Alcoa Puritan. Photo from Steamship Historical Society of America Collection, University of Baltimore Library

In May of 1942 the freighter Alcoa Puritan, a 6,795-ton cargo ship owned by the Alcoa Steam Ship Co., was en route from Port of Spain, Trinidad, to Mobile, Alabama, with a cargo of bauxite and seven passengers.  The passengers were all survivors of a tanker torpedoed by a U-boat off the coast of Brazil.  On May 6, 1942, the Alcoa Puritan came into the sights of U-507, approximately a hundred and thirty miles south of Mobile, Alabama.  Just before noon, a torpedo streaked through the water and barely missed the freighter's stern.  The captain turned his vessel to present as small a target as possible to the U-boat then order full speed ahead as he attempted to outrun the submarine.  U-507 surfaced and pursued the fleeing ship at top speed.  As the U-507 overtook the slower freighter, the U-boat crew opened fire with their deck guns, scoring about fifty hits and disabling Alcoa Puritan’s steering.  The captain brought the crippled freighter to a stop and gave orders to abandon ship.  After allowing the crew leave the stricken freighter, the U-507 sank Alcoa Puritan with a single torpedo.  The crew and passengers of the freighter survived and were rescued four hours later by the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Boutwel. 

A sidescan image of Alcoa Puritan. The ship's hatches, cargo derricks and superstructure are clearly visible.

In May 2001, a vessel thought to be Alcoa Puritan was discovered in 6,400 feet of water during a deep-tow survey for Shell International.  In February 2002, C&C conducted an investigation survey of the vessel using the HUGIN 3000 AUV.  The high-resolution data left little doubt it was the Alcoa Puritan.  In June 2002, Shell sponsored an ROV investigation of the shipwreck and brought back the first video images that confirmed this vessel was Alcoa Puritan.