 During her maiden voyage to America in March 2003 she was battered by Force 10 storm in the Bay of Biscay and similarly on the return voyage from Newfoundland in November 2003 and prevailed unscathed.It was originally planned to launch the ship from her shipyard in Blennerville, but a 19th-century shipwreck was discovered by marine archaeologists while a channel was being dredged.To preserve the find, on 19 April 2000 the hull of the "Jeanie Johnston" was hauled to the shore and loaded onto a shallow-draft barge.