Experts say that because of the rise and ebb of water levels in the lake, it reveals items hidden or buried in the area.
A more than 100-year-old shipwreck has been discovered in Utah's Great Salt Lake following a recent storm, officials said. The vessel was believed to have sunk in the mid-1880s.
The Great Salt Lake State Park announced the news Tuesday, explaining that they believe it was an “old steel boat that probably dates back to the turn of the 20th century.”
“Great Salt Lake Storms can be ominous but also fascinating. There has been boating on the Great Salt Lake since the mid-1880’s. Some of these boats experienced tragic endings only to be buried in the sand by storms. But storms can also uncover them as the most recent one did by the Great Salt Lake Marina,” the park said in a statement.
“It is most likely a working boat, which puts it as a possibility that it was a working boat from the railroad fleet,” Great Salt Lake Park Manager, Dave Shearer, told local news station KTVX.
Southern Pacific Railroad had used boats in the area in the early 1900's to help transport equipment. The Great Salt Lake is the world's 8th largest terminal lake, meaning it was closed off and has no outlet. As a result, the water can get salty.
It was not totally unheard of for ships to be wrecked in Great Salt Lake. Experts say that because of the rise and ebb of water levels in the lake, items hidden or buried in the area are sometimes revealed.
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