Today in Great Lakes History

[yachtsmanwilly]

Port Reports - September 5

Duluth, Minn.
Waterfront reports indicate the laid-up steamer American Victory will be moved to a new location Thursday morning in order to allow for new dock construction at Fraser Shipyard. The laid-up steamer Edward L. Ryerson is expected to be moved eventually as well.

St. Marys River
The Marquette-based passenger vessel Isle Royale Queen III was upbound in the lower St. Marys River late Wednesday evening after undergoing repairs in the Straits area. The vessel reportedly was damaged Aug. 20 when it struck some rocks underneath the surface of Lake Superior just off Presque Isle Park, sustaining injuries to the port propulsion system. Other traffic Wednesday included the saltie Federal Schelde, headed downbound for Hamilton. She was proceeded down the river by Sam Laud and Roger Blough, and followed several hours later by the Stewart J. Cort.

Sandusky, Ohio - Jim Spencer
The tug Victory and barge James L. Kuber loaded at the NS coal dock Wednesday.

Montreal, Que. - René Beauchamp
Cedarglen has arrived in Montreal for a short term lay up, according to the Port of Montreal website.

Algoma Equinox update - Andy Torrence
Algoma Equinox, the first 31,200 DWT Great Lakes/Seaway gearless bulk carrier built by Nantong Mingde for Canada’s Algoma Central Corporation, sailed for sea trials on Sept. 3.






Richelieu still at anchor off Aliaga scrapyard

9/5 - The retired former Canada Steamship Lines bulk carrier Richelieu (iii) was still at anchor at Aliaga, Turkey, on Sept. 4. The vessel arrived under her own power on Aug. 28.

This ship has been a regular Great Lakes trader since it was built at Hoboken, Belgium, as Federal Ottawa in 1980. The 730-foot-long freighter first came inland for Fednav in 1981, and traded through the Seaway most years through 2012.

It was launched on October 20, 1980, and got into trouble during trials on the North Sea, sustaining some minor damage from a collision with the Karine due to fog on December 11, 1980.

Federal Ottawa usually brought steel to Great Lakes ports and departed for overseas with various grains. But there were exceptions. It took on chrome ore, which had been mined during World War II, at Duluth for Sweden on August 26, 1988.

Then, on December 20, 1990, it loaded the first of the tunnel rail cars at Quebec City for the soon-to-be-completed rail link between the United Kingdom and Europe under the English Channel.

After five trips through the Seaway in 1994, the ship returned to the Seaway on April 7, 1995, as Lake Erie. Re-registered in the Marshall Islands, the vessel was carrying steel coils for Detroit.

Between 1995 and 2007, the Lake Erie made in the neighborhood of 40 trips through the Seaway. In addition to the usual staple cargoes, the ship also carried ore pellets, potash, bentonite, flax, peas, soybeans and wheat.

Following a sale to Canada Steamship Lines in 2008, the ship remained on charter to Fednav until becoming Richelieu for CSL in 2009. It was painted in company colors in 2010 and was active in the grain trade between the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence storage elevators.

After being idle at Montreal, Richelieu sailed August 10, 2013, for Aliaga, Turkey, and arrived there August 28. It will be beached for dismantling and recycling when the berth becomes available.





Badger continues sailing: Feds remain mum

9/5 - Ludington, Mich. – The SS Badger has returned to a single round-trip sailing for the rest of its 2013 season, now that Labor Day and the unofficial end of the summer tourism season has passed.

It has been a good season for Lake Michigan Carferry (LMC) and there is still more than a month to go.

“The cool spring did affect our May numbers a bit,” Terri Brown, LMC director of marketing and media relations, said Tuesday. “The overall season though has been strong and passenger counts are higher than 2012. Once again this season we’ve seen passengers from all across the United States.”

But LMC hasn’t seen one thing it has been awaiting from the government of the United States – a decision on the proposed consent decree to allow it to store coal ash on the SS Badger as a means to meet Environmental Protection Agency’s order to stop discharging the coal ash into Lake Michigan.

In March the EPA and the U.S. Department of Justice announced it would accept public comments on the proposal to give LMC two years to complete construction on board the Badger of a means to store the coal ash generated by the coal-fired steamship, the last known to be operating in the United States, and develop a way to transfer and dispose of the ash on land.

In late July, the EPA, without comment or fanfare, posted on its website the more than 7,000 comments the proposal generated during a public comment session in spring.

Meanwhile, according to information sent anonymously to the Ludington Daily News, LMC has proposed a schedule of work to meet the proposed settlement. The Department of Justice, which is charged with reviewing public comments and making a recommendation whether to accept the consent decree, which a federal judge would have to approve, has made no comment about progress toward a resolution.

LMC, according to Brown, “has not received a final decision from the DOJ or EPA. We believe that we are very close,” she added.

The only comment the DOJ would make to the Ludington Daily News other than the matter is still under review, is to say more time has been granted for LMC to respond to the proposed civil penalty if LMC fails to meet the terms of the consent decree.

The proposed agreement calls for LMC in 2013 and 2014, to reduce discharge of coal ash from the Badger and pay a $25,000 civil penalty for violating mercury water quality standards in 2012.

According to Brown, “the Badger is generating less ash in 2013 than it did in 2012. This is a result of the major mechanical improvements on the Badger that took place during 2012.”

Ludington Daily News



Steel production rises by 24,000 tons in Great Lakes states

9/5 - Raw steel production in the country's Great Lakes region was about 628,000 tons in the week ending Aug. 31, according to an American Iron and Steel Institute estimate.

Production rose by about 24,000 tons, or about 3.9 percent from the week prior, breaking a streak of six straight weeks that steel production had declined in the Great Lakes region. Most of the raw steel production in the Great Lakes region takes place in Indiana and the Chicago area.

Production in the Southern District was estimated at 705,000 tons last week, down slightly from 707,000 tons a week earlier.

Total domestic raw steel production last week was about 1.86 million tons, roughly the same as what it was a week prior.

U.S. steel mills had a capacity utilization rate of 77.5 percent last week, which is down from 77.7 percent a week earlier. The capacity utilization rate had been 76.3 percent at the same time last year.

So far this year, domestic steel producers have had a capacity utilization rate of 77.2 percent, which is down from 77.8 during the same period in 2012.

Domestic mills have produced an estimated 62.8 million tons of steel this year, down 4.4 percent from the same period last year. The mills had made about 65.7 million tons of steel by Aug. 31 in 2012.

Steel imports inched up by 0.6 percent in July, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute. The United States has imported 18.2 million tons of steel so far this year, which is down 11 percent from the same time last year.

Hot-rolled sheet imports from foreign competitors were up by 19 percent in July, as compared to June. Overall, imports account for about 23 percent of the market share so far this year.

Northwest Indiana Times



New Lake Superior boat tours feature North Shore sights and heritage

9/5 - Silver Bay, Minn. – When it comes to starting up Lake Superior boat tours, you couldn’t have picked a worse year, entrepreneur Jay Hanson said. A wintry spring. A chilly June. A foggy July.

“This is probably the worst year in 65 years to start,” said Hanson, of Duluth, who launched North Shore Scenic Cruises in late June with two partners. “Up to July 20, we canceled two-thirds of our trips because of the fog.”

Since then business is looking up for the new excursion line based at the Silver Bay Marina using the 64-foot Wenonah, a boat with a long history on the North Shore.

Now they’re averaging 27 passengers per cruise, better than the 25-passenger goal they had for the first season of daily cruises. Eventually, they hope to average 45 passengers, though the boat can hold twice that.

