A chunk of weather-beaten flotsam that washed up on a New York shoreline after Tropical Storm Ian last fall has piqued the interest of experts who say it is likely part of the SS Savannah, which ran aground and broke apart in 1821, two years after it became the first vessel to cross the Atlantic Ocean partly under steam power.
A chunk of weather-beaten flotsam that washed up on a New York shoreline last fall has piqued the interest of experts who say it is likely part of a famous shipwreck. The SS Savannah became the first vessel to cross the Atlantic Ocean partly under steam power in 1819. It ran aground off Long Island two years later. The roughly 13-square-foot piece of wreckage was spotted in October off Fire Island. It may be difficult to identify the wreckage with 100% certainty, but National Park Service officials say evidence points to the Savannah. Explorers have searched for signs of the Savannah for over two centuries.