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The 18th century ghost ship of St. Augustine isn't real, but others are

Posted on by Kennedy
The 18th century ghost ship of St. Augustine isn't real, but others are

On Wednesday, rumors began circulating online about an “18th century ghost ship” that washed ashore near St. Augustine after Hurricane Milton.

Regardless of the fact that Hurricane Milton made landfall on October 9th, exactly a week before the alleged sighting of the ghost ship, and regardless of the fact that Milton made landfall on the other side of the state, the story managed to stick in creeping into social media media platforms.

With more than 21,000 shares on the original post, it was clear that people had once again bitten the apple, only to realize it was an onion – in a satirical way, to be clear.

While the claim is certainly appropriate given that Halloween is quickly approaching, the unfortunate reality is that the source of the story, Casper Planet, is a Facebook page that posts funny (and completely fake) news in the same vein as The Onion writes.

In a follow-up story posted to its site Friday morning, titled: “Tourists outraged after discovering non-existent 18th-century pirate ship in Florida that wasn't real,” the site continued continue to enjoy the story.

“Shockwaves rippled through the tourist community this week as visitors visited Florida's famous beach, where the 'legendary' 17th-century pirate ship washed ashore after Hurricane Milton discovered an inconvenient truth: The ship does not exist,” it said Contribution.

Augustine's 17th Century Ghost Ship may not be real, but it's still an entertaining story

According to the Casper Planet post, the ghost ship “emerged from the depths of the ocean as the Category 4 storm (Hurricane Milton) churned the Atlantic, sending the ancient ship onto the beach.”

The Gulf of Mexico is technically part of the Atlantic Ocean, but Hurricane Milton made landfall as a Category 3 storm near Siesta Key on Florida's central west coast.

Its path essentially crossed Florida as it crossed the peninsula and moved eastward as it exited Florida's east coast as a minor hurricane near Brevard and Indian River counties, which is about 120 miles from the northernmost part of the area.

The satirical story used a false quote from a made-up marine archaeologist to increase the story's legitimacy.

“‘This is unprecedented. “To see a ship so old and in such good condition simply emerge from the sea during a hurricane is both fascinating and frightening,” said the completely fictional Dr. Andrew Clarke.

A real-life marine archaeologist sheds light on why there are no 18th-century ghost ships in Florida

NBC affiliate First Coast News spoke with Chuck Meide, director of the Lighthouse Archaeological Maritime Program at the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Museum, who further debunked the story by shedding some light on what happened in most of the shipwrecks.

His first problem with the story was the depiction of the ship. Although it appeared battered and battered, it was still intact. Most of the wood of a centuries-old ship would have been eaten by “creatures such as shipworms.”

In cases where part of the ship survives, usually only the lower part of the ship is left, which sinks beneath the seabed.

Hurricanes occasionally cause “ghost ships” to wash ashore

The plausibility of a hurricane causing a ghost ship to wash ashore actually has its origins in reality.

A 45-foot-long “ghost ship” washed ashore in Pensacola Beach on June 18 as Tropical Storm Alberto brewed in the Gulf of Mexico. The boat, named Lady Catherine III, was damaged but no one was on board, according to Weather.com.

It was eventually discovered that the boat belonged to a man from Texas, Michael Barlow, who had to abandon ship earlier this month after being caught in the storm.

In 2017, another 45-foot sailboat named Cuki became loose from its anchorage in Key West during Hurricane Irma. According to USA Today, the boat swam more than 300 miles up Florida's east coast before running ashore at Spessard Holland South Beach Park.

The boat remained at Spessard Holland South Beach Park for two years before being demolished. Its owner, Key West resident Jeffrey Sundwall, is incarcerated at the Jackson Correctional Institute in Malone, Florida. He was convicted last July of sexual battery, cocaine possession, attempted obstruction of a criminal investigation and 20 counts of possession of child pornography.

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