The keel for the tug CRUSADER was laid at the Leighton and Dunford yard in Port Huron, MI. The tug measured 132 feet overall with a 100-foot keel and 23-foot beam. She was built for George E. Brockway.
1886
The Detroit Evening News reported that a fireman on the tug J.H. HACKLEY of 1874 was sent to watch for a leak in the boiler, which was being filled with cold water at a dock in Chicago, IL. He fell asleep, and the boiler overflowed, very nearly sinking the vessel before another tug could pump her dry.
1909
PRESCOTT, a wooden sidewheel passenger ship running from Toronto, ON, to Montreal, QC, was destroyed by a fire at Montreal. It burned to the waterline and sank at Victoria Pier.
1910
WILLIAM B. DICKSON (Hull #75) was launched at Ecorse, MI, by Great Lakes Engineering Works for the Pittsburgh Steamship Co. of Cleveland, OH. Renamed b.) MERLE M. MCCURDY in 1969, she was scrapped at Port Colborne, ON, in 1989.
1924
CITY QUEEN (wooden propeller steam tug; 71 feet; 69 gross tons; built in 1900 at Midland, ON) burned to a total loss 14 miles east of the Manitou Dock in Georgian Bay.
1929
The MYRON C. TAYLOR entered service.
1940
The WILLIAM A. IRVIN set the Great Lakes record for the fastest unloading of iron ore cargo using shoreside equipment. The IRVIN unloaded 13,856 gross tons of iron ore in 2 hours, 55 minutes (including the time to arrive and depart the dock) at Conneaut, OH. This record still stands, and consequently, the IRVIN is one of the few Great Lakes vessels to be retired while still holding a cargo record.
BOLIVAR, built at Wyandotte, MI, as LAKE FACKLER, had returned to the Great Lakes in 1933. On this date, the ship foundered in the Bay of Bengal again known as d.) BOLIVAR.
1943
The U.S. Coast Guard buoy tender USCGC MESQUITE (WAGL-305) was commissioned. She served on the Pacific Ocean in the 7th Fleet in 1944 and 1945.
1952
JOHN O. MCKELLAR (Hull #12) was launched at St. Catharines, ON, by Port Weller Dry Docks Ltd. for the Colonial Steamship Co. Ltd. (Scott Misener, manager) of Port Colborne, ON. The vessel was renamed b.) ELMGLEN in 1984.
10 tons of sugar aboard the CITY OF KINGSTON burned in a 1-hour fire at Montreal, QC.
1965
The Swedish freighter EVA JEANETTE ran up over the stern of the tug VEGCO in Lock 4 of the Welland Canal, sinking the latter vessel. There were no injuries, and the tug was salvaged. EVA JEANETTE arrived at Chittagong, Bangladesh, for scrapping as d.) SKOPELOS STAR on January 21, 1984. The tug later sailed as d.) NORWICH and became e.) SEAGULL in 1998.
1968
The new Poe Lock at the Soo was first flooded.
1971
AGAWA CANYON (Hull #195) was launched at Collingwood, ON, by Collingwood Shipbuilding for Algoma Central Railway Ltd.
1985
CCGS SAMUEL RISLEY arrived at Toronto, ON, on her way to Thunder Bay, ON, where she replaced the retired CCGS ALEXANDER HENRY.
1986
The WILLIAM CLAY FORD, then renamed b.) US266029, was towed from Detroit Marine Terminals to Nicholson’s River Rouge dock after her pilothouse was removed. The pilothouse would be displayed at the Dossin Great Lakes Museum and the hull sold for scrap.
2008
GERTJE, a Seaway trader in 1991, sent out a distress call as h.) LADY F. with water entering the holds. A tug arrived and removed the six crew members. The vessel was towed into Bougas, Bulgaria, the next day. The ship was repaired and became i.) SAMER F. in 2010.
Contributors & Sources
Skip Gillham, Joe Barr, David Swayze, Al Miller, Jody Aho, Father Dowling Collection, Ahoy & Farewell II, and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series from the Marine Historical Society of Detroit.
BEAVER, an armed wooden British sloop built the previous year, was carrying provisions to Detroit, MI. She was on her way to relieve the fort there, which was under siege by Native Americans led by Pontiac; however, the vessel foundered in a storm at Cat Fish Creek, 14 miles from the site of Buffalo, NY. 185 barrels of her cargo were salvaged and went on to Detroit on the schooner GLADWIN.
1870
CHASKA (wooden scow-schooner; 72 feet; 50 tons; built in 1869 at Duluth, MN, originally as a scow-brig) was wrecked in a northwesterly storm near Duluth. She was reportedly the first vessel built at Duluth.
1872
Captain Frank R. West took his 8-year-old son Robert and the boy’s friend, 8-year-old Edward Erickson, aboard the new schooner LOUIS MEEKER as guests on a trip carrying 27,000 bushels of oats from Chicago, IL, to Buffalo, NY. There was hardly any wind, and it took them 4 days to creep north as far as Pentwater, MI. On this day, Captain West saw a storm coming, and he had the sails taken in as a precaution. The winds came so suddenly and they hit the vessel so hard that the schooner was knocked over on her beam ends. Little Robert West, his dad, and three sailors were lost when the vessel sank 15 minutes later near Big Sable Point. Peter Danielson dove and tried to cut away the lifeboat as the schooner was sinking, and he almost drowned in that unsuccessful attempt. The mizzen gaff broke free, and seven sailors plus little Edward Erickson clung to it until they were picked up by the schooner WILLIAM O. BROWN about 6 hours later.
1928
The JOHN ANDERSON, a.) LUZON of 1902, was outbound through the Duluth Ship Canal in Duluth, MN, when the vessel struck the north pier, suffering $18,000 in damage. She was renamed c.) G.G. POST in 1935. The POST was scrapped at Istanbul, Turkey, in 1972.
1934
Gulf Oil Corp. tanker REGENT entered service. She was built for low clearances on the New York State Barge Canal and was equipped with five cargo tanks and one dry cargo hold.
1939
The RICHARD J. REISS collided with the YOSEMITE on the St. Clair River. There were no casualties, but damage to the Reiss amounted to $26,593.80, and damage to the YOSEMITE amounted to $23,443.09. The REISS was built in 1901 as the a.) GEORGE W. PEAVEY before being renamed b.) RICHARD J. REISS in 1917 and c.) SUPERIOR in 1943. She was scrapped at Hamilton, ON, in 1947. The YOSEMITE, built in 1901, carried her name throughout her career and was scrapped at Buffalo, NY, in 1954.
1954
The PERE MARQUETTE 22 was repowered with two 2,850 ihp, four-cylinder Skinner Uniflow steeple compound steam engines (19.5″, 43″ diameter x 26″ stroke) built in 1953 by the Skinner Engine Co. of Erie, PA, and four coal-fired Foster-Wheeler water tube boilers with a total heating surface of 25,032 square feet, also built in 1953. The repowering work was completed on this date. The vessel’s 1954 tonnage was 3,551 gross tons, 1,925 net tons, and 2,450 deadweight tons. A new starboard tail shaft was also installed at this time. Her service speed increased to 18 knots (20.7 miles per hour).
1962
The EDWARD L. RYERSON set a Great Lakes cargo record for iron ore. The RYERSON loaded 25,018 gross tons of iron ore in Superior, WI, breaking by 14 tons the record held by the Canadian bulk freighter RED WING that was set in the 1961 season. The RYERSON held this record well into 1965.
1981
The WILLIAM A. REISS, formerly a.) JOHN A. TOPPING, was laid up for the last time at Toledo, OH, and remained idle there until July 15, 1994, when she was towed to be scrapped.
1986
Mr. Edwin H. Gott, 78, of Pittsburgh, PA, passed away. The namesake of the 1,000-footer, he retired as Chief Executive Officer of U.S. Steel in 1973.
2002
FRASER, the former SELKIRK SETTLER, went aground in fog at the Twin Ports and was released without damage with the aid of four tugs. The ship now sails as SPRUCEGLEN of Canada Steamship Lines.
Contributors & Sources
Skip Gillham, Joe Barr, David Swayze, Al Miller, James Neumiller, Jody Aho, Russ Plumb, Ahoy & Farewell II, and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series from the Marine Historical Society of Detroit.
CANADA (three-masted wooden bark; 199 feet; 758 tons) was carrying 0.5 million board feet of lumber to Chicago, IL, in bad weather when she settled just north of downtown Chicago. The next day during a salvage attempt, she blew southward, struck a bar off the old waterworks, broke her back, then broke up. She had been built in Canada in 1846 as a sidewheeler and was seized by the U.S. in 1849, later being rebuilt as a bark in 1852.
1871
GEORGE M. ABEL (two-masted wooden schooner) broke up on a reef near Port Burwell, ON.
1882
It’s not often that a schooner tows a tug, but the tug J.A. CRAWFORD was towing the big schooner JAMES COUCH to Chicago, IL, when the wind picked up, and the schooner passed the tug. Captain Gorman of the CRAWFORD cut the engine and allowed the COUCH to tow him until they got close to the harbor. The schooner then shortened sail, and the tug finished towing her into port.
1906
The wooden bulk carrier CHARLES A. EDDY caught fire in Lake Huron en route to Cleveland, OH, with iron ore. The ship later arrived at Port Huron, MI, under her own power with a salvage crew.
1942
The A.H. FERBERT entered service for the Pittsburgh Steamship Co.
1967
LINDE, a Norwegian freighter, first entered the Seaway in 1965. It sank the ARISTOS on this day in dense fog in the English Channel 17 miles off Beachy Head, England. All on board were rescued. LINDE later stranded as d.) ZEPHYR outside of Dunkirk, France, on January 13, 1981, after anchoring due to bad weather. The hull was broken up for scrap where she lay.
1972
The lightship HURON was placed in an earth embankment at Port Huron, MI’s Pine Grove Park along the St. Clair River and was opened to visitors on July 13, 1974.
1974
Unsuccessful negotiations on a major shipbuilding contract resulted in Litton Industries terminating operations at its yard in Erie, PA. The Litton yard had built the first 1,000-foot boat on the lakes, the STEWART J. CORT, and the 1,000-foot tug/barge PRESQUE ISLE.
1979
The INDIANA HARBOR sailed for Two Harbors, MN, to load iron ore pellets for Indiana Harbor, IN. In 1982, INDIANA HARBOR became the first U.S.-flagged laker to receive satellite communication.
1984
A fire in the cargo hold of NANTICOKE broke out while the ship was unloading in Quebec City, QC, and damaged the self-unloading belts and electronic components.
1985
Canada Steamship Lines’ ATLANTIC SUPERIOR returned from Europe with a cargo of gypsum for Picton, ON.
1996
The NICOLET, which had been sold for scrap, left Toledo, OH, under tow of the McKeil tug OTIS WACK, arriving in Port Maitland, ON, during the early hours of August 30. Last operated in 1990, the NICOLET was built in 1905 by Great Lakes Engineering Works at Ecorse, MI, as the a.) WILLIAM G. MATHER (25), b.) J. H. SHEADLE (55), and c.) H.L. GOBEILLE. The vessel spent the first 60 years of her life in service for the Cleveland-Cliffs Steamship Co. After 1965, her ownership was transferred to the Gartland Steamship Co. and eventually to the American Steamship Co.
1998
The BADGER was designated a spur route on the Lake Michigan Circle Tour.
Contributors & Sources
Skip Gillham, Joe Barr, David Swayze, Al Miller, James Neumiller, Jody Aho, Russ Plumb, Lake Huron Lore Society, Ahoy & Farewell II, and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series from the Marine Historical Society of Detroit.
CAMBRIDGE (three-masted wooden schooner; 162 feet; 445 tons; built in 1868 at Detroit, MI) was bound from Marquette, MI, for Cleveland, OH, with a load of iron ore. In rough seas, she was thrown onto the rocky shore near Marquette, where she broke up. No lives were lost.
1892
The 2-year-old steel bulk carrier WESTERN RESERVE foundered about 60 miles above Whitefish Point with the loss of 26 lives. There was only one survivor.
1893
CENTURION (steel propeller freighter; 350 feet; 3,401 gross tons) was launched by F.W. Wheeler (Hull #100) at West Bay City, MI. The name was a pun to celebrate the ship as Frank Wheeler’s 100th hull.
1900
Thousands of people gathered at the Jenks Shipbuilding Co. near the Grand Trunk Bridge on the Black River in Port Huron, MI, to watch the launching of the large steel steamer CAPTAIN THOMAS WILSON. Superintendent Andrews gave the word, and the blows were struck simultaneously at the bow and stern. The vessel slowly started quivering slightly from deck to keel, and then with a mighty rush, slid sideways into the river. Her stern stuck in the mud. Mrs. Thomas Wilson christened the ship.
1903
The H.G. DALTON entered service for Great Lakes & St. Lawrence Transportation Co. She would later be renamed b.) COURSEULLES in 1916, c.) GLENDOCHART in 1922, d.) CHATSWORTH in 1927, e.) BAYLEAF in 1942, and f.) MANCOX in 1951.
PITTSBURGH burned at the dock in Sandwich, ON. The oak-hulled passenger and freight paddlewheeler had been built in 1871 as MANITOBA. The hull was towed to Port Dalhousie, ON, for scrapping later in 1904.
1942
The A.H. FERBERT, just a day old, ran aground in the St. Marys River. The vessel returned to the builder’s yard in River Rouge, MI, for repairs.
NEEBING (i), a former bulk canaller that dated from 1903, left the lakes for war service in about 1915. It survived the initial conflict and continued in saltwater service into WII. The ship was torpedoed and sunk on this date as c.) JAN TOMP in the eastern Black Sea en route from Poti, Georgia, to Novorossiysk, Russia.
1952
The iron-hulled paddle wheeler HAMILTONIAN burned at Hamilton, ON. The cause was believed to have been a carelessly discarded cigarette butt in the women’s washroom. The remains were scrapped at Hamilton in 1953.
1964
The retired Bradley Transportation steamer CALCITE was awarded the National Safety Council Award of Merit. The CALCITE accumulated a total of 1,394,613 man-hours of continuous operation over 17 years without a disabling, lost-time injury. The CALCITE was the first Great Lakes vessel to ever receive this honor.
1973
The CHARLES E. WILSON was christened at Bay Shipbuilding Co. for the American Steamship Co. and completed her sea trials on September 6. She was renamed b.) JOHN J. BOLAND in 2000.
1975
B.A. CANADA came to the Great Lakes beginning in 1966 after early work for British-American tankers between Venezuela and North America. The ship was sold and returned inland under Liberian registry as b.) DIMITRIOS D.M. in 1969 and ran aground in the Panama Canal on this date in 1975. The damaged hull was laid up at Jacksonville, FL, and arrived at Panama City, FL, for scrapping on March 10, 1976.
1985
The tug CAPTAIN IOANNIS S. departed Quebec City, QC, with MENIHEK LAKE and LEON FALK JR. in tow, bound for Spain to be scrapped.
1988
The WILLOWGLEN, formerly a.) MESABI, made its first visit to the Twin Ports under that name. She loaded grain at Harvest States in Superior, WI, arriving early in the morning and departing in the early evening the same day. Her last visit to Duluth, MI, before this was in 1981 under the name c.) JOSEPH X. ROBERT.
2001
MARLY, a Seaway caller in 1981, began flooding in the #2 hold as d.) BISMIHITA’LA and developed a severe list. The crew abandoned the ship, and 25 sailors were picked up by the MURIEL YORK. Three were lost when their lifeboat drifted into the propeller. The ship was 500 miles off Cape Town, South Africa. It was taken in tow by the tug SUHAILI, but the 25-year-old freighter had to be scuttled at sea on September 17, 2001.
Contributors & Sources
Skip Gillham, Joe Barr, David Swayze, Russ Plumb, Father Dowling Collection, James Neumiller, Jody L. Aho, Ahoy & Farewell II, and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series from the Marine Historical Society of Detroit.
The U.S. Congress passed an act requiring the president to appoint three officers from the Navy, three engineers from the Army, and two civilian scientists to constitute the new Lighthouse Board. The Bureau of Lighthouses succeeded the Lighthouse Board in 1910.
