
GULF SHORES, Ala. (AP) – The pounding surf and currents from Hurricane Isaac on a remote spit of Alabama shoreline has again revealed the wreckage of a schooner that ran aground in 1923, delighting curious tourists and locals.
The schooner Rachel and her eight-man crew ran aground near historic Fort Morgan on Oct. 17, 1923, during a tropical storm. The men were headed to Mobile after a stop in Cuba. While the men aboard the Rachel survived, others on nearby schooners weren’t so lucky.
“A tropical storm much like Tropical Storm Isaac that we just went through was hitting the Gulf Coast and a large number of these schooners were out in the Gulf. One was sunk just off Perdido Key and the crew was lost,” said Michael Bailey, historian for the Fort Morgan Historical society.