The new excursion line is filling the niche left by the 2006 departure of the Grampa Woo III, which offered North Shore tours out of Beaver Bay and Two Harbors.

At the same time, Hanson and his partners have given new life to the Wenonah, a no-frills boat that shuttled people from Grand Portage to Isle Royale for decades.

Hanson, who also owns Superior Scuba Center, teamed up with fellow divers Dan Goyen of Duluth and Richard Rezanka of Grand Rapids to start North Shore Scenic Tours.

Their years of sailing Lake Superior, diving for shipwrecks and learning about the area’s history is paying off. It’s part of the narrated tour.

“We all have stories,” Hanson said. “And what’s cool (is that) people want to hear them. The questions people ask are things I’ve learned over the years.”

Hanson put his scuba diving business on hold to devote his time to getting the excursion line going. Goyen and Rezanka, who have full-time jobs, are there on weekends and their days off. Three part-time crew members also help out.

Serving as both captain and narrator on a cruise with 30 passengers, Hanson talked about the North Shore and its history, including American Indian heritage and the heyday of the logging, trading and fishing industries. Over a loudspeaker, he pointed out geological formations, such as an outcropping that had been the middle of a volcano. He pulled close to shore to show an old fish house that had been converted into a cabin and for an up-close cruise past Northshore Mining and its ore docks. At one point, he drew near Gold Rock Point, which towers over the 1905 Madeira shipwreck.

“It’s one of the best shipwreck dives in the world that you can actually do from shore,” Hanson said as a floating diver’s flag indicated divers were down there exploring the wreck as the Wenonah passed.

The tour narration is still a work in progress. Plans are to supplement the live narration with video segments of shipwrecks and other images on flat screens. A way to offer concessions to passengers also is being worked out.

Karen Swanson of Minneapolis took the cruise while visiting the North Shore with a friend. While she visits the area regularly, she said the cruise was a rare chance for her to actually get out on the lake.

“We have been coming to the North Shore for years but have never taken a cruise, so I insisted,” Swanson said as the boat headed toward Split Rock Lighthouse. “Most of the time I come in the winter and ski, so this is a new experience.”

Hanson had had his eye on the Wenonah for an excursion line for some time. He attempted to buy it from the longtime owner, the Grand Portage-Isle Royale Transportation Line, but the deal fell through. Then, last year, a man building a marina in Superior bought the Wenonah to use as the marina office/store. A few weeks later, Hanson got the Wenonah by trading a tugboat for it with some cash thrown in.

Built in 1960, the Wenonah had shuttled people from Grand Portage to Isle Royale from 1964 to 2010. Low lake levels prevented its entry into the Hat Point Marina in Grand Portage in 2007 and 2008 and ended its runs completely in 2010, said Don Szczech, who owns the transportation line.

For two years the Wenonah was docked in Washburn before it was sold and then acquired by Hanson.

“It’s a good fit for the area, because it has a history to it,” Hanson said. “A lot of people say I took my first trip to Isle Royale on the Wenonah in 1965. And now they have kids of their own.”

The Wenonah’s certification had lapsed, however, and it needed a good amount of work to get re-certified by the U.S. Coast Guard.

“It took all winter, with the amount of work they wanted us to do,” Hanson said.

Certification came through in mid-June. The two-hour cruises started in late June. Most go south to Split Rock Lighthouse, while some go northeast to Shovel Point and Palisade Head.

All total, Hanson said he’s invested more than $50,000 in the venture, even selling his charter boat to pay for the Wenonah’s repairs.

It’s not the first time the Wenonah has been used for sightseeing. When it wasn’t used for the Isle Royale passenger runs in 2007 and 2008, Szczech used it to take people on shoreline cruises out of Grand Marais.

“It was a bust,” Szczech said. “You just couldn’t generate enough interest from people to just go for a boat ride.”

That surprised him. “I thought this could really turn into something,” he said. “I poured a lot into it and did a lot of advertising.”

Thousands of tourists visit Grand Marais in the summer. But, he said, “unless it’s a bluebird perfect day and the whole family wanted to go, it wasn’t happening.”

Still, he wishes Hanson well.

“I hope it works,” Szczech said. “Jay’s a nice guy. He really wants to make this thing work. I wish him all the luck in the world.”

Hanson said he’s in it for the long haul. He admits the Wenonah isn’t in the same league as the Grampa Woo III, an elegant 115-foot yacht that was big enough and fancy enough for gourmet sit-down dinner cruises.

“We’re more a picnic shelter-on-the-water kind of thing,” Hanson said. “We don’t profess to be anything we’re not.”

Before the cruises started up, the new owners’ efforts went into the mechanical repairs and upgrades needed to get the Wenonah re-certified and cruise-worthy. Over the next few years, they plan to paint and spruce up the boat.

Linda Napier of St. Paul was impressed by their efforts to get started so quickly.

“I like that this is just a start-up,” said Napier, who took the cruise while visiting the area with family. “It’s not some big corporate operation. They invested a lot to put this together, so they could start up this year.”

Hanson said it’s been a labor of love to turn what he described as a pickup truck taking people to Isle Royale into something more. But for the first couple of years, he said, it’ll be a learning curve.

Duluth News Tribune




Today in Great Lakes History - September 5

September 5, 1899, the DOUGLASS HOUGHTON grounded at Sailors Encampment and sank when rammed by her barge, JOHN FRITZ. The HOUGHTON completely blocked St. Marys River traffic for five days. More than 300 boats were delayed at an estimated loss of $600,000.

On 05 September 1898, the MONTGOMERY (wooden schooner-barge, 204 foot, 709 tons, built in 1856, at Newport [Marine City], Michigan as a passenger/package freight steamer) sank in 21 feet of water on Lake St. Clair after colliding with the whaleback barge 137 (steel barge, 345 foot, 2,480 gross tons, built in 1896, at W. Superior, Wisconsin) which was being towed by the ALEXANDER McDOUGALL (steel propeller semi-whaleback freighter, 413 foot, 3,686 gross tons, built in 1898, at West Superior, Wisconsin). The MONTGOMERY was raised and repaired. She lasted another two years before breaking up in a storm in 1901.

CHI-CHEEMAUN completed her sea trials on September 5, 1974, and then cleared the Collingwood shipyard on September 26th.

BENJAMIN F. FAIRLESS cleared Lorain on her maiden voyage September 5, 1942 for the Pittsburgh Steamship Co.

J. P. MORGAN, JR. returned to service September 5, 1948, after repairs suffered in an accident in June.

NEW QUEDOC arrived at McLouth Steel, Trenton, Michigan, on her maiden voyage September 5, 1960, with a load of Labrador iron ore. Renamed b.) QUEDOC in 1963. QUEDOC was scrapped at Curacao Island, Lesser Antilles in 1985.

The WYANDOTTE of 1916, a.) CONNEAUT, was towed down the Welland Canal on September 5- 6, 1973, on her way to the cutter’s torch at Santander, Spain.

On 5 September 1905, ABERCORN (wooden propeller 'rabbit', 126 foot, 261 gross tons, built in 1873, at Marine City, Michigan) burned at the dock at Goderich, Ontario, while unloading coal. She reportedly caught fire from the explosion of a signal lamp.

The schooner CALEDONIA, wrecked the previous autumn near the Fishing Islands on Lake Huron, was raised and arrived in Port Huron, Michigan, on September 5, 1882, under tow to be rebuilt.

1896: The Canadian passenger ship BALTIC, built in 1867 as FRANCES SMITH, burned at the dock in Collingwood. The hull drifted to shallow water and remained there for several years.

1964: A. & J. MID-AMERICA, a Seaway caller in 1963, was driven ashore at Lantau Island near Hong Kong by typhoon Ruby. The vessel was refloated October 5 but came ashore again days later during typhoon Dot on October 13. Refloated October 21, the vessel returned to service and was scrapped as e) UNION TIGER at Inchon, South Korea, after arriving in April 1968.

1964: The former HEMSEFJELL, a pre-Seaway trader, was also blown aground at Hong Kong as d) PROSPERITY during typhoon Ruby but released on October 5. It was scrapped in Thailand during 1972.

1964: The three-year old bulk carrier LEECLIFFE HALL sank in the St. Lawrence, 65 miles below Quebec City, following a collision with the APOLLONIA. Efforts to beach the ship failed and three lives were lost. The hull was dynamited as a hazard to navigation in 1966. The latter, a Greek freighter, had been a Seaway trader in 1964 and was repaired at Levis, QC. The ship was scrapped at Shanghai, China, as c) MAYFAIR after arriving on May 3, 1985.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Port Reports - September 6

Superior, Wis.
The steamer American Victory was towed from her lay-up dock at Fraser shipyard to a new long-term lay-up berth next to Elevator M in Superior Thursday morning. The G-tugs North Dakota and Kentucky handled the tow, moving the American Victory past the also-laid-up John G. Munson and Edward L. Ryerson, neither of which is expected to see service this season.

Marquette, Mich. - Rod Burdick
Algosoo loaded ore on Thursday at the Upper Harbor on her first visit since November 2011.

St. Marys River
Most of the traffic Thursday was in the morning. Up early were the tug Zeus/barge Deegan and Alpena, followed later in the morning by Joseph L. Block, Atlantic Huron, the Marquette ferry Isle Royale Queen III, Great Republic and Algoma Discovery. Polsteam’s Iryda was upbound in the evening, passing the downbound American Century in Soo Harbor. As night fell, the downbound HHL Mississippi was headed for the locks in Whitefish Bay.

Holland, Mich. - Herm Phillips
Calumet entered through the piers shortly after dark on Wednesday with stone for Verplanks. After unloading she departed before dawn, bound for South Chicago.

Detroit River - Ted Hanifan
Baie Comeau was upbound Thursday morning on her maiden voyage with a load of ballast stone for Windsor Ont. After unloading, she will depart for Superior, Wis.

Buffalo, N.Y. – Brian W.
The R/V Lake Guardian was at anchor just South of Windmill Point off Buffalo Harbor Thursday morning. She's the first vessel east of CIP 16 in at least the last three weeks.



Duluth port gets $10 million for dock upgrades

9/6 - Duluth, Minn. – The port of Duluth will receive $10 million in federal aid to rebuild and expand a general cargo dock, according to a news release issued Tuesday by Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken and Rep. Rick Nolan.

The improvements will target Docks C and D and also will pay for improvements to existing road and train connections. The docks have been used in the past as a laydown area to store wind power equipment in transit through the port.

The funding comes from the Transportation Investment Generating Recovery, or TIGER, program, which was part of a federal economic stimulus package administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

The Duluth Seaway Port Authority has applied for TIGER funding in the past but came up empty in four previous rounds. The authority still has not received any official word on its latest application, but Adolph Ojard, its executive director, said he was encouraged to hear from congressional delegates Tuesday.

“It’s a very competitive process. There are hundreds of projects chasing very little money,” Ojard said, noting that the authority has been a finalist for grant funding in the past but didn’t make the final cut.

The port authority has proposed a $16 million project that would include stabilizing the docks with the installation of new steel pilings, dredging adjacent waters to seaway depth, better securing the area and installing turnouts onto the property from the adjacent Canadian National and Burlington Northern rail lines.

Besides applying for federal aid, the port also is in line to receive $3 million in Minnesota Port Development Assistance funds.

The remaining $3 million has already been set aside by the port authority for a local match, Ojard said.

“We’re in a good position to move forward quickly, but we’ll need to review the grant contract to see when and how the funds will be released,” he said. Ojard expects the work could be completed in one to two construction seasons.

The port authority purchased Garfield Pier, which is home to Docks C and D, in 1997 and spent about $3 million to tear down a grain elevator, preparing the site for future redevelopment.

The grant money could complete the job and none too soon, according to Ojard. He said the pier was built on wooden cribbing and the steel bolts used to secure the original timbers have been rusting away.

“If we waited much longer we would have lost the structural integrity of the pier,” Ojard said, noting that two sections of seawall already have failed and fallen into the slip.

The proposed improvements will further set the table for future development of the 28-acre site, which has 3,000 feet of dock face.

“That’s a strategic property with tremendous value, and we’re prepared to deal with multiple opportunities,” Ojard said.

He suggested the property could be put to use in any number of ways, including handling materials for the region’s paper industries or supplies for new and proposed mining projects the Range.

“Strengthening the Port of Duluth-Superior helps strengthen the economy in Duluth and helps businesses across Minnesota,” said Klobuchar in a prepared statement. “This support will help ensure the Port has 21st century facilities and can continue to play a vital role in delivering Minnesota’s products to markets across the world.” Franken said the grant would create jobs and improve the global competitiveness of regional industries.

“As the busiest port on the Great Lakes, the Duluth Port connects some of Minnesota’s most important industries to partners and consumers across America and the world,” Franken said in a statement.

Nolan said the project is a “once-in-a-generation opportunity to renovate and revitalize our essential Port of Duluth-Superior, making the port and the city of Duluth more competitive by expanding the number of shippers, diversity of cargo, and volume of shipments in and out of the harbor.”

Duluth News Tribune



Great Lakes Shipyard receives contract for U.S. Fish & Wildlife’s Spencer F. Baird

9/6 - Cleveland, Ohio – Great Lakes Shipyard has been awarded a contract by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, an agency of the Department of the Interior, for the five-year drydocking and inspection of the R/V Spencer F. Baird.

The shipyard hauled the Baird out using the 770-ton Marine Travelift. Work includes drydocking, a complete exterior repainting, bow thruster replacement, five-year survey and other miscellaneous repairs. The project is to be completed early November.

Operated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the 95-foot Baird is a fish stocking and population assessment vessel that will annually stock nearly 4 million lake trout into lakes Huron and Michigan, furthering a four-decade effort by the Service and its partners to restore depleted lake trout populations in the Great Lakes and establish self-sustaining populations of this native fish, which was nearly wiped out in the late 1950s due to invasion of sea lampreys, overfishing and pollution. Of some 90 science vessels on the Great Lakes, the Spencer F. Baird is the only hatchery fish distribution vessel in operation, distributing fish reared at the Fish and Wildlife Service's Iron River National Fish Hatchery in Wisconsin and Pendill’s Creek and Jordan River national fish hatcheries in Michigan.

To learn more, visit www.thegreatlakesgroup.com.




Today in Great Lakes History - September 6

On September 6,1872, nine days after she set sail from Port Colborne for Detroit, the schooner J. W. SARGENT was listed as missing in the Detroit newspapers, probably a victim of a August 29 storm that struck Lake Erie. Later on the same day that the newspaper announcement was published, the SARGENT arrived in Detroit. Captain William Simms stated that the storm drove him south to Erie, Pennsylvania, where he sheltered for a few days. He sent a telegraph message to the ship's owner but the news was not relayed to Detroit. The SARGENT only lasted another three months. In November 1872, a storm got her on Lake Erie.

