Discovery
Six decades later, contractors performing deep-tow marine surveys for Shell International Exploration and Production encountered a large shipwreck about 45 nautical miles (83 km) south-southeast of the entrance to the Mississippi River, in the Mississippi Canyon area. Based on survey data and historical information, marine archaeologists identified the wreck as the Puritan. C&C Technologies was hired by Shell to conduct further investigations, which began in 2002 and continued for several years. Visual inspections by Sonsub's ROV vessel HOS Dominator found the hull mostly intact, with moderate superstructure damage. Video footage from the Puritan's resting place at 1,965 meters depth shows the "ALCOA PURITAN, NEW YORK" legend on the stern of the ship.
The C&C work formed part of a larger project concerning archaeological and biological analysis of World War II shipwrecks in the Gulf of Mexico, and particularly their artificial reef effect in deep water. Other vessels included in the study were the oil tankers Virginia, Halo, and Gulfpenn; the German U-boat U-166; the steamer Robert E. Lee; and the Anona (a steam yacht, repurposed as a freighter). All were concluded to be eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places, for both their historical and archaeological import.
Read more about this topic: SS Alcoa Puritan (1941)
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