‘Mystery shipwreck’ identified 91 years after it exploded off NC coast, explorers say

A large “mystery shipwreck” sitting 60 nautical miles off Cape Fear, North Carolina, has been confirmed to be a tanker that exploded in 1932, according to the Association of Underwater Explorers.

The vessel, in about 800 feet of water, has long been called the “Snowy Grouper Wreck” due to lack of an identity, the association says.

“Based on the location, dimensions, and numerous diagnostic features found on the wreck site (the association) now believes the ‘Snowy Grouper Wreck’ is the tanker Doris Kellogg,” the association said in a news release.

“The existence of Doris Kellogg was well known to other researchers but was discounted due to believed irreconcilable issues with features observed on the wreck.”

Marine biologist and underwater explorer Michael Barnette reports he found “overlooked information” on the wreck while working on Season 2 of The HISTORY Channel’s series “The Bermuda Triangle: Into Cursed Waters.”

That data revealed the 390-foot-long Doris Kellogg had undergone extensive renovations while being converted from a freighter to a tanker in 1921, and those changes account for why the charred hull doesn’t easily resemble the original ship, the association said.

“On the afternoon of December 29, 1932, while steaming north off the South Carolina coast, Doris Kellogg was rocked by an explosion aft of amidships that engulfed the stern of the ship in fire,” the association says.

“While vessels rushed to her aid and were able to rescue her entire crew, the burning Doris Kellogg was left to drift northward in the Gulf Stream. ... The smoldering tanker ultimately slipped beneath the waves on December 31, 1932.”

The crew of about 40 people was rescued from three lifeboats by the S. S. Delaware Sun, NOAA’s Office of Response and Restoration reports.

NOAA says the wreck’s location had never been confirmed due to “the large degree of inaccuracy” over where it finally sank. The association notes the “Snowy Grouper Wreck” is “within four nautical miles” of where the Doris Kellogg is believed to have gone down.

The missing shipwreck has long been a matter of concern to environmentalists due to the possibility it might still contain a large amount of crude oil that could leak to the surface, NOAA says.

It is located within a 150-square-nautical mile Marine Protected Area established in 2009 “to protect a portion of the long-lived, ‘deep water’ snapper grouper species such as snowy grouper, speckled hind, and blueline tilefish,” according to the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council.

The discovery of the Doris Kellogg may be included in episode 12 of the upcoming season of “The Bermuda Triangle: Into Cursed Waters,” which premieres Nov. 14, at 10 PM Eastern Standard Time.

This story was originally published October 30, 2023 at 1:39 PM with the headline "‘Mystery shipwreck’ identified 91 years after it exploded off NC coast, explorers say."