A cargo ship that sunk over a century ago has suddenly reappeared following a recent spate of heavy winds blowing through North Carolina following Hurricane Jose.
Ran aground by an alleged mutiny in 1919, The William H. Sumner reemerged from its sandy tomb earlier this week after beach goers found the wreckage on Surf City shore, ABC affiliate WCTI 12 reported.
At first, observers believed random bits of wood had washed up on the sand, until closer inspection revealed the logs were interconnected, according to The Charlotte Observer.
This isn’t the first time the wreckage has made appearance on Topsail Island.
The remains of the William H. Sumner periodically surfaces, emerging every few years (pictured 2017)
Wreckage from The William H. Sumner reappeared on a North Carolina beach this week
On Sept. 7 1919, The Sumner ran aground off the coast of Topsail Island, North Carolina
According to the Observer, the remains of the William H. Sumner periodically surfaces after every few years.
Archaeologist have known about the ship’s remains for the last five decades, according to New Burn Sun Journal.
Experts think that on September 7 1919, the Sumner sunk off the coast Topsail Island. An article from the Observer at the time reported that the captain of the ship, 24-year-old Robert E. Cochrane, was found dead after the wreck in mysterious circumstances.
The Observer notes that Cochrane may have been distraught ‘over the fact that his vessel met disaster on his first voyage,’ committing suicide over his failure.
Three crewmen that were interviewed latter, however, attest that the young captain was shot and killed by his first mate while still at sea.
‘The story goes that the young captain on his first voyage in command had sailed too close to the shore while the currents and winds had died preventing him from sailing back offshore again,’ according to the TopSailIslandblog.
A mystery still surrounds the demise of the ship and its captain, which has baffled experts for nearly a century (pictured 2017)
Some believe that Captain Robert E. Cochrane, 24, was so distraught by the ship’s fate he committed suicide
Others say that the young captain was killed by his first mate in a mutiny after he refused to take a detour for supplies
he William H. Sumner ran aground in 1919 near Topsail Island. After the wreck, the remains were covered by years of sand
‘The speculation is that the crew had asked the Captain to detour to pick up supplies and the captain, wishing to head northward to port, would not. The crew then allegedly mutinied.’
Records show that The Sumner was a three masted schooner from Puerto Rico weighing 572 tons.
Built in Camden, Maine, it was a phosphate trade heading to its home port in New York city before running aground.