11/01/2006

An Interesting Find

Last week, the remains of a wooden ship were uncovered near the surf line about six miles east of Fort Morgan. After high tides and waves last week, residents said they noticed the bow and part of the outline of the vessel emerging from the sand. The ship is about 150 feet long and 36 feet wide at its widest point, based on what could be seen, said Jack Friend, author of "West Wind, Flood Tide: The Battle of Mobile Bay," after looking over the vessel Monday.
Friend cautioned against any speculation about the identity of the ship. "It's a fairly big vessel, but it's hard to say at this point," Friend said. "There have been shipwrecks in this area for 500 years and while it's tempting to say it's this ship or that, it's hard to know. We may not ever know exactly which vessel it was, but if we examine it carefully and go back and check what we find, we can get a pretty good idea of the era and some general information."
You never know what you'll find walking the beaches of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach.