By LOGAN HAWKES Much has been written about the 1554 Spanish “Plate Fleet”, a four-ship flotilla of treasure laden ships that sailed from Veracruz harbor April 9 that year headed for Havana, Cuba, and eventually to Spain. We know from historical records that the four ships, the San Andrés, the San Estaban, the Santa Maria de Yciar, and the Espirutu Santo, were unescorted by Spanish gun ships, contrary to the usual custom. The four ships had been harbored in Veracruz for nearly a year and weather had prevented a rendezvous with a war ship escort. Apparently the ruling Spanish Viceroy in Veracruz felt as though the Gulf waters at the time were void of serious pirating efforts - a situation that would change rapidly in the following years - and had issued a writ of departure in hopes of getting the flotilla to Havana quickly where they could meet up with an awaiting escort. But only one of the four ships ever reached Havana, the San Andrés, which later sunk off the coast of Portugal before reaching the Spanish mainland. The other three were caught in a rare ‘Norther’ that forced them onto shallow sand bars just off the coast of South Padre Island where they broke apart in the swirling, pounding surf. The sunken ships were laden will all types of cargo, from the usual and mundane - like sugar, spices and animal skins - to cargo of great worth; a little gold and a lot of pure silver from the mines of the Mexican mountains. All told, 87,000 pounds of precious metal were aboard the three ships that sunk. A year later, Spanish salvage efforts managed to reclaim about 36,000 pounds of the metal treasure. The rest was lost to the temperamental Gulf. The story of three sunken ships and the fate of 300-plus survivors is also well documented and offers a great read about historic maritime adventure. According to one account, only about 30 survivors lived to tell the story. Another and conflicting report indicates only one man survived the shipwrecks. Of the three ships that were lost, two have been uncovered down through the years, though much of the cargo remains buried in the depths of the Gulf and/or Laguna Madre Bay. But one of the treasure-heavy ships remains lost today, and poses a bit of a mystery to both historians and treasure seekers. The Espirutu Santo - or Holy Spirit - according to written history was lost in the same storm as its companions, the San Andrés and the San Estaban. But its remains, and its treasures, have never been found. While it is more than possible that the violent Gulf surf broke the ship into small pieces that were later swallowed by the drifting, swirling sands on the Gulf’s bottom, a few old yarns survived those historical days, especially among the more superstitious of Spain’s seaworthy mariners, that say the ship, in spite of being devoured by the sea, had been seen from time to time years later, a ghostly apparition perhaps, sailing the warm waters of the Gulf just offshore of South Padre Island. As legend has it, a ship favored enough by the Spanish Crown to bear the name “Espirutu Santo”, was a sailing vessel that deserved to be spared from the cruelties of Nature. Though there is no written evidence of it, a few old stories say the ship had weathered more than one storm, and had out run and outmaneuvered a small marauding pirate fleet off the coast of the West Indies on a previous trip. Sailors who sailed on the ship were said to believe the sacred name of the vessel served to protect her from unfortunate incidents. It was said that sailors from far and wide would enlist to sail on her “charmed” decks, and only the elite of mariners were chosen in her service. If there’s any truth to these old tales, then the Espirutu Santo must have been manned by the best sailors in the New World, an elite group of officers and sailors that had demonstrated skill and experience at plying the seven seas. Is it possible that the Espirutu Santo and her experienced crew managed to find a way off the Texas sandbar to sail another day? While recorded history is vague about her fate, historical Spanish documents list the ship as “sunk”, not lost, indicating the Spaniards were certain of her fate in spite of never locating her remains. But undoubtedly many a yarn had been spun around many a ship’s rum barrel about how the ghostly vessel managed to sink in the storm only to later been sighted sailing off the coast of modern day Texas. Superstition, no doubt, inflamed the stories however. In years to follow the 1554 shipwrecks it was discovered by New World mariners that a portion of the Texas coast is/was notorious for weather-related shipwrecks and strandings. In an 1849 book titled “All The Ships At Sea” and written by American author Albert Stenham (now out of print), the Lower Texas coast was once a graveyard of shipwrecks. Sailors on vessels that ventured near the coastline report they could actually see “dozens, perhaps hundreds of shipwrecks” whose remains often protruded about the surf enough for them to make out their form, even occasionally being able to identify the shipwrecks by name. It was believed that the lower Texas coastline then must be “cursed,” or otherwise unsafe to navigate. Stories abounded about everything from sea creatures to marauding native giants that would assail lone vessels from smaller craft and scuttle them, claiming their cargoes as prize. In truth, there have been hundreds of shipwrecks along the Texas coast, both historic and more modern day. In fact, two shrimp boats sunk in separate incidents along the coast within the last 18 months, and if marine records were to be researched fully, we might be surprised at the vast numbers of lost ships just off the lower Texas coast. But in more historical days, far too often the ‘cause’ of a shipwreck was attributed to either supernatural forces or to that of pure mystery. It could certainly be true that once a single report of spotting the ghostly resurrected Espirutu Santo was circulated, then dozens of other reports started coming in down through the years in copy cat fashion. Just like today, it’s hard to stop a good yarn from perpetuating itself down through the years. This is, perhaps, how legends are born. But as recent as 1942, during the early days of World War II, the USS Woodcock, a minesweeper on duty in the Gulf of Mexico, reported the sighting of a “strange and ancient sailing vessel” just South of Corpus Christi near Port Mansfield. According to the brief mention in a report dated Dec. 1, 1942, the Woodcock reported the ship was sailing “under full sail” and sported an unknown and tattered flag. In an unexpected development, the Woodcock gave pursuit. Not the fastest ship in the U.S. Navy, the Woodcock was powered by diesel engines and could make positive headway at nearly 20 knots. But in spite of its pursuit, the ship’s log indicates the Woodcock could not overtake the sailing vessel and lost it eventually, in a heavy fog bank near the shoreline. Stories of mystery have a way of becoming larger down through the years. But next time you find yourself standing on a deserted South Padre Island beach with eyes cast out to the Gulf’s far horizon, don’t be surprised if you too conjure up the image of a spectral Espirutu Santo sailing in the distance, the ghost ship that refused to sunk. And if you ever get close enough, make it a Kodak moment if you can - and send a copy to me! (For more on the 1554 shipwrecks, visit the Treasures of the Gulf Museum in Port Isabel, or take a ride on the Black Dragon Pirate Ship that cruises from Pirate’s Landing Pier each day.)