1869
The schooner W.G. KEITH was launched at the Muir & Stewart yard in Port Huron, MI. She was named after her skipper/owner. Her dimensions were 126 feet x 26 feet x 8.5 feet. She was built for the Lake Michigan lumber trade.
1900
Efforts to free the newly-launched steel steamer CAPTAIN THOMAS WILSON from the mud in the Black River at Port Huron, MI, continued throughout the day. The launch had been watched by thousands the previous day, and the vessel’s stern stuck in the mud. The tugs BOYNTON and HAYNES tried to pull her free but were unable to do so. Finally, 14 hydraulic jacks were used to lift the vessel, and at 18:00, she was ready to be pulled by tugs. After a 15-inch hawser was broken in the first attempt, the tug PROTECTOR finally pulled the vessel free.
1906
CAVALIER (three-masted wooden schooner; 134 feet; 268 gross tons; built in 1867 at Quebec City, QC, as a bark) was carrying cedar lumber when she struck a reef off Chantry Island in Lake Huron and sank. Her crew was rescued by the Chantry Island lightkeeper. She was bound from Tobermory, ON, for Sarnia, ON.
1975
ALGOCEN stranded on South McNair Shoal in the St. Lawrence off Ogdensburg, NY. The ship was released and, after unloading at Port Cartier, QC, sailed to Port Weller Dry Docks to spend from September 14 to October 10 on the shelf while a 600-foot section of the bottom of the hull was repaired.
1977
The BELLE RIVER entered service, departing Sturgeon Bay, WI, for Superior, WI. She was renamed b.) WALTER J. McCARTHY JR. in 1990.
1982
The sandsucker NIAGARA made its last trip through the I-75 bridge with a cargo of sand for the Chevrolet Saginaw Metal Castings plant.
1985
The Belgium salty FEDERAL THAMES loaded 25,400 tons of low-concentrate chrome ore at Duluth, MN’s Hallett Dock and was bound for Sweden. This ore dates back to World War II when it was mined in Montana. Other shipments were to have been made later as well.
1987
A peregrine falcon that had disappeared from Regina, SK, 2 weeks earlier landed on the deck of a lake freighter on Lake Huron. The bird was captured and taken to a bird sanctuary in Vineland, ON. The vessel’s name is unknown.
Contributors & Sources
Skip Gillham, Joe Barr, David Swayze, Al Miller, James Neumiller, Jody Aho, Ahoy & Farewell II, and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series from the Marine Historical Society of Detroit. Compiled by Roger LeLievre.
ABIAH (two-masted wooden schooner/brig; 134 feet; 353 tons; built in 1848 at Irving, NY) was sailing light from Chicago, IL, to Oconto, WI, when she capsized and sank in a squall about 10 miles off Sheboygan, WI. The schooner L. LUDDINGTON rescued her crew and two passengers.
1873
The 135-foot wooden schooner JOSEPH E. SPARROW was launched at Bangor, MI.
1880
The Cleveland Vessel Owners’ Association, later Lake Carriers’ Association, was created, with Alva Bradley as its first president.
1891
EDWARD H. JENKS (wooden propeller freighter; 119 feet; 180 gross tons; built in 1882 at Port Dover, ON, as the passenger-package freight steamer E.M. FOSTER) was carrying limestone up the Detroit River during a foggy night when she collided with GEORGE W. MORLEY (wooden propeller freighter; 193 feet; 1,045 gross tons; built in 1888 at West Bay City, MI) in a misunderstanding of passing signals. Three were killed in the collision, and the JENKS quickly sank at Ballard’s Reef. Her cargo kept her in place until she was recovered the following month and rebuilt.
1892
The upbound WESTERN RESERVE, flagship of the Kinsman fleet, sank approximately 60 miles above Whitefish Point. There were 31 casualties among the crew and passengers. The lone survivor was Wheelsman Harry W. Stewart.
1900
The Canadian steamer ADVANCE (wooden propeller package freighter; 168 feet; 1,178 gross tons; built in 1884 at St. Catharines, ON) was placed in service. In August 1899, when she was named SIR S.L. TILLEY, she had caught fire offshore about 7 miles from Fairport, OH, and was destroyed. However, the hull was later recovered and used as the basis of the steamer ADVANCE. She lasted in this role until 1903 when she burned again.