The BADGER was launched on September 6, 1952, at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. A christening ceremony included the SPARTAN (launched earlier that year). The BADGER was named in honor of the University of Wisconsin. The BADGER was built by Christy Corporation, and is powered by two Skinner 4 cylinder Steeple Compound Uniflow Marine Steam engines, developing over 7,000 horsepower. She was the last of the large, coal-fired steamers to be built in the United States, and the only ship of her type still operating on the Great Lakes. The BADGER offers seasonal passenger service from Ludington, Michigan, to Manitowoc, Wisconsin, from mid May to early October.

BELLE RIVER began her maiden voyage when she loaded 56,073 long tons of western coal at Superior, Wisconsin, on August 31, 1977, and arrived at Detroit Edison Co.'s Belle River power plant at Recors Point on September 6, 1977. Renamed in 1990, she sails today as b.) WALTER J. McCARTHY, JR.

On September 6, 1992, H. LEE WHITE was in tow of the "G" tugs COLORADO and LOUISIANA entering the Trenton Channel when she struck a section of the toll bridge at Grosse Ile, Michigan, knocking down a 150 foot span immediately east of the main river channel. The WHITE was not damaged but a new section of the bridge had to be installed at a cost of $1.7 million. The bridge was back in service in late January 1993. The U.S. Coast Guard investigated this casualty and their report states that it was the failure of the bridge tender to operate and open the bridge that caused this casualty. The Coast Guard found that the master of the WHITE was operating his vessel in a prudent and lawful manner including the use of whistle signals.

CHARLES E. WILSON completed her sea trials in 1973. Renamed b.) JOHN J. BOLAND in 2000.

GEORGIAN BAY collided with the steamer CHARLES HUBBARD in the fog-covered lower St. Marys River September 6, 1955.

On September 6, 1989, the twin-screw rail car ferry GRAND RAPIDS left Muskegon, Michigan, in tow of the tugs ANGLIAN LADY and PRINCESS NO 1, and arrived at Port Maitland, Ontario, on September 11th. Scrapping was completed in the fall of 1994.

On September 6, 1887, BLUE BELL (2-mast wooden scow-schooner, 84 foot, 122 gross tons, built in 1867, at Milwaukee, Wisconsin) was carrying lumber from Wilt's Bay, Michigan, to Milwaukee when she missed the harbor entrance at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, in a storm. She was driven ashore where she broke up. Her crew made it to the beach with the aid of the local U.S. Life Saving crew. The total loss was valued at $5,000.

On September 6,1871, the wooden schooner ROSA STEARNS, loaded with coal, was battling a storm for hours off Cleveland, Ohio. The ship was driven on the stone breakwater about 1 a.m. and was pounded to pieces. The crew jumped onto the breakwater and crawled to safety as the waves crashed over them.

1908: The wooden steamer CHAUNCY HURLBUT began leaking and was beached at Whitefish Point, Lake Superior, along a rough and rocky shore. It became a total loss and the hull was removed in August 1910 and sunk in deep water.

2009: ALGOPORT ran into heavy weather from tropical storm DeJuan while under tow of the PACIFIC HICKORY, broke up and sank in the Philippine Sea about a week's tow from the destination of Jiangyin, China.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Manistee.





Today in Great Lakes History - September 7

On September 7, 1978, the ROGER M. KYES lost all power in Lake St. Clair requiring tug assistance from the Great Lakes Towing Co. tugs MARYLAND and MAINE, which escorted her to the Great Lakes Steel dock. Renamed b.) ADAM E. CORNELIUS in 1989.

CADILLAC of 1943 was laid up on September 7, 1981, for the last time at Toledo, Ohio. She was later transferred to a West coast marine operation in preparation for conversion for a proposed container ship for service between Chicago, Detroit and Quebec City. However these plans never materialized. On September 7, 1921, the D. G. KERR pulled up to the ore dock at Two Harbors, Minnesota to load exactly 12,507 gross tons of iron ore in the record-breaking time of 16 and a half minutes. This was accomplished through the cooperation of the dock superintendent, the dock employees concerned, the ship's captain and crew and the Pittsburgh Steamship Co. as a means of "showing up" the competition. Her time of arrival and departure to and from the dock took only 19 minutes. For comparison, a good average loading time at that time was about three hours and 45 minutes.

On September 7, 1975, on the St. Marys River loaded with iron ore pellets, WILLIAM G. MATHER, forced out of the channel by a saltwater vessel, struck bottom. Upon proceeding further onto Lake Huron it was discovered that her pumps were unable to cope with incoming water caused by the damage. She was beached at Frying Pan Island (De Tour, Michigan) in 19 feet of water when it became evident they couldn't make dock.

On 7 September 1883, LAURA BELL (wooden schooner, 138 foot, 269 gross tons, built in 1870, at Toledo, Ohio) was carrying coal from Cleveland, Ohio to Marquette, Michigan when she stranded off Shot Point, east of Marquette in Lake Superior. Her crew spent 3 days in her rigging and all but one was rescued by a tug from Marquette.

September 7, 1916 - The PERE MARQUETTE 3 ran aground 10 miles north of Milwaukee.

September 7, 1996 - The American Society of Mechanical Engineers designated the propulsion system of the BADGER a mechanical engineering landmark.

The launch of the 188-foot wooden schooner ELIZABETH A. NICHOLSON was set for 4 p.m., on 7 September 1872, at E. Fitzgerald's shipyard in Port Huron, Michigan. Just before 4 p.m., a telegram was received at the shipyard from Capt. Nicholson, the owner of the new vessel, which read, "Wait a while. We are coming." The launch was delayed until another dispatch was received which said to go ahead anyway. The boat Capt. Nicholson was on had broken down. The launch went well. The vessel was painted deep green with her name in gilt. All present cheered the sight, but there was no party afterwards. All of the food and beverages for the celebration were with Capt. Nicholson on the disabled vessel.

On 07 September 1883, the COLORADO (wooden schooner-barge, 118 foot, built in 1866, at Fairport, Ohio) was in tow of the steamer DON M. DICKINSON along with the schooner-barge N. P. GOODELL in a gale on Lake Huron. As the gale worsened, the string of vessels went to shelter in the harbor at Sand Beach (now Harbor Beach), Michigan. The COLORADO broke loose as they entered the harbor. Deckhand Abbot Way jumped on to the breakwater with a line to secure the COLORADO, but the line broke as soon as it went taut. It broke three times and the barge drifted out into the gale, stranding Mr. Way on the breakwater with six-foot waves washing over it. He managed to get to the harbor light at the end of the breakwater and climbed up above the waves where he was stranded for two hours until the crew of the Lifesaving Station got to him. COLORADO beached herself with no loss of life. She was later recovered and lasted until 1902 when she was abandoned.

1901: WAWATAM ran aground on Gratiot Beach above Port Huron with the whaleback barge #102 in tow.

1929: CHARLES C. WEST went aground on Gull Rock Reef damaging both frames and plates. The repair bill topped $46,000.

1942: OAKTON of the Gulf & Lake Navigation Co. was torpedoed and sunk in the St. Lawrence by U-517 about 15 miles west of Cape Gaspe. It was struck amidships on the port side and went down stern first without any loss of life except the ship's St. Bernard dog. The ship had a load of coal on board from Sandusky, Ohio, to Cornerbrook, NF when hit. Two other Greek ships, MOUNT TAYGETUS and MOUNT PINDUS were struck in the same attack with the loss of 6 lives.

