closely a century after she was discovered aground off the coast of Cape Hatteras, the story of the Carroll A. Deering remains one of history ‘s most celebrated maritime mysteries. It may not surprise you to learn that The Gray Man is n’t the only eerie narrative to come out of North and South Carolina ‘s beloved barrier islands. closely 300 miles north of Pawleys Island and its benevolent shadow figure, the rocky sandbars off the coast of Cape Hatteras have their own stories to tell. One in particular, the unsolved mystery of the Carroll A. Deering, has captivated locals for generations.
about a hundred after she was discovered, hull run aground on the punic rocks of Diamond Shoals and with her crowd vanished, the story of the Carroll A. Deering remains one of the most celebrated ghost ship tales in nautical history. And the speculation continues to this day .
Carroll A Deering Before
credit : Wikimedia Commons At 255-feet long, 44-feet wide, and weighing 1,879 tons, the Carroll A. Deering was, by all accounts, a very big cargo transport. And she was in excellent determine when she set sail from Norfolk, Virginia on August 22, 1920. Onboard was an experienced captain, a crew of 10 men bound and a cargo of coal tie for Rio de Janeiro. They reported delivering their cargo a few months late and began their journey home in December. On January 29, 1921, the Carrol A. Deering was spotted by a lightship custodian aboard the Cape Lookout Lightship in North Carolina. The Carrol A. Deering hailed the lightship and a sailor reported that the ship had lost its anchors. The lightship custodian would by and by testify that the crowd of the Carroll A. Deering appeared to be “ milling about ” suspiciously on deck.
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Two days later, on the good morning of January 31, a member of the Cape Hatteras Coast Guard Station spotted the abandoned schooner aground on Diamond Shoals. Her sails were placid set, and her lifeboats were missing. More distressing still, was the fact that her gang was nowhere to be seen and it appeared as if they had left in a rush. WATCH: “The Gray Man,” South Carolina Ghost Said to Warn Locals Before Hurricanes, Appears Ahead of Florence due to crude waters, surfboard boats were unable to reach the wreck until February 4. It was then that it was confirmed that the Carroll A. Deering had been abandoned, and her crowd had vanished. Their personal belongings, navigational equipment, papers, and the ship ‘s anchors were besides missing. food in the galley was set out like it was being prepared for the adjacent day ‘s meal. The FBI investigation that followed was unable to find a trace of the crew or the embark ‘s logs.
Attempts were made to tow the transport ‘s wreckage, but ultimately, she was determined to be a luck and on March 4, 1921 the Carroll A. Deering was destroyed and bury. wooden timbers from the schooner finally washed ashore on Hatteras Island, and were used by locals to build houses. The theories about what happened to the doomed Carroll A. Deering are bountiful. many suggest piracy, while others point to a mutiny. Some even suggest it has something to do with the fact that it passed through a retentive reach of the Bermuda Triangle on its travel. But what truly happened has been lost to the sea everlastingly. today, pieces of the Carroll A. Deering, including her bell and capstan, are on display at the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum in Hatteras .