‘Incredible find’: 19th-century shipwreck discovered during road project in Florida

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — Construction crews in northeastern Florida discovered a 19th-century shipwreck while working on a road project, state officials said.

>> Read more trending news

According to the Florida Department of Transportation, road crews unearthed the nearly intact wooden boat on Oct. 5 while working in St. Augustine near the Bridge of Lions on State Road A1A, WFLA-TV reported.

The crew was working on a draining improvement project that began earlier this year, according to the television station.

The vessel was found more than 8 feet below the ground, CNN reported. It was found in the “oldest continuously occupied settlement of European and African-American origin” in the United States according to St. Augustine’s website. St. Augustine was founded by Spanish explorers in 1565.

Archeologists with the state agency believe the boat, which is remarkably well-preserved, dates to the mid-to-late 1800s.

“We believe the vessel may have sunk unexpectedly and, over time, was silted in,” FDOT District 2 Secretary Greg Evans said in a statement, according to WFLA. “That is why it was preserved so well -- it was encapsulated in soil and mud, so there was no air contact for it to decay. It’s truly an incredible find.”

The FDOT was assisted in the excavation by the Southeastern Archaeological Research (SEARCH), a maritime archaeology team, WFLA reported.

James Delgado, the senior vice president at SEARCH who led the excavation, said it was believed the vessel was likely used to pull fish and shellfish from coastal waterways and the Atlantic Ocean during the 1800s, according to the television station.

“We believe the vessel to be a small single-masted, shallow-draft sailing craft of the 19th century that was likely used to extract fish and shellfish from coastal waterways and directly offshore,” Delgado said. “With a dedicated team, including support from the local community and the on-site construction team, we were able to extract the vessel in order to allow the important work on the community’s infrastructure to continue. We greatly appreciate FDOT’s commitment to cultural resources and in retaining SEARCH for this project.”

In an email to CNN, Delgado said that SEARCH expert Sam Turner was at the site when the tip of an excavator bucket exposed the vessel.

“Sam asked the operator to stop, got into the hole and gently scraped with his trowel to reveal a gently curving outline of what he immediately identified as the edge of the hull, with a displaced piece of timber from a frame,” Delgado said.

Delgado added that the boat probably measured 28 feet long. It was 19 feet long, he told CNN.

“The stern was missing when exposed by the excavation, consumed by marine organisms long ago,” Delgado said.