The Arctic Discoverer

The Arctic Discoverer

According to arcticdiscoverer.com, the R/V Arctic Discoverer began her career in 1958 as the A.T. Cameron, a Canadian Fishing Research Vessel and Icebreaker. Over the years, her name was changed to the Arctic Ranger. In the winter of 1987-1988, the Columbus America Discovery Group purchased the ship. The boat was outfitted with deep ocean sonar equipment and was one of the first ships to carry a GPS positioning system. The 180-foot vessel was then renamed the R/V Arctic Discoverer.

The Ship of Gold

In 1857, the S.S. Central America, aka “The Ship of Gold,” was a 280-foot steamship bound for New York. It carried 21 tons of gold and over 550 passengers. Back then, weather forecasting wasn’t very scientific. Little was known about hurricanes and predicting whether a breeze coming through would subside or turn into a storm.

On September 9, a breeze began kicking up swells. There was no alarm since the ship was large and well-equipped for one, even if a storm was coming. As hours passed, the wind intensified, and the ship was in the middle of a hurricane by the following day. The vessel remained watertight and operational until September 11, when it began to take on water through the drive shaft and broken or open lights.

The following day, The Marine, a vessel with ten crew members and its captain, appeared over the horizon and began rescue efforts. 153 lives were saved, but in the end, the S.S. Central America sank off the coast of South Carolina, along with about 450 people and 21 tons of gold. This loss contributed to the Panic of 1857.

The Expedition

In the summer of 1988, Thompson embarked on a mission to locate the lost treasure of the SS Central America. His efforts paid off when he successfully recovered three tons of gold bars and coins valued at approximately $50 million. However, the discovery ignited a legal frenzy. Descendants of the insurance companies that had paid out claims over 130 years earlier filed lawsuits to claim their share. A total of 39 insurance companies brought legal action against the Columbus-America Discovery Group.

Over the next two years, the R/V Arctic Discoverer continued its operations at the shipwreck site, uncovering gold and fascinating new species of octopus and sharks. Despite their work’s scientific and historical significance, the group faced nearly a decade of intense legal battles and mounting legal fees. Ultimately, the Columbus-America Discovery Group was awarded 92% of the treasure, with the remaining portion allocated to investors.

In 2000, Tommy Thompson secured a buyer and sold 532 gold bars and thousands of coins to a gold marketing group for $50 million, but neither his investors nor crew had seen any of it. In 2009, he had an offshore account valued at $4.16 million in the Cook Islands. Although multiple books have been written about the expedition, the amount of gold recovered is unknown, but it’s estimated to be worth about $150 million.

Tommy Thompson’s Arrest, Conviction, and Incarceration

In 2013, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio issued an arrest warrant for Thompson for civil contempt due to his failure to appear as directed. Subsequently, in 2014, the same court issued an additional arrest warrant for Thompson for criminal contempt. Deputy United States Marshal Mark Stroh of the Southern District of Ohio was tasked with the investigation. Thompson remained a fugitive until his apprehension by U.S. Marshals in 2015 at a West Palm Beach hotel, where he was found in the company of fellow fugitive and girlfriend Alison Louise Antekeier. They had been living on cash and staying at the hotel for $200 a night.

In April 2015, Thompson entered a guilty plea for failing to appear in court for a prior case. Subsequently, he received a two-year jail sentence and was fined $250,000. The plea agreement required Thompson to disclose the location of 500 gold coins, a request he declined, citing short-term memory loss as the reason for his inability to remember their whereabouts. Consequently, since December 2015, Thompson has been held in indefinite detention for contempt of court until he complies with the required information. The judge fined him $1000 daily until he cooperated with the plea deal.

In November 2018, Thompson agreed to surrender 500 gold coins salvaged from the wreck of Central America but backtracked, claiming he could not access the missing coins. U.S. Marshals believe Thompson buried the gold after finding empty tubes at his abandoned mansion. 

On November 28, 2018, a jury awarded investors $19.4 million in compensatory damages. This included $3.2 million to the Dispatch Printing Company, which had invested $1 million of the total $22 million, and $16.2 million to the court-appointed receiver on behalf of the other investors.

On December 19, 2020, The New York Times and several other publications released retrospective articles commemorating the fifth anniversary of his conviction. Steven Tigges, the legal representative of an investor who filed a lawsuit against Thompson, indicated that Thompson could anticipate being released upon surrendering the missing funds. As of August 2024, Thompson remains incarcerated. Federal authorities believe he will never reveal the location of the gold.

In 2024, a three-part mini-documentary titled Cursed Gold: A Shipwreck Scandal aired about Thompson. It is available on Hulu and Disney+.

Future of the Arctic Discoverer

As for the ship, U.S. Marshals auctioned it off on May 11, 2013, and sold it for $50,000. Salvaging crews have found documents, ship logs, photographs, and other artifacts on board. The company has begun selling items on eBay, including the ship’s bell, speaking tube, and navigational lights, and will continue to dismantle the ship and sell the parts.

By 2024, the interior had been gutted, and little of value remained aboard the ship. The Arctic Discoverer is still there, listing against the old docks, awaiting its sinking for an artificial reef.

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