U.S. company granted salvage rights to ship believed to contain millions in B.C. gold
A Seattle-based company has been granted salvage rights to a ship containing piles of gold that sank near the B.C. coast in the 19th century.
The SS Pacific collided with another vessel shortly after it departed for a trip from Victoria to San Francisco in November of 1875 and was never seen again. Roughly 275 people, many of them gold miners, are believed to have died in the wreck.
Several unsuccessful attempts to locate and recover the boat have been made over the years, but Jeff Hummel, the president of Rockfish Incorporated, believes his team has done it.
"This is a childhood dream realized in adulthood, finding this particular vessel,” Hummel told CTV News.
Hummel says he began his pursuit of the boat in the '90s. In 2017, he formed a team in Seattle to track it down.
He says they embarked on 12 expeditions using a sonar and a towed camera sled.
Rockfish based its search off old records that showed the vessel went down southwest of Cape Flattery, as well as information from fishermen who found coal in their nets.
Hummel said the team obtained a piece of the coal and had it tested in a lab in Alberta. The results ended up matching the chemical analysis of coal from a mine owned by the owners of the SS Pacific.
“From that we were able to determine, it was from the wreck,” Hummel said.
Hummel says it was ultimately the sonar imaging equipment that zeroed in on the boat.
"We saw something that looked like the paddle wheels, and so once we identified those and we took some measurements on some of the other equipment I said, 'OK, this absolutely is the Pacific,” Hummel said.
Inside the boat is believed to be at least $5 million worth of gold, as well as many other valuable artifacts.
Last month, Rockfish was granted salvage rights to the ship in the United States District Court in Seattle.
However, anyone who can prove a family connection to an owner of the gold or any other item can come forward to attempt to claim it.
“It’s kind of like a process of probate,” said Hummel.
He says the team also wants to recover things like the steam machinery and paddles, which they believe are still intact.
"The state of preservation, I think, is going to be just really renowned with regards to this wreck,” he said.
Hummel, who’s also the director the not-for-profit Northwest Shipwreck Alliance, says he’d like to build a museum and hotel.
"We're just looking forward to telling about the ship and particularly about the lives of the people that were on board,” he said. “It was very important to Puget Sound, Canada and Victoria.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Most of the city is evacuating': Gridlock on Alberta highway after evacuation order in Fort McMurray
Four Fort McMurray neighbourhoods were ordered to evacuate on Tuesday as a wildfire gets closer to the city.
Biden administration moving ahead on US$1 billion arms package for Israel, AP sources say
The Biden administration has told key lawmakers it is sending a new package of more than US$1 billion in arms and ammunition to Israel, two congressional aides said Tuesday.
'Inappropriate' behaviour shuts down Dublin to New York City portal
Less than a week after two public sculptures featuring a livestream between Dublin, Ireland, and New York City debuted, 'inappropriate behaviour' in real-time interactions between people in the two cities has prompted a temporary shutdown.
Maximum payout for LifeLabs class-action drops from $150 estimate to $7.86
Canadian LifeLabs customers who filed an application for a class-action settlement began receiving their payments this week, though at a much lower amount than initially expected.
Sask. police seize 1.5M pieces of evidence, lay 60 more charges in child exploitation case
Saskatchewan RCMP have revealed that a historic sexual assault investigation has led to the discovery of alleged crimes against children dating back to 2005.
King Charles III unveils his first official portrait since his coronation
King Charles III has unveiled the first portrait of the monarch completed since he assumed the throne, a vivid image that depicts him in the bright red uniform of the Welsh Guards against a background of similar hues.
Full List Are these Canada's best restaurants? Annual top 100 list revealed
The annual list of Canada's top restaurants in the country was just released and here are the places that made the 2024 cut.
About 1,000 wildfires confirmed so far this year: Here's a quick look at the situation in Canada
Nearly 1,000 wildfires have burned across Canada so far this year. Here's an overview of the situation in Canada.
American sought after 'So I raped you' Facebook message detained in France on 2021 warrant
An American accused of sexually assaulting a Pennsylvania college student in 2013 and later sending her a Facebook message that said, 'So I raped you,' has been detained in France after a three-year search.