Wolcott ordered the ship seized and the cargo impounded in order to allow time to resolve conflicting claims between the vessel's captain and the salvage crew. While in the colony's custody, a large portion of the ship's cargo mysteriously disappeared. Tainted with the scandal surrounding the Spanish Ship case, he was defeated for re-election in 1754. All previous governors had died in office. Following his defeat, Wolcott generally withdrew from public life to study and follow literary pursuits. In 1759, Wolcott authored a short history of the Connecticut colony titled, "Roger Wolcott's Memoir Relating to the History of Connecticut".