1916
Norweigan freighter DRONNING MAUD visited the Great Lakes on charter to Keystone Transports beginning in 1909. It hit a mine in the North Sea on this day and sank off the east coast of England between Southwall and Lowestoft.
1919
A switchman was killed in the yard at Manitowoc, WI, while the ANN ARBOR NO. 6 was being loaded. This caused a delay of 4 hours in her sailing time.
1923
The self-unloader B.H. TAYLOR (Hull #787) was launched at Lorain, OH, by the American Ship Building Co. as the third self-unloader built for the Bradley Transportation Co. of Rogers City, MI. The vessel was renamed b.) ROGERS CITY in 1957 and scrapped at Recife, Brazil, in 1988.
1929
EDWARD BUCKLEY caught fire and was destroyed in the North Channel of Georgian Bay. The blaze broke out aft while the vessel was en route to Little Current, ON, to load pulpwood. The hull burned to the waterline and sank near Narrow Island Lighthouse. Local fishermen rescued the crew.
1931
W.L. Mercereau retired as superintendent of steamships, a position he had held since 1899.
1936
The Canadian canaller BENMAPLE of the Port Colborne & St. Lawrence Navigation Co. sank in the St. Lawrence River at about 04:00 near Father Point after being hit in fog by the inbound liner LAFAYETTE. A wheelsman was killed, but all others on board were rescued.
1947
From September 1, 1947, to September 15, 1959, USCGC MESQUITE was stationed at Sault Ste. Marie, MI.
1970
Tragedy struck 4 days after the launch of the AGAWA CANYON when the ship was rocked by an engine room explosion, killing one of the crew and injuring seven more. The AGAWA CANYON entered service in November 1970 equipped with four 10-cylinder, two-stroke cycle, single-acting opposed piston diesel engines built in 1970 by Fairbanks-Morse (Canadian) of Kingston, ON. The engines were rated at 6,680 bhp with a service speed of approximately 12 knots (13.8 miles per hour). AGAWA CANYON saw continued service through the 2009 navigation season when, on December 22, 2009, the vessel entered winter lay-up in Montreal, QC, at Sec. 56. On September 18, 2010, AGAWA CANYON was towed from port headed for scrapping in Aliaga, Turkey, with the ocean tug SIROCCO (owned by ITC of Heemstede, Netherlands) on the bow.
The TEMPLE BAR (Hull #101G) was launched at Govan, Scotland, by the Govan Division of Upper Clyde Shipbuilders Ltd. for Lambert Bros. (Shipping) Ltd. of London, England. She was renamed b.) LAKE NIPIGON in 1977, c.) LAKETON in 1984, d.) LAKE NIPIGON in 1986, and e.) ALGONORTH in 1987. ALGONORTH was scrapped at Sault Ste Marie, ON, in 2013. Upon her arrival at Quebec City, QC, on September 1, 1962, the LAKE WINNIPEG was the first vessel of the Nipigon Transport Ltd. (Carryore Ltd., manager) fleet.
1983
INDIANA HARBOR set a record loading 67,896 tons of iron ore at Escanaba, MI.
Contributors & Sources
Skip Gillham, Max Hanley, Joe Barr, David Swayze, Russ Plumb, Father Dowling Collection, James Neumiller, Jody L. Aho, Ahoy & Farewell II, and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series from the Marine Historical Society of Detroit.
BUNKER HILL (wooden sidewheeler; 154 feet; 457 tons; built in 1835 at Black River, OH) burned to a total loss at Tonawanda, NY.
1896
The COLONEL ELLSWORTH (wooden schooner; 138 feet; 319 gross tons; built in 1861 at Euclid, OH, as a bark) was beached on Whitefish Point in Lake Superior the entire winter of 1895–96. She was repaired and put back into service late in the summer of 1896. On this day, the newly rebuilt vessel collided with the schooner EMILY B. MAXWELL about 6 miles from White Shoals on Lake Michigan and sank at about 04:00. Her crew escaped in the yawl and was picked up by the MAXWELL.
