A ship named Arabia was traveling to St. Louis, Missouri on September 5, 1865. The route that the ship took was the fastest.
However, it was not the safest route to go. Arabia had 4,000 pairs of shoes, 22,000 feet of lumber and a 220 ton cargo, so the trip was even more dangerous. Arabia was set to the deliver those things to 16 towns, but it never made it to the destination.
The ship ended up hitting a snag and sinking. Fortunately, the people on the boat managed to escape and survive.
The ship was excavated back in 1988. What the people found on the ship was very interesting.
The food on the ship was bottled, and it was still intact. They also found dishes, which were still intact. Additionally, the ship had pre-Civil War artifacts. Most of the artifacts have been placed in the Arabian Steamboat Museum, which is located in Kansas City.
In 1987, David Hawley found river maps and newspaper reports that pointed to where the Arabia was located.
They were able to find Arabia using sample drilling and electronic magnetic testing.
They decided to dig for Arabia a few miles away from Kansas City, Missouri.