1956: The former Canada Steamship Lines freighter WINONA stranded on a sand bank at Aparii, Philippines, island of Luzon, as b) EDDIE while enroute to Japan with a cargo of logs. The ship broke in two and was a total loss.

1965: AMARYLLIS was driven ashore about 1.5 miles north of Palm Beach Inlet, Florida, during Hurricane Betsy. The crew lived on board for another 4 months keeping up steam in hope of being refloated but the ship was eventually abandoned as a total loss. The vessel, enroute from Manchester, England, to Baton Rouge, LA in ballast, visited the Great Lakes in 1959. The hull became increasingly unpopular with local residents and, in 1975, a gravel road was built to the ship to truck the scrapped steel away. The remains were later floated off and sunk off West Palm Beach as an artificial reef.

1979: INDIANA HARBOR loaded a record 61,649 tons of iron ore at Two Harbors.

1997: NORTH ISLANDS, a Cypriot flag SD14, came through the Seaway in 1994 and loaded peas at Thunder Bay for Cuba. The vessel went aground near San Antonio, Chile, after losing her propeller. The ship broke in two, but all 30 on board were rescued by a helicopter from the Chilean Navy.





Port Reports - September 7

Duluth, Minn.
Heritage Marine tugs towed the laid-up steamer Edward L. Ryerson to a new lay-up dock Friday near the Cenex Harvest States #1 elevator. The move was made so Fraser Shipyards can do work on the dock at which she had been tied. American Victory was moved on Thursday.

St. Marys River
CSL’s new self-unloader Baie Comeau was upbound in the lower St. Marys River on her maiden voyage late Friday night. Earlier in the evening, Mississagi made a rare upbound passage and docked at Essar Steel. She was expected to be back downbound sometime after midnight.

Grand Haven, Mich. - Dick Fox
The Algoway delivered a load of salt to Verplank's dock in Ferrysburg. It crossed the pier heads at 4:45 p.m. and blew a salute as it departed at about 1 a.m.

Sandusky, Ohio - Jim Spencer
The Herbert C. Jackson was bound for Detroit Thursday, having loaded all day at the Norfolk-Southern coal dock. Inbound and said to be expected about 2 a.m. Friday was the Manistee.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Goal nearly reached for Cana Island Light Station restoration drive

9/8 - Sturgeon Bay, Wis. – The Door County Maritime Museum and Door County Parks Department are nearing its goal of raising almost $2.6 million for improvements and restoration work at the historic Cana Island Light Station in Baileys Harbor.

The three-year campaign has secured gifts and pledges totaling more than $2,407,000, over 93% of the organizations' original goal.

“We are on the stretch run," said Museum development director Trudy Herbst. "We deeply appreciate the generosity and support of the many organizations and individuals who've gotten us this far.”

The fundraising campaign received a big boost from a large matching grant offered by the Jeffris Family Foundation headquartered in Janesville. The Jeffris Family Foundation preserves the cultural history and heritage of Midwestern small towns by assisting non-profits with the restoration of regionally and nationally important historic buildings and other essential preservation projects.

Funds raised to date have enabled Door County Parks to install new toilet facilities on the island and construct a visitor parking facility adjacent to the natural stone causeway that connects Cana Island to the mainland.

A comprehensive Historic Structure Report was completed in 2009 outlining the stabilization and restoration work needed on the island's historic buildings including the light tower, keeper's quarters, oil house, privy, and barn.

The Door County Parks Department and the Maritime Museum are in the midst of the review and selection process for architectural and engineering firms qualified to complete the plans and specifications for unique historic restoration work needed to preserve this iconic Door County light station for future generations. The County hopes to begin portions of the work as early as next spring.

Those interested in making a donation toward the restoration project can contact the Door County Maritime Museum at [phone]. Donation can also be made on-line through the Donations & Membership page on the Maritime Museum website at www.dcmm.org.




Today in Great Lakes History - September 8

September 8, 1936, the Interlake steamer CRETE and the Pittsburgh steamer CORNELL collided in heavy fog above Whitefish Point. After temporary repairs were made in the Weitzel lock, the CRETE proceeded to Chicago Shipbuilding to repair a damaged bow. The CORNELL proceeded to Manitowoc to repair damage to her starboard side just forward of her boiler house.

On September 8,1868, HIPPOCAMPUS (wooden propeller, 152 tons, built in 1867, at St. Joseph, Michigan) stranded in a storm off St. Joseph and was pounded to pieces. 36 of the 41 passengers were lost. Litigation continued until November 10,1884, when the owner was held innocent of blame in the U. S. Court at Grand Rapids, Michigan.

GEMINI (Hull#745) sailed on her maiden voyage in August, 1978, from Levingston Shipbuilding Co., at Orange, Texas, to load fuel oil at Baytown, Texas, for delivery at Detroit, Michigan. Passing up bound the next month on September 8 through the Welland Canal, GEMINI became the largest U.S. flagged tanker on the Great Lakes with a capacity of 76,000 barrels. GEMINI was renamed b.) ALGOSAR in 2005.

The W. E. FITZGERALD (Hull#167) was launched September 8, 1906, at Wyandotte, Michigan, by Detroit Ship Building Co. for the Chicago Navigation Co., Chicago, Illinois (D. Sullivan, mgr.).

The bulk freighter HENRY A. HAWGOOD was launched on September 8, 1906, at Cleveland, Ohio, by the American Ship Building Co. for Minerva Steamship Co. (W. A. & H.A. Hawgood, mgr.), Cleveland. Renamed b.) C. RUSSELL HUBBARD in 1912, and c.) W. W. HOLLOWAY in 1935.

RADIANT departed the shipyard September 8, 1913, light on her maiden voyage bound for Montreal, Quebec.

September 8, 1970 - MILWAUKEE CLIPPER made her last run from Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

On September 8, 1985, the downbound the Panamanian NORCHEM collided with the upbound CANADIAN PROSPECTOR near Kanawake, Quebec. PROSPECTOR had little damage but NORCHEM was ripped open near her port anchor.

On September 8,1885, ADVANCE (wooden schooner, 119 foot, 180 gross tons, built in 1853, at Milwaukee, Wisconsin) was carrying wood when she became waterlogged and capsized in a gale and blinding rain near Port Washington, Wisconsin, in Lake Michigan. All but one of her crew of seven drowned when her yawl capsized in the surf.

On September 8,1871, the schooner MORNING LIGHT was sailing from Kelley's Island on Lake Erie with a cargo of stone for Marquette, Michigan, in heavy weather. Trying to enter the Detroit River, the crew miscalculated their position and ran the ship aground on Pointe Mouille, just below Gibraltar. The crew scuttled the vessel in the shallow water to save her from harm. The following day, the tug GEORGE N. BRADY was sent out with steam pumps and hawsers and the MORNING LIGHT was raised and towed to Detroit for repairs.

1860: The wooden passenger and freight steamer LADY ELGIN sank in Lake Michigan following a collision with the schooner AUGUSTA with an estimated 297 lost their lives.

1979: The Norwegian carrier INGWI first came through the Seaway in 1960 and made about 10 trips inland through 1967. The hull was reported to have fractured as b) OH DAI enroute from Singapore to Calcutta. The ship foundered in the Bay of Bengal but there was speculation at the time that this was an insurance fraud.

1980: The idle rail car ferry GRAND RAPIDS sustained fire damage from a blaze in the pilings at Muskegon, buckling plates on the car deck. It was extinguished by the U.S.C.G. and Fire Department.

