NASH COUNTY, N.C. — A Nash County father and son discovered a 100-year-old ship buried on their land.
Tim and Ross Fisher told WTVD that recent drought has left the land so dry that pieces of wood and steel from the ship became exposed at the beginning of October.
[ALSO READ: Couple finds Civil War munitions at North Carolina beach]
The family of fossil hunters said they bought the 14 acres of swampland outside Nashville six years ago because it was the site of a former gold mine. Nashville is about a 20-minute drive from Rocky Mount.
According to WTVD, the discovery is believed to be the Robinson Gold Dredge, a vessel built in the early 1900s in New York then shipped in pieces by train to North Carolina.
Research shows it was rebuilt in Nash County and used to dredge the land for gold.
The Army Corps of Engineers is working with the Fishers to create a plan to preserve the ship and protect the ground around it.
The ship was reportedly buried under 3 feet of soil.
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