One wanderer's beach walk turned into a historic discovery when she found what could be the oldest message in a bottle ever recorded.
On the day before Independence Day (3 July), Amy Smyth Murphy from New Jersey spotted something unusual sticking out of the sand while walking along the shore at Corson’s Inlet State Park.
'I noticed it because the bottle was like a really nice aqua,' Smyth Murphy told ABC7 New York.
But there was more behind the bottle's beauty.
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The bottle had a label on it that read: 'Barr & Brother Philadelphia” a company whose bottles are known to date back to the late 19th century.
Murphy recorded the uncorking process on TikTok with the help of some wooden sticks and small fingers. She also used the platform to share updates on her research into the bottle's origins.
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Inside the bottle, she found a handwritten note and what seemed like a business card for a company run by W.G. & J. Klemm. The note read: 'Yacht Neptune off Atlantic City NJ Aug 6-76.'
After further research in The Philadelphia Inquirer archives, it was revealed that a company under this exact name existed in the late 1800s and was run by two brothers.
Smyth Murphy’s investigations also found records of a yacht named 'Neptune' built in 1874 by Captain Samuel Gale of the nearby Atlantic City.
These clues suggest the 'Aug 6-76' part on the note was written on August 6, 1876, which would make it the oldest message in a bottle ever discovered. Not a bad day out!
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Gale reportedly lived off New Jersey Avenue in Atlantic City in the late 1800s where pneumonia took his life in 1923, according to an obituary published by The Press of Atlantic City.
'I really like the mystery. I love the research,' Smyth Murphy said.
This record-breaking bottle now beats the Australian record by 10 years.
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It was Australia-based Tonya and Kym Illman who found that bottle in 2018, currently holding the Guinness World Record as the oldest message in a bottle.
Of course, findings like this one need to be verified by a professional as well as those associated with the Guinness World Records.
According to NJ.com, Smyth Murphy has applied for this award, but it may take months before the record is officially confirmed.
'It’s just so interesting to be connected to people in this way,' Smyth Murphy said while visiting a part of the state park near where she found the bottle.