2010: The tug MESSENGER came to the Great Lakes for the Gaelic Tugboat Co. in 1984 and was renamed b) PATRICIA HOEY. It was later sold and became c) NEW HAMPSHIRE and then d) SEA TRACTOR II before leaving the lakes, via Oswego, about 1991. It was known as e) SHARK when scuttled as an artificial reef near Miami, on this date in 2010.





Port Reports - September 8

Cedarville & Port Inland, Mich. - Denny Dushane
At Cedarville, the Herbert C. Jackson arrived at 7 a.m. on Saturday to load a limestone cargo. The tug Leonard M and barge Huron Spirit are due to arrive on Sunday in the early afternoon.

At Port Inland, Wilfred Sykes was due to arrive in the late morning on Saturday, followed by the Herbert C. Jackson arriving in the evening hours on Saturday. The Pere Marquette 41 and Undaunted are due in on Sunday in the late morning to load.

Calcite & Stoneport, Mich. - Denny Dushane
At Calcite, the Michipicoten loaded at the South Dock and was expected to depart around 10 a.m. Saturday, headed for Essar at Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. Cuyahoga was to arrive about the time of the Michipicoten's departure also loading at the South Dock. The James L. Kuber is due on Sunday in the evening, loading at the North Dock and the Sam Laud wraps up the schedule arriving on Monday for the South Dock in the early afternoon.

At Stoneport, Lewis J. Kuber loaded on Saturday and they was expected to depart around 7 p.m. Great Lakes Trader was also due to arrive in the early afternoon on Saturday, followed by the Algoma Olympic during the evening. There are no vessels presently scheduled for Sunday. Two vessels are due on Monday, with the Philip R. Clarke arriving in the morning followed by the tug Defiance and barge Ashtabula arriving in the late evening.

Toledo, Ohio- Denny Dushane
Algowood is the next vessel scheduled to load coal at the CSX Dock on Wednesday at noon. Following the Algowood at the CSX Coal Dock will be the James L. Kuber, which is due on Thursday in the early afternoon. After that will be the Lakes Contender, due in on Friday in the late morning. Algolake is due to arrive at the CSX Coal Dock on Saturday during the early afternoon and the Saginaw rounds out the coal dock lineup arriving on Tuesday, September 17 in the late morning. Two vessels are scheduled to arrive at the Midwest Terminal Stone Dock with limestone cargoes in the coming days. Among the arrivals are the Algowood on Wednesday in the early morning. CSL's new Baie Comeau makes her first appearance and visit to Toledo on Wednesday, September 20 in the early afternoon for the Midwest Terminal Stone Dock. There’s lots of activity scheduled at the Torco Dock, with the Lakes Contender arriving on Friday just after midnight with an iron ore cargo. Other vessels scheduled to arrive with iron ore include the John B. Aird arriving in the late evening on Saturday, September 14. The Rt. Hon. Paul J. Martin is due to arrive on Monday, September 16 in the morning, and following them is the H. Lee White due on Tuesday, September 17 in the late afternoon along with the Algosoo also due on the 17th in the late afternoon. James R. Barker rounds out the Torco Dock lineup arriving in the early afternoon on Thursday, September 18. Scrapping continues at the Ironhead Shipyard's large drydock on the Phoenix Star.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Today in Great Lakes History - September 9

On 09 September 1889, the FOLGER (wooden propeller wrecking tug, 69 foot, 64 gross tons, built in 1881, at Kingston, Ontario) was sailing upbound past St. Clair, Michigan when fire was discovered in her engine room. Her wheelsman stuck to his post as long as possible, trying to beach her at Courtright, Ontario, but the flames engulfed the vessel and all hands had to abandon her.

September 9, 1936. For the second consecutive day, boats of the Interlake and Pittsburgh fleets collided. The SATURN collided with the HENRY H. ROGERS in heavy fog above Whitefish Bay. The SATURN continued upbound to repair damage at Superior Shipbuilding. The ROGERS continued downbound to South Chicago where the anchor of the SATURN was removed from the Mate's starboard cabin.

September 9, 1940, the steamer MARITANA, Captain Charles E. Butler, went to anchor in Whitefish Bay due to weather. When they retrieved their anchor the next day, they also recovered a second anchor. The second anchor had an oak stock 12 feet across and 17 inches in diameter. The 8 foot forged metal shank was stamped with a date of 1806.

On 09 September 1886, GENERAL WOLSELEY (wooden side-wheel steamer, 103 foot, 123 tons, built in 1884, at Oakville, Ontario) caught fire on her way to Dyer's Bay, Ontario. She was run ashore for the crew to escape near Cape Croker on Georgian Bay and burned to the water's edge.

The WOLVERINE (Hull#903) was launched September 9, 1974, at Lorain, Ohio by American Ship Building Co. for the Union Commerce Bank (Ohio), Trustee (Oglebay Norton Co., mgr.), Cleveland, Ohio.

DETROIT EDISON (Hull#418) was launched September 9, 1954, at Manitowoc, Wisconsin by Manitowoc Ship Building Co. for the American Steamship Co. (Boland & Cornelius, mgr.) Buffalo, New York.

The Steamer PERE MARQUETTE 18 sank on September 9, 1910, with a loss of 29 lives. No cause for the sinking has ever been determined. The PERE MARQUETTE 17 picked up 33 survivors, losing 2 of her own crew during the rescue.

The first of two fires suffered by the Grand Trunk carferry GRAND RAPIDS occurred on September 9, 1980. The cause of the fire was not determined.

On 9 September 1929, the ANDASTE (steel propeller self-unloading sandsucker, 247 foot, built in 1892, at Cleveland, Ohio) was probably overloaded with gravel when she 'went missing' west of Holland, Michigan. The entire crew of 25 was lost. When built, she was the sister of the 'semi-whaleback' CHOCTAW, but was shortened 20 feet in 1920-21, to allow her to use the Welland Canal.

On 9 September 1871, Captain Hicks of the schooner A H MOSS fired the mate, a popular fellow, in a fit of anger the same time that a tug arrived to tow the schooner out of Cleveland harbor. The crew was upset to say the least, and when the towline was cast off and Capt. Hicks ordered the sails hoisted, the crew refused to do any work. The skipper finally raised the signal flags and had the tug tow his vessel back into the harbor. When the MOSS dropped anchor, he fired the entire crew then went ashore to hire another crew.

The ROY A. JODREY (Hull#186) was launched in 1965, at Collingwood, Ontario by Canadian Shipbuilding & Engineering Co. Ltd. for Algoma Central Railway Ltd.

1924: A fire aboard the ship SOUTH AMERICAN at Holland, MI destroyed thhe upper works of the popular passenger steamer.

1964: A collision between the GEORGE R. FINK and the Swedish freighter BROHOLM occurred in zero visibility on Lake Huron just north of the Bluewater Bridge. The latter, on her only voyage through the Seaway, received a gash on the starboard side above the waterline while the former had only minor damage. BROHOLM arrived at Hsinkang, China, for scrapping as d) PROODOS on September 2, 1974.

1977: The British freighter PERTH began service to Canada in 1951 and ooperated into the Great Lakes until 1960. The ship ran aground about 200 miles south of Suez as e) GEORGIOS on this date but was later refloated and taken to Suez. The ship was arrested there and subsequently sank on October 1, 1979. The hull was likely refloated and dismantled at that location.

1993: INDIANA HARBOR received major hull damage when it struck Lansing Shoal. The ship was repaired at Sturgeon Bay.



Costa Concordia salvage project gets green light

9/9 - Rome. Italy – Italy has given the go-ahead for an ambitious attempt to set upright the Costa Concordia cruise liner, which went aground near an Italian island in 2012, killing 32 people.

