Real-life Nathan Drake found the ‘Ship of Gold,’ now he is out of jail, but the treasure is still missing

Thomas G. Thompson, the deep-sea explorer who discovered the legendary “Ship of Gold,” was released from prison last week after serving a decade behind bars for contempt of court. He had refused to reveal the whereabouts of missing gold coins, leading to a lengthy legal battle that kept him incarcerated for years.

Thompson, now 73, made history in 1988 when he located the S.S. Central America off the coast of South Carolina. Per the New York Times, this steamship, known affectionately as the “Ship of Gold,” sank in 1857 during a hurricane, carrying 450 passengers and an incredible bounty of California gold coins, bars, and nuggets, collectively worth millions.

Thompson got into treasure hunting as a means to pursue deep-sea oceanic studies. As a science and tech contractor at the Battelle Memorial Institute in Columbus, he put in the hours to identify a suitable treasure to hunt. He eventually set his sights on the S.S. Central America and convinced approximately 250 investors and insurers, who wanted part of the treasure, to back his hunt. A California coin dealer called it “the greatest treasure in American history.”

The retrieval did not go as planned for his investors

Things took a turn in 2005 when some of the investors who had backed Thompson’s ambitious expedition sued him. They claimed they hadn’t received any money from a $50 million sale of some of the treasure. Thompson then went into seclusion in Florida, and by 2012, a warrant was issued for his arrest after he failed to appear in court.

When they finally found him three years later, a judge held Thompson in contempt. He was sent to prison for refusing to cooperate in the recovery of 500 missing coins from the loot. Thompson stated that these particular coins weren’t actual treasure but were commemorative “restrikes” from a gold bar that was part of his payment. It had since been turned over to a trustee in Belize around 2009, and he had no idea where it was.

Representative Abraham Hamadeh (R-AZ) championed Thompson’s release. Hamadeh expressed his belief that Thompson “was imprisoned for over 10 years without proper due process on a civil case,” adding that he thinks Thompson’s “vast experience could be crucial in future deep-sea explorations.” 

His contempt order was terminated in 2024, but he was only released in March 2026, because of ‘clerical errors.’ He now faces a year of supervised release and a hefty $250,000 in fines. Despite all the legal wrangling, the mystery of the missing 500 gold coins remains, though his lawyer asserts that “every last piece of gold dust was accounted for” from the main recovery.

It is insane to think of treasure like this being found outside of movies, books, or games. Most stories are usually just about thrifters who find Roman coins or lost American banknotes in the discard bin at Goodwill. Hey… maybe that is my way into becoming a treasure hunter too.