cliffs above them, passing cars, and Sir Robert Baden Powell. 04.43am: The Chief engineer fired a second parachute flare that was seen by the crew of Sir Robert Baden Powell. Responding to the flare, the skipper dispatched its tender towards the visible lights of the EPIRB and life raft. 04.53am: The tender carrying the 15 survivors returned to Sir Robert Baden Powell and a brief search was look for the missing seven people who were also on board. 04.56am: The tender from Sir Robert Baden Powell returned to the scene with Bayesian's Chief Engineer and skipper on board to search for other survivors. The local coastguard was called to arrange to transfer the survivors to shore.
CTV News
3 days ago
- General
- CTV News
Time travelling timepiece: Watch from Lake Michigan's deadliest shipwreck returned to family after 165 years
Herbert Ingram's initials on his watch fob discovered at the wreckage site of the Lady Elgin. (Andy Curtis/WXMI via CNN Newsource) HOLLAND, Michigan (WXMI) -- Lake Michigan usually does not like to give back what it takes, but now, 165 years after sinking to the lake bottom during the Great Lakes' deadliest shipwreck, a solid gold pocket watch claimed by the lake in the region's deadliest shipwreck is making its way back home to the owner's family. On September 8, 1869, the Lady Elgin, a sidewheel steamer, collided with another ship north of Chicago, with over 300 people losing their lives as a result. Its legacy now rests at the bottom of Lake Michigan. A legacy that Holland-based historian and author of Lost on the Lady Elgin, Valerie Van Heest, knows very well. 'Back in 1992, when my team was documenting the remains of the Lady Elgin scattered over more than a mile of lake bottom, other divers were visiting the site,' said Van Heest. 'The location had leaked, and a trio of divers I have just recently learned, came upon a pocket watch. A gold pocket watch, an extraordinary discovery.' And this wasn't just any sunken treasure, the watch was engraved with the initials of Herbert Ingram. 'He was a member of parliament,' said Valerie. 'He was also the founder of the London Illustrated News, which was the first time a newspaper printed images in the paper. So he was really the founder of pictorial journalism.' The divers kept this a secret for more than 30 years before cleaning up the watch and reaching out to Valerie, who, after some research, discovered not only were the descendants of Ingram still alive in England, but the museum in his hometown was putting together an exhibit about Englishmen. Watch from Lake Michigan's deadliest shipwreck Herbert Ingram's recovered full watch and chain. (Andy Curtis/WXMI via CNN Newsource) 'They didn't have any physical artifacts, and here I was offering not only an artifact, but Herbert Ingram's personal watch,' Valerie told me. 'It was an extraordinary, serendipitous occurrence.' A stroke of good luck for a story anchored by so much bad with the next stop for this time-traveling timepiece is with Valerie back to Ingram's hometown of Boston, Lincolnshire, England. 'Returning this watch is the right thing to do,' Valerie said. 'This is reminding people that shipwrecks affected people, affected families, and this shows that 165 years later, we care. People care about the individuals lost.' By Andy Curtis, WXMI, via CNN Newsource
The Sun
4 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Mystery of lost British treasure ship laden with priceless artefacts may finally be solved 350 years after it vanished
A BRITISH ship filled with "rare treasure" that disappeared centuries ago may finally have been discovered off the coast of Ireland. The Recovery was transporting priceless cargo from Italy to Dublin when it mysteriously sank in 1787, killing six crew members. 6 6 6 Following decades of hunting, part of the historic vessel has been identified by divers in Wexford, southeast Ireland, after its rudder was picked up by sonar. Edmond O'Byrne, who's leading the effort, said: "At first I thought it was a torpedo, because the image would be slightly distorted on the side-scan sonar. "When we went down, it turned out to be a 20-foot-long rudder covered in copper sheet. "We've searched and, so far, nobody can tell us that there is a copper-covered rudder in existence from that time anywhere. "It could be the only one of its time. Now that really identified her." Built in Chester in 1773, the Recovery was one of a few hundred ships in the entire British merchant fleet that had their hulls covered in copper sheathing. It was used by the British navy at the time to prevent marine wildlife growing on wooden warships. The long lost rudder was discovered almost 250 metres from other parts of the ship, including an anchor and timber fittings. Artefacts such as a copper teapot and inkwells were also found nearby. Its final location may shed some light on the final moments of the Recovery, which is believed to have been pulled apart in shallow water. Inside the San José shipwreck with £13billion worth of lost treasures trapped underwater The captain and his two sons were among the crew members who tragically perished. Edmond added: "We reckon when she came around Carnsore Point, she came into shallower water, and pulled the rudder and part of the stern off. "And then the ship was at the mercy of the sea." But he believes that the lost antiques, which include bronze and marble artworks, are in a good condition despite sitting roughly 20 metres beneath the surface. The Irishman said: "There could be something in very good condition. "Because if they had to journey some distance on land to get to the port and then be loaded and then unloaded, they would have to be packed very, very well. "So there is a chance that something would survive." Some of the pieces of art on the ship had been collected by the Earl of Charlemont during a nine-year tour of Europe. "Ireland's wealthiest banker" John La Touche also owned some of the expensive materials stored on the boat. The true value of the cargo is unknown. Amorino, another statue commissioned by the banker, sold for more than £500,000 in 1997. The piece was designed by the famous Italian sculptor, Antonio Canova, and is now displayed at the National Gallery of Ireland. 6 6