The national Civil Protection agency said Friday the operation will be carried out later this month, once final safety certificates are issued. The exact date depends on calm seas near Giglio Island.

If engineers and crews succeed in righting the Concordia, the vessel will be eventually towed to a port for dismantling.

The manslaughter trial of the Concordia's captain, Francesco Schettino, resumes on Sept. 23. The ship struck a reef, took on water and listed badly before capsizing off Giglio's port.

Prosecutors alleged Schettino steered the boat too close to shore. Schettino claims the reef didn't appear on his navigational charts.



DeTour Reef Light to be recognized

9/9 - DeTour, Mich. – A public dedication ceremony for the DeTour Reef Light Station state historical marker commemorating the historic offshore lighthouse is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 28, at 3 p.m. The marker will be located at the MDOT scenic parking area on M-134 approximately five miles west of DeTour Village and two miles east of the rest stop, where the lighthouse is first sited from the highway.

The public is invited to attend the 30-minute ceremony and to a gathering afterwards at the Mainsail Restaurant in DeTour Village.

Located one mile offshore in northern Lake Huron at the entrance to the St. Marys River in DeTour Passage connecting to Lake Superior, the DeTour Reef Light Station stands as a proud icon to Michigan’s maritime history since 1931. The DRLPS, established in 1998 by local volunteers, has restored the lighthouse and has offered public tours since 2005.

Soo Evening News



Appeals court says NY state, not salvagers, own historic 19th century schooner in Lake Erie

9/9 - New York - A 19th century schooner at the bottom of Lake Erie that salvagers claim played a critical role in the War of 1812 and was later an Underground Railroad freedom boat belongs to New York state rather than the salvagers who found it, a federal appeals court said Thursday.

The ruling by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan was another blow to Massachusetts-based North East Research LLCs plans to raise the well-preserved, two-mast schooner intact and install it as a tourist attraction in an ice-cold freshwater aquarium on Buffalos waterfront.

The state has said it views the shipwreck as a cultural and historic asset although it doesn’t believe the ship is the former U.S. Navy vessel salvagers say it is and that its primary goal is to preserve and protect it.

“It’s very frustrating,” North East founder Richard Kullberg said of multiple obstacles in a two-decade quest to raise the shipwreck and establish a watery museum. “Buffalo needs to have something spectacular to get people to come up here.”

The state attorney general’s office referred questions to the New York State Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation, which said it is reviewing the decision.

The appeals court upheld a 2011 decision by a federal judge in Buffalo on grounds the vessel can be considered abandoned by its owners because it has rested at the bottom of Lake Erie, utterly forgotten and undisturbed, for at least 150 years.

A three-judge panel noted no owner had ever tried to find or recover the wreck, a location the National Park Service found eligible for placement on the National Register of Historic Places in March 2009 at the request of the state.

The company claimed title to the 80-foot wooden ship under maritime law but the state intervened, citing the Abandoned Shipwrecks Act of 1987. The act gives the state ownership of vessels embedded in submerged state property. The boat lies 170 feet underwater near Dunkirk, N.Y.

The state has argued the ship is an abandoned and nameless 1830s schooner that sank carrying grain and hickory nuts. The state suspended Northeast’s permit to explore the ship in 2008, saying divers had mishandled human remains. North East denies the allegation.

North East argued, and the appeals court accepted as true for the purposes of its ruling, that the boat is the Caledonia, a wooden schooner built in 1799 as a merchant vessel used in the fur trade. The British installed cannons when Lake Erie became a battleground in the War of 1812, but the Caledonia was later captured on the Niagara River and converted into an American warship before playing a role in a key victory in the Battle of Lake Erie.

After the war, the Caledonia was sold and was not mentioned in reports after 1818.

A North East expert, James Sinclair, had told the lower court the sunken vessels lack of identifying markings and the fact that its owners were active in the abolitionist movement in Erie, Pa., was consistent with the boats purported use in smuggling slaves across Lake Erie to Canada. Sinclair said the Pennsylvania merchants renamed it the General Wayne. It is believed to have sunk, fully intact, during a storm in the 1830s with no known survivors.

Kullberg said the revelation of the wrecks location through the court case has attracted recreational divers and damage.

“It’s a shame, he said. It’s just going to collapse.”




Port Reports - September 9

Marquette, Mich. - Rod Burdick
Vessels loading ore at LS&I during the weekend included James L. Kuber, Kaye E. Barker and Michipicoten.

Grand Haven, Mich. - Dick Fox
Buffalo came in about 7 a.m. Sunday with a load of stone for Verplank's Dock in Ferrysburg. This was its first visit of the season. It departed early afternoon.

Lorain, Ohio - Phil Leon
Manitowoc arrived inside the Lorain harbor at 11:45 a.m. Saturday and was making her way to the Charles Berry Bridge.

Sandusky, Ohio - Jim Spencer
CSL Thunder Bay cleared the NS coal dock early Sunday for Hamilton. It marked the first visit of the Thunder Bay to Sandusky and came one month after the 738-foot long freighter took her first load of iron ore downbound through the Welland Canal.

Buffalo, N.Y. – Brian W.
Rebecca Lynn and barge A-397 are expected for Buffalo around noon Monday. The American Mariner and the English River were both in port Sunday evening.

Toronto, Ont. - Jens Juhl
The Canadian Coast Guard ice breaker Griffon arrived at 7 pm Friday and moored alongside at Sugar Beach. The vessel called in to pick up a crewmember and departed at 8 a.m. Saturday. The Greek bulker Apollon departed Saturday afternoon after more than a week alongside at Redpath discharging sugar. A ship flying the Greek flag is rare these days. Apollon was built in Japan as the Spring Lake in 1996. Federal Margaree is in the final stage of discharging sugar at Terminal 52.

Montreal - René Beauchamp
Spruceglen, laid up since July 14, went back in service on Sunday, leaving for Sorel-Tracy.




Venerable Edward L. Ryerson slides into new slip

9/9 - Duluth, Minn. – One of the Duluth-Superior Harbor’s most familiar residents moved to a new home on Friday.

The freighter Edward L. Ryerson, which had been in layup since May 2009 at Fraser Shipyards in Superior, where it was easily seen by traffic on the Blatnik Bridge, was towed a short distance to a slip at Barko Hydraulics.

“Fraser is doing some work on the dock so we had to move out of the way,” said Tom Wiater, president of Central Marine Logistics, which operates the Ryerson.

Fraser needs to do soil testing in the slip where the Ryerson was docked, and then possibly some dredging work, said Fraser yard superintendent Mike Peterson. It’s part of the longer-term, multimillion-dollar improvement and expansion project underway at Fraser in recent years.

The American Victory, another freighter on long-term layup at Fraser, also recently moved to a new berth. It’s now located farther south on the Superior waterfront, near Barker’s Island.

The Ryerson is a 730-foot freighter with some distinctive, streamlined Art Deco styling; it was built in Manitowoc, Wis., and entered service in 1960 as the flagship for Inland Steel. In 1998, ownership was transferred to Indiana Harbor Steamship Co., with operation of the Ryerson handled by Griffith, Ind.-based Central Marine Logistics.

The Ryerson is a straight-deck freighter, meaning that — unlike almost all other freighters on the Great Lakes — it doesn’t have a self-unloading system. It was out of service for a few years in the 1990s, then spent seven years in layup in Sturgeon Bay, Wis., before returning to service in 2006. It sailed in 2007, 2008 and briefly in 2009 before going back into layup, this time at Fraser.

