1862-S $20 Brother Jonathan (1862-S Double Eagle) NGC AU58. This reddish-copper colored, Civil War dated, shipwrecked 1862-S Double Eagle has much subdued mint luster in the protected areas of the coin. Sufficient hair details are present to warrant the grade. The lack of full obverse design details is typical for double eagles made from 1859 to the 1890s in that the hair details are less distinct than on later issues. However, the centers of the stars and the reverse devices indicated a strong strike.

The double eagle was designed by James B. Longacre. In 1844, through the influence of John C. Calhoun, Longacre was made Chief Engraver at the Mint, where he succeeded the late Christian Gobrecht. Longacres experience was limited, but he was a talented artist. By 1849 he was able to create the gold dollar and double eagle, the design of which lasted until well into the twentieth century. One of Longacres associates, Chief Coiner Franklin Peale, opposed Longacres appointment and became an obstructionist. Peale ran a lucrative and illicit, private medal-making business using Mint facilities, and he felt that Longacres presence would jeopardize it. In 1854 Peale was fired by President Franklin Pearce, and Longacres life became easier. Longacre remained Chief Engraver until his death in 1869.

The S.S. Brother Jonathan was built in 1851 by Edward Mills, a New Yorker who wanted to operate a shipping business during the Gold Rush era. The ship was 220 feet long and 36 feet wide. It traveled from New York to Panama. Its passengers would cross the Isthmus of Panama and proceed to California in another ship. In 1852, Cornelius Vanderbilt purchased the Brother Jonathan to replace one of his ships that had been wrecked. He had it sail around Cape Horn and used it on the Pacific to travel to California. Vanderbilt had the ship rebuilt to accommodate more passengers. In 1856 the ship was sold to Captain John Wright, who renamed it the Commodore. She traveled up the coast from San Francisco to Vancouver and back.

By 1861, the ship was in poor condition. It was sold to the California Steam Navigation Company and retrofitted. The original name was restored, and it continued to service the route from San Francisco to Vancouver. The Brother Jonathan was one of the fastest ships to sail that route and had a reputation for being one of the finest steamers on the Pacific Coast.
In 1865, the ship was headed from San Francisco to Portland. It carried about 150 passengers, a crew of 60 and a large cargo that included an unknown quantity of gold coins. The ship ran into heavy winds and put in to port at Crescent City. In the morning the voyage was resumed, but the seas were still rough. The captain ordered it returned to port, but it struck a submerged rock that was hidden just below the surface of the water. The ship sank along with most of the passengers, crew, and captain.

In the 1990s a group of investors formed Deep Sea Research, Inc. and found the ship. More than 1000 gold coins were recovered that consisted mainly of 1865-S double eagles.