Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea

The riveting true adventure and discovery of a gold-laden shipwreck and the scientific genius who recovered its treasure.

In September 1857, the S.S. Central America, carrying 500 passengers and tons of gold from the California mountains, sunk in a hurricane 200 miles off the Carolina coast. Lost in legend for more than a century, the tragic story of this shipwrecked steamer resurfaced in 1989, when Tommy Thompson, an ocean engineer, sailed into Norfolk harbour with over ten tons of gold. Using oceanography, computer science and information theory to sift through historical records and penetrate the deep sea, Thompson's team recovered mint-state coins, antique bars and sparkling gold dust from 8,000 feet below the surface of the sea -- proving everyone wrong who said it couldn't be done and establishing the first real working presence on the deep ocean floor. It was the greatest treasure ever found, with a dollar value currently estimated in the hundreds of millions.

Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea is a copiously researched historical record of the initial disaster of the S.S. Central America, as well as a fascinating chronicle of technological breakthroughs. Finally, it is an incredibly exciting adventure story of how the Columbus-America Group battled massive storms, scientific challenges and intrusive salvagers on the open seas to find this fabulous lost treasure.

Gary Kinder is the bestselling author of Victim and Light Years. He has been researching this story since 1987, two years before the S.S. Central America's treasure was recovered. Kinder was aboard the group's research vessel when they first announced their find. Kinder lives in Seattle.