An under the table deal led to the tragedy. That there was some corruption going on that took place with the loading of the Sultana. This was extremely lucrative. The captain, Captain Mason of the steamboat was in financial difficulty, he had an arrangement with a quarter master to pile on as many of the men, he could possibly take. The Sultana explosion isn't well known.
Some people claim the accident was covered up.
What was really an explosive, and when it got put inside that it exploded. Most artifacts remain in their natural resting place, but some pieces have been recovered like steamboat shaker plates from inside the furnace and fire bricks, also from the furnace. These were found in what now is an Arkansas bean field. From the Sultana tragedy, a new set of safety regulations were born. Family members of Sultana victims never forget the terrible event.