Forgotten Ships That Disappeared Without A Trace

There is something about when something disappears that's enough to fascinate so many of us. Not only does it usually mean that people have gone without a trace, too, but there are so many unanswered questions. What ended up with it? Where did the people go? Did anyone make it out alive?

While plenty of times, these things are eventually found, there are the ones that never come back. Just take ships. After all, the ocean is a big place, and once the water takes over, there's usually nothing anyone can do. Now, the forgotten ships that disappeared without a trace still leave huge holes in history with questions that might never be answered.

The Merchant Royal sank with millions of dollars of cargo onboard

In 1641, the Merchant Royal was tasked with taking 400 bars of Mexican silver, 100,000 pounds of gold, and a host of precious jewelers from the New World to Spain with Captain John Limbrey at the helm. Sadly, plans changed when the Merchant Royal entered English waters, and the weather turned. That, teamed with the fact the ship's pumps broke and they couldn't get the water off, meant the crew had little choice but to abandon ship and take refuge on the Merchant Royal's sister ship, the Dover Merchant, which had been sailing in tandem with the boat. The crew looked on as the Merchant Royal disappeared under the water somewhere around Land's End, but that's where things get strange. With so many valuable items onboard, there have been huge missions to uncover the wreckage - but nothing has ever been found. Since dubbed the "Eldorado of the Seas," an anchor believed to be from the ship was discovered in 2019. One mission also thought they found the wreckage in 2007 when they uncovered 500,000 pieces of silver and gold, but this was actually the wreckage of a Spanish ship instead.

The Baychimo has been spotted several times since it disappeared

The Baychimo might be one of the strangest disappearing ships of all time, largely because it could still be sailing the world. It started as a German trading vessel before it was given to Great Britain following WWI. From there, it made several voyages between Scotland and Canada to boost trade with local Inuit tribes - until 1931. The Baychimo was laden with furs when ice floes surrounded the ship, effectively locking it in place. The crew had to escape and travel across the ice before returning days later to try and rescue the Baychimo and its cargo. After a month of somehow surviving the elements, a blizzard meant the crew lost sight of the ship, with most assuming it had finally sunk. A week later, an Inuit hunter spotted the ship, and the crew raced back to collect their cargo before the captain declared it was too damaged and had to be abandoned. Most assumed the Baychimo fell apart and sank, but it's been spotted a handful of times floating through the Arctic. Amazingly, the most recent sighting came in 1969, 37 years after the Baychimo was first abandoned.

The Witchcraft disappeared into the Bermuda Triangle in just 19 minutes

In December 1967, Father Patrick Horgan and his friend Dan Burack decided to take the 23-foot luxury yacht the Witchcraft out to see the holiday lights along the coast of Miami. Sadly, after traveling just one mile, the pair came into difficulty and had to call the Miami Coast Guard. The official later stated Dan seemed incredibly calm, assuming they had a floatation decision that made the ship unsinkable. However, when the Coast Guard arrived 19 minutes later, the yacht was gone. With no debris or sign of Patrick and Dan, they spent six days searching for anything that could answer what happened to the Witchcraft. Unfortunately, nothing was found, and the ship and its two passengers became the next victim of the Bermuda Triangle.

The Patriot has sparked many theories about its mysterious end

Theodosia Burr Alston was the daughter of Aaron Burr, but things weren't always easy for the socialite. In 1812, Theodosia lost her only son, and sick with grief, she boarded the Patriot in South Carolina with plans to visit her dad in New York. However, no one has ever learned why the ship didn't arrive at its intended location, as no sign of the crew or ship has ever been found. There have been several theories about what happened, such as the Patriot being captured by pirates who made Theodosia walk the plank or that it was accidentally sunk in the War of 1812. Then there's the claim a Karankawa chief rescued a woman who washed onto the shore after a shipwreck and gave him a locket inscribed with the name "Theodosia" shortly before she lost her life. Still, whatever truly happened to the Patriot remains a mystery.

The forgotten ships that disappeared without a trace have certainly sparked plenty of theories, but one thing's for sure: we may never get an answer as to what happened to these ships and their crew all those years ago.