Much of the gold mined in California was transported by ship from California to Panama City, and then across the isthmus to Chagres or - once thePanama Railway was completed in 1855 - to Aspinwall, now known as Colon.

From there it was shipped to New York.

For this reason, the SS Central America was launched in 1852 by the United States Mail Steamship Company, also transporting mail, other cargo andpassengers, between New York and Aspinwall.

Between 1852 and 1857 it transported one-third of the entire California Gold Rush output. Each leg of the voyage typically took between 19 and 24days.

On September 3, 1857, the SS Central America left Aspinwall in Panama carrying 476 passengers, 102 crew members and gold.

On September 10 it encountered a hurricane off the coast of the Carolinas, and a day later sprung a leak.

By 8pm on September 12 it had sunk, about 160 miles east of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, drowning a total of 426 passengers and crew.

To read the complete article, see:
Whatwas the SS Central America - or 'Ship of Gold' - and why did it sink?(www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/11376701/What-was-the-SS-Central-America-or-Ship-of-Gold-and-why-did-it-sink.html)