Washington, Oct 15 : Archaeologists have discovered what they claim is the oldest American shipwreck, in Alaska.

Torrent, a huge, square-rigged sailing vessel, struck a reef and sank near Port Graham in 1868, less than a year after the US purchased Alaska from Russia.

Aboard the vessel were women, children and a contingent of 130 US soldiers, some of whom were veterans of the Civil War. The soldiers were given the task of constructing the first US fort on the mainland of south central Alaska.

However, before they found a suitable building site, their vessel, a 576-ton bark piloted by civilians, struck a reef near Dangerous Cape, partly due to the absence on the deck of the captain who had been drinking.

The castaway crew and passengers then camped on an adjacent beach for 18 days awaiting rescue as the ship broke up offshore and sank.
 
In July this year, 139 years after the wreck, a team of divers unearthed remnants of the vessel after a two-year search at the site.

In addition to partly buried portions of the wooden hull (most of which had been swept away by powerful tides), the search team located the rudder, anchors, portholes, plumbing, pieces of rigging and two cannons.

“Like a jigsaw puzzle -- one piece at a time over the course of quite a number of dives -- we were able to find different distinctive pieces of wreckage,” said team leader and local shipwreck historian Steve Lloyd, co-owner of Title Wave Books in Anchorage.

“It's really quite an extraordinary wreck. Ultimately this would be a great (exhibit) for a maritime museum. It's a very important part of Alaska's history,” said Dave McMahan, an archaeologist in the state Office of History and Archaeology.

The archaeological study also revealed brass remnants of a mountain howitzer, a short-barrelled, large-calibre cannon on wheels used extensively in the Civil War.

As of now, there are plans to list preserve and protect the shipwreck so that it can be listed in the National Registry of Historic Places. (ANI)