1902
The White Star Line’s TASHMOO (steel side-wheel excursion steamer; 308 feet; 1,344 gross tons; built in 1900 at Wyandotte, MI) hosted President Theodore Roosevelt when he came to Detroit, MI, to speak to Spanish-American War veterans. The vessel took the president and his party on a sightseeing tour up and down the river while flying his blue-and-gold flag from the main mast.
1905
The large wooden schooner PRETORIA, which cleared Superior, WI, with ore under tow of the VENEZUELA, hit a fierce storm, and the steering gear failed. The vessel fell into the trough after the tow line snapped, and the barge broke up off Outer Island. Five crew were rescued, and another five were lost.
IOSCO and the schooner OLIVE JEANETTE foundered off Huron Island on Lake Superior with the loss of 19 lives on the former and another seven on the latter. Both were downbound with iron ore and were last seen near Stannard Rock. The SEVONA also stranded on a reef in a Lake Superior storm and broke in two as a total loss. Seven drowned from the bow section when they tried to come ashore on hatch rafts. The wreck was dynamited in 1909 after the boilers had been salvaged.
1914
THOMAS R. SCOTT became waterlogged and sank during a storm in the deepest part of Georgian Bay off the east coast of the Bruce Peninsula. The ship was swamped in a storm while carrying lumber from Cockburn Island to Owen Sound, ON, and all on board were saved. The hull was located using side-scan sonar in 1994.
1915
The W.F. WHITE was one of the earliest ships built as a self-unloader on the Great Lakes. On her maiden voyage, the WHITE loaded coal at Erie, PA, and sailed for Menominee, MI. She was the largest self-unloading bulk carrier on the lakes at that time with a cargo capacity of 10,500 tons.
1926
BURT BARNES, a wooden three-masted schooner, foundered in Lake Ontario while carrying 210 tons of coal from Sodus Point, NY, to Picton, ON. The crew abandoned the ship in the yawl boat near Picton, were blown across the lake, and came ashore safely 12 miles west of Rochester, NY.
1938
The RALPH H. WATSON departed light from Detroit, MI, upbound to load iron ore at Duluth, MN. She was built as part of a fleet modernization plan for the Pittsburgh Steamship Co. of four new “GOVERNOR MILLER”-class bulk carriers; the other two were the JOHN HULST and the WILLIAM A. IRVIN. The WATSON was only the fourth steam turbine-powered vessel on the lakes.
1970
BROOKNES (Hull #1177) was launched at Glasgow, Scotland, by Lithgows Ltd. for “Langra” Schiffahrsges GmbH & Co. of Hamburg, Germany. The vessel was brought to the lakes in 1976, converted to a self-unloader, and renamed b.) ALGOSEA. She sailed most recently as c.) SAUNIERE.
1972
The Cypriot freighter AEGIS WISDOM and the Italian vessel LIBRA collided in fog on the St. Lawrence near Les Escoumins, QC. The former, which had been launched in March, was on her first trip outbound from the Seaway and was heavily damaged aft. The vessel was towed to Lauzon, QC, for repairs and survived until scrapping at Alang, India, as d.) ANGELIKI II following her arrival on January 14, 1997. LIBRA dated from 1965 but did not come to the Great Lakes until 1975. She was scrapped in mainland China as b.) DEPY in 1986.
1975
CHICAGO TRIBUNE, en route from Thunder Bay, ON, to Collingwood, ON, with grain, went aground in Georgian Bay and had to be lightered by the CHARLES W. JOHNSON, working with the tug ROD MCLEAN. After being released and unloaded, the ship went to Port Weller Dry Docks for repairs.
1977
ROBERT KOCH made her first trip up the Welland Canal bound for Buffalo, NY, with cement.
1988
HUBERT GAUCHER ran aground in the lower St. Lawrence. It took three tugs to free her; repairs took place at Quebec City, QC.
ZIEMIA TARNOWSKA lost her engine while docking at Pier 24 in Cleveland, OH, ramming the dock and causing about $100,000 in damage. The vessel herself had minimal damage to her bulbous bow.
Contributors & Sources
Skip Gillham, Max Hanley, Joe Barr, David Swayze, Father Dowling Collection, James Neumiller, Jody L. Aho, Ahoy & Farewell II, and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series from the Marine Historical Society of Detroit.
