Salvagers Receive 90% of Treasure; Insurers, 10%
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Salvagers of a ship that sank in 1857 with three tons of gold aboard were awarded 90 percent of the treasure by a Federal judge today, with only 10 percent going to a group of insurance companies that claimed ownership. Earlier estimates had put the value of the treasure at $1 billion, but the judge, Richard B. Kellam of Federal District Court, said it was worth far less. The Columbus-America Discovery Group, an Ohio investment syndicate, has spent $30 million on the salvage effort so far and has recovered more than a ton of gold. But Judge Kellam said the recovered gold was worth only about $21 million. The steamship Central America sank 136 years ago in a hurricane off the South Carolina coast. Of the paddlewheel steamer’s 578 passengers, 153 survived. Many of the passengers were California prospectors traveling to New York with gold to head off a banking crisis. Shortly after the vessel sank, the insurance companies paid off at least $1.2 million in claims for the lost gold. In 1987, Columbus-America found the muddy wreck 8,000 feet under water. It has been using a remote-controlled robot to salvage the ship and has recovered a 62-pound gold brick and thousands of $20 Double Eagle gold pieces. More : query.nytimes.com |