For those interested the S.S. Central America went down off Charleston, SC and understand the Thompson crew upon the treasure discovery celebrated at Henry's on Market Street, Charleston.
An open essay for the readers of E-Sylum:
The readers of this forum are an on-line community of intelligent and discerning numismatists, many of whom have a deeper interest in the S.S. Central America treasure than average folks. The popular press, newspapers and wire stories, have been the only recent sources for information about the ongoing court cases and legal entanglements involving this great treasure and the people involved with it. These sources are flawed, through the hasty process by which they operate, and by the bias of presenting almost exclusively one side of the story. In the course of years the “news” has allowed misconceptions and inaccuracies to drift into the discussions. As someone intimate with the subject, and yet not embroiled in the legal brouhaha, I offer the following perspective, in hopes that this community might enjoy a more complete understanding of a very complex subject.
I was Tommy Thompson’s friend. I accept that readers might judge that there is bias on my own part because of this fact, but I would like to state that it is a different bias, and so some form of balance may result.
Background:
The numismatic world has followed with interest the continuing legal cases involving Tommy Thompson and the business of the S.S. Central America treasure. Thompson’s reputation received an additional blow this week when U.S. Marshals began posting his image and that of his assistant on digital billboard “wanted posters” in Columbus, Ohio, the SSCA Project’s hometown, and in Vero Beach, Florida, Thompson’s last known address. He has been a fugitive since last August, when U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus Jr. issued an arrest warrant for him for contempt of court, after he failed to appear in Sargus’s court for several years.
Another legal proceeding, a state case in the Franklin County (Columbus,) Ohio Court of Common Pleas, contests Thompson and his companies’ actions and inactions in the course of over two decades of business. Over most of the course of these lawsuits, a period of several years, I was perfectly happy to be uninvolved, since the cases are reminders about some of the worst human qualities, and just how tricky the business of treasure finding can be. It is instructive to realize that Thompson’s companies have been involved in active court cases for 25 of the past 28 years.
For those of you who may not know, it was my responsibility, a great personal honor, and a truly wonderful experience to be the caretaker of this treasure during the recovery and post-recovery phases of its journey from the seafloor to market and display. Originally, I was a young geologist, Tommy Thompson’s neighbor and friend. In 1983 I began my involvement with the S.S. Central America . I became the “Chief Scientist and Historian” for Columbus-America Discovery Group, which was the operating entity headed by Thompson, and which was the discoverer and salvor of the S.S. Central America treasure. In that capacity I was present on board during all the recovery of the treasure. As “Mission Coordinator,” I worked with the engineers to plan the dives, and I applied my knowledge and research of the history of this remarkable shipwreck and treasure to realize the project’s goals.
Finish reading>> BOB EVANS ON THE DISPOSITION OF THE S.S. CENTRAL AMERICA TREASURE
BOB EVANS ON THE DISPOSITION OF THE S.S. CENTRAL AMERICA TREASURE
E-Sylum reader and contributor Bob Evans was the Chief Scientist and Historian for the Columbus-America Discovery Group, the team that recovered the fabulous gold treasure from the wreck of the S.S. Central America.
Lawsuits surrounding the company and its founder Tommy Thompson have driven a number of one-sided accounts in the media, some of which have been reported here in E-Sylum. Bob submitted the following open essay to our community of numismatists. It's lengthy, but there's no shortage of virtual paper and ink in cyberspace. What follows is a fascinating behind-the-scenes account of the finding, inventorying, and ultimate disposition of the recovered treasure. Thanks! -Editor
Lawsuits surrounding the company and its founder Tommy Thompson have driven a number of one-sided accounts in the media, some of which have been reported here in E-Sylum. Bob submitted the following open essay to our community of numismatists. It's lengthy, but there's no shortage of virtual paper and ink in cyberspace. What follows is a fascinating behind-the-scenes account of the finding, inventorying, and ultimate disposition of the recovered treasure. Thanks! -Editor
The readers of this forum are an on-line community of intelligent and discerning numismatists, many of whom have a deeper interest in the S.S. Central America treasure than average folks. The popular press, newspapers and wire stories, have been the only recent sources for information about the ongoing court cases and legal entanglements involving this great treasure and the people involved with it. These sources are flawed, through the hasty process by which they operate, and by the bias of presenting almost exclusively one side of the story. In the course of years the “news” has allowed misconceptions and inaccuracies to drift into the discussions. As someone intimate with the subject, and yet not embroiled in the legal brouhaha, I offer the following perspective, in hopes that this community might enjoy a more complete understanding of a very complex subject.
I was Tommy Thompson’s friend. I accept that readers might judge that there is bias on my own part because of this fact, but I would like to state that it is a different bias, and so some form of balance may result.
Background:
The numismatic world has followed with interest the continuing legal cases involving Tommy Thompson and the business of the S.S. Central America treasure. Thompson’s reputation received an additional blow this week when U.S. Marshals began posting his image and that of his assistant on digital billboard “wanted posters” in Columbus, Ohio, the SSCA Project’s hometown, and in Vero Beach, Florida, Thompson’s last known address. He has been a fugitive since last August, when U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus Jr. issued an arrest warrant for him for contempt of court, after he failed to appear in Sargus’s court for several years.
Another legal proceeding, a state case in the Franklin County (Columbus,) Ohio Court of Common Pleas, contests Thompson and his companies’ actions and inactions in the course of over two decades of business. Over most of the course of these lawsuits, a period of several years, I was perfectly happy to be uninvolved, since the cases are reminders about some of the worst human qualities, and just how tricky the business of treasure finding can be. It is instructive to realize that Thompson’s companies have been involved in active court cases for 25 of the past 28 years.
For those of you who may not know, it was my responsibility, a great personal honor, and a truly wonderful experience to be the caretaker of this treasure during the recovery and post-recovery phases of its journey from the seafloor to market and display. Originally, I was a young geologist, Tommy Thompson’s neighbor and friend. In 1983 I began my involvement with the S.S. Central America . I became the “Chief Scientist and Historian” for Columbus-America Discovery Group, which was the operating entity headed by Thompson, and which was the discoverer and salvor of the S.S. Central America treasure. In that capacity I was present on board during all the recovery of the treasure. As “Mission Coordinator,” I worked with the engineers to plan the dives, and I applied my knowledge and research of the history of this remarkable shipwreck and treasure to realize the project’s goals.
Finish reading>> BOB EVANS ON THE DISPOSITION OF THE S.S. CENTRAL AMERICA TREASURE
