South Bay : SUNKEN SHIP

Sixty-three years after she burned, rolled over and was sunk in the waters just outside San Pedro Harbor, the Johanna Smith is still making waves.

The double-hulled wooden ship, built to haul lumber, sank in 1932 after serving three years as one of the notorious gambling ships that prowled the waters off Los Angeles. Today, what’s left of her is forcing the Army Corps of Engineers to consider rerouting its plans to dredge the harbor.

Federal law requires that places of historical significance be spared from any type of development.

Pat Smith, an aerospace engineer and marine historian who is an expert on Southern California shipwrecks, has been dredging up the ship’s history for the Corps’ review.

“Witnesses said the fire broke out in the bow and the stern of the boat at the same time,” Smith said. “But I don’t think too many of the Coast Guard officials were upset by what happened. Most of them said ‘good riddance.’ ”

The ship rolled over, but refused to sink. The Coast Guard spent a week loading the hull with explosives. The blasts littered the ocean floor with debris, including coins from the gambling machines. The hull eventually washed up on Seal Beach in Orange County.