This Jan. 2, 2018, file photo shows the remains of a ship that could be the Clotilda, the last slave ship documented to have delivered captive Africans to the United States. The Clotilda was burned after docking in Mobile, Ala., in 1860, long after the importation of humans was banned, and experts say the remains found by a reporter from Al.com could be what is left of the long-lost wreck. (Ben Raines/AL.com via AP, File)
Investigators have determined that an old wooden wreck found on the Alabama Gulf Coast isn’t the last slave ship to land in the United States, the Alabama Historical Commission said Monday.
…Even though the remains are not the Clotilda, the discovery shows the need for a wider study of shipwrecks on the coast, said James P. Delgado, a senior vice president of SEARCH, Inc., which participated in the examination.
“We believe that a comprehensive survey of the area with a range of modern technology, followed by an examination of each wreck encountered by knowledgeable professionals will be the best means to find the physical remains of Clotilda,” Delgado said in the statement.