Last autumn, a four-metre-long shipwreck washed up on Fire Island when Hurricane Ian struck the Atlantic coast of America. At the time, experts were still unable to identify the fragment.
"Our observations suggest the wreckage is from a relatively small ship constructed around 1820," National Park Service (NPS) said in a written statement.
Indirect evidence suggests that the find may be a fragment of the ship Savannah, which was wrecked in 1821. Since then, researchers have not been able to find anything that can be unequivocally linked to the famous ship.
The wreckage's wooden pegs driven into the ship's planks to secure them together, and spikes, dated back to 1820, suggest a ship of roughly 30 meters.
"While we cannot positively identify the wreck in question as the Savannah, we have not yet been able to eliminate it from consideration," NPS said. "The Savannah is one of the most well-documented and researched wrecks of Fire Island, and nothing yet contradicts our findings."
The Savannah is an American sailing and steam vessel, which was started to be built in 1818. The following spring, the Savannah made her maiden voyage. The ship became well known after crossing the Atlantic Ocean from the USA to Great Britain to the Russian Empire and back again.