In the summer of 1988, Thompson and his team set out with the Arctic Discoverer, loaded with the ROV NEMO, and a barrage of high tech equipment to attempt their recovery of the Central America.

They were successful, and late in 1988, Thompson announced to the world that they had located the Central America. They eventually recovered around three tons of gold coins, gold bars and numerous artifacts from the wreck site. Of course, there is never a happy ending. There were lawsuits filed, everyone wanted a piece of the action. Over the next few years, into the 1990s, the Arctic Discoverer spent many months at sea working at the wreck site while court battles waged on back on the mainland. After almost ten years in court, the Columbus America Discovery Group was awarded 92% of the recovered items, gold and artifacts. Unfortunately this came at a cost of millions in legal fees, investors waiting to recover their investment, the crew waiting for their money, one problem after another finally took its toll, and recovery operations were eventually suspended at the wreck site. The investors would not give anymore money, and now new court battles were being waged, against Tommy Thompson.

In May of 2013, the US Federal Marshals auctioned off the R/V Arctic Discoverer to a local salvage company. The ship had been sitting quietly at a dock in Green Cove Springs, Florida for several years. Her fate was sealed, the most famous treasure hunting ship in US history was now headed to the scrap yard!

For all the bad that happened, a lot of good came from this adventure. Because of the ideas and dreams of Tommy Thompson, history was made. Thompson had successfully done what no one had ever done before, he located and recovered the most famous ship wreck in American history. He had successfully conducted the first deep ocean recovery of a shipwreck using the high tech Arctic Discoverer and the ROV NEMO to do the work. His find and recovery of the Central America was considered "The Greatest Treasure Ever Found" according to Life Magazine. Christies Auction said that the gold from the Central America was considered to be "Americas Crown Jewels".

This was not just a treasure hunt. Thompson and his crew did not go down and scoop up all the gold and dump it on the deck to get rich. They preserved the history of the wreck site by meticulously removing each piece of gold and artifacts very carefully to preserve them. They also discovered several new species of deep ocean life forms never seen before, including a new species of large octopus. Some of these new species were later used in cancer research. They recorded the first ever sighting of a 21 foot Greenland shark at nearly 8,000 feet, before that, no one knew they lived at such depths. The promise of gold attracted the investors to finance the trip, but Thompson's vision was not getting rich as a treasure hunter, he wanted to prove that deep ocean recovery was possible, and he did that. The story of the SS Central America, the R/V Arctic Discoverer and Tommy Thompson and his team has been documented by the History Channel on their 'History's Mysteries' show 'Ship of Gold'. It is also documented in the books 'Americas Lost Treasure' by Tommy Thompson and 'Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea' by Gary Kindler. You can check out these books and others related to this expedition at my Book Store.

It is estimated that 15-18 tons of gold still sits on the wreck site, waiting for the next adventurous person to come along and find it.

The last word on Thompson's whereabouts from his lawyer to a judge were,
"My client is out to sea." I say, take Steve Millers advice and
"Take the Money and Run"