Wiater said there are no prospects on the horizon for the Ryerson to get back into service — but he noted that when the ship has been called upon in the past, there hasn’t been much advance notice.

The Ryerson may have some peeling paint and is dusty inside, Wiater said, but it’s been well-maintained and is in good condition. It passed a U.S. Coast Guard inspection before Friday’s move.

Wiater traveled from Indiana to oversee Friday’s move. He said he hadn’t sailed aboard a freighter in 15 years, and had a great time Friday taking on the role of captain of the Ryerson — if only for about 90 minutes — as Heritage Marine tugboats moved the venerable vessel under the Blatnik Bridge and maneuvered it into its new berth.

“I had a blast,” Wiater said. “It was well worth the drive up here.”

Duluth News Tribune

[yachtsmanwilly]

Dredging slated For Escanaba Harbor

9/10 - Escanaba, Mich. – Dredging of the Escanaba harbor is expected to begin this week with the cost of the project being fully funded by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. The Escanaba City Council awarded the bid for the work at Thursday's regular meeting.

The council awarded the dredging bid to MCM Marine of Sault Ste. Marie in the approximate amount of $142,620. MCM was among nine contractors that submitted bids to remove about 14,000 cubic yards of sand from the harbor, a spokesman for the city said.

Marquette Mining Journal






Group ask parties to declare stance on former Canadian Miner

9/10 - Main-A-Dieu, N.S. – The Main-a-Dieu Community Development Association has sent letters to the leaders of the three main political parties requesting a definitive policy statement on how to dispose of the wreckage of the former laker Canadian Miner.

The shipwrecked bulk carrier broke free of its tow line two years ago off the coast of Cape Breton during a cross-Atlantic voyage and ran aground Scatarie Island, a provincially-protected wilderness area.

The association believes each party during the provincial election campaign should reiterate its position on the provinces responsibilities to the Miner.

At present there seems a clear divide between the NDP, which refuses to spend a dime on a salvage and places all responsibility on federal authorities, and the Liberals and Progressive Conservatives, who recognize the political and moral imperative of provincial as well as federal action, said association committee member Sean Howard.

The Main-a-Dieu Community Development Associations own position on the Miner is its complete removal from the island, followed by a comprehensive site remediation.

Howard said from the day the ship ran aground Scatarie it assigned primary blame with the federal government for licensing the towing of the vessel without securing an adequate bond or insurance from the owners. However, with Ottawa’s inaction, the Nova Scotia government should also be politically and morally obligated to undertake a salvage operation, he said.

The association also asked the new federal Transport Minister Lisa Raitt to give the file a full and fair review. Association vice-president Amanda McDougall said she’d like to see the same provincial and federal government co-operation as was the case when it came to fixing the damaged Gabarus seawall.

Recent statements by Minister Raitt promising a 'decision' on a possible salvage are encouraging, though it's important she hear not just from her own officials but also the community, the province and other interested parties, McDougall said.

The Greek ocean-going tug Hellas was towing the Miner to Turkey on Sept. 20, 2011, when its line broke free and the ship ran aground on the shores of Scatarie Island.

The province has maintained the wreck is a federal responsibility while Ottawa has indicated it poses no hazard to either navigation or the environment. A New York-based salvage company attempted a salvage job but the company walked away, claiming government bureaucratic hurdles.

Cape Breton Post





Today in Great Lakes History - September 10

On 10 September 1890, the PORTER CHAMBERLAIN (wooden propeller bulk freighter, 134 foot, 280 gross tons, built in 1874, at Marine City, Michigan) was floated free of the Wolverine Drydock in Port Huron, Michigan where she had steel arches installed. When she floated free, the arches broke in three places and she stayed in Port Huron to have them repaired.

September 10, 1952, the forebody and afterbody of the future JOSEPH H. THOMPSON arrived at the American Shipbuilding yard in South Chicago. The two sections were delivered to the lakes via the Mississippi River and Chicago Ship Canal. The afterbody departed Baltimore, Maryland on August 2 and the forebody departed Pascagoula, Mississippi on August 21.

On 10 September 1884, the 137-foot steam barge HENRY HOWARD was sailing up bound with the schooner-barge GEORGE WORTHINGTON in tow when she caught fire near Harsens Island at the mouth of the St. Clair River. The fire broke out near the HOWARD's engine room and spread rapidly. The vessel was beached on the island but the WORTHINGTON ran against her and was thus scorched. No lives were lost. The HOWARD was valued at $5,000, but only insured for $3,000 by her owners, B. Hoose and Julia Miner.

The whaleback tanker METEOR was towed from Manitowoc, Wisconsin by the tug JOHN ROEN IV to Superior, Wisconsin on September 10, 1972.

The KINSMAN ENTERPRISE turned 75 years old on September 10, 2002. When she entered service as a.) HARRY COULBY, on this date in 1927, the 631-foot bulk freighter was the third largest on the Great Lakes.

While up bound in the Welland Canal on September 9, 1986, it was noted that the port anchor of the J. W. MC GIFFIN was missing, her chain was almost touching the water. Rebuilt with a new cargo hold section by Port Weller Drydocks, Ltd., in 1999, renamed b.) CSL NIAGARA.

On 10 September 1909, COLUMBUS (wooden propeller bulk freighter, 136 foot, 439 gross tons, built in 1874, as the tug JOHN OWEN) burned to a total loss at her dock at Gargantua, Ontario, in Lake Superior. She was cut loose and allowed to drift out into the bay where she sank. The top of her engine reportedly still shows above the water.

September 10, 1979 - The SPARTAN was laid up. She remains in Ludington, Michigan.

The barge N. MILLS was launched at P. Lester's yard in Marysville, Michigan on 10 September 1870. Her dimensions were 164 feet x 30 feet x 12 feet.

1910: PERE MARQUETTE 18, inbound for Milwaukee with 29 rail cars, began leaking and sank 30 miles off Sheboygan, Wis. There were 33 survivors but 29 were lost including the captain.

1918: The barge SANTIAGO, under tow of the small bulk carrier JOHN F. MORROW, sank in Lake Huron off Pointe aux Barques without loss of life.

1940: A.E. AMES was once part of Canada Steamship Lines. The vessel was sold for saltwater service about 1917 and was lost, via enemy action, as c) GINETTE LEBORGNE on this date in 1940 when it struck a mine on the Mediterranean, west of Sardinia, while returning demobilized troops from North Africa to France.





Port Reports - September 10

Alpena, Mich. - Ben & Chanda McClain
Sunday evening the tug Samuel de Champlain and its barge Innovation came into Lafarge to load cement. The tug G.L Ostrander and barge Integrity followed the de Champlain under the silos. Monday morning the Alpena was waiting out in the bay and headed into port once the Ostrander departed.

Saginaw River - Todd Shorkey
American Integrity was inbound on the Saginaw Bay early Monday morning, headed for the Consumers Energy dock in Essexville to unload. Once finished, she backed from the dock and out to Light 12, before turning around and heading for the lake. American integrity was outbound by 9 a.m. Monday.

Sandusky, Ohio - Jim Spencer
Manistee loaded for Green Bay overnight Sunday and was upbound on Lake Huron by early evening Monday.

Buffalo, N.Y. - Brian W.
American Mariner remained at General Mills and the Rebecca Lynn was at the Noco Product Terminal in Tonawanda Monday evening. English River departed overnight and was downbound in the Welland Canal at 7 a.m., headed for Bath, Ont., to load more cement.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Heavy rains bring Lake Erie levels back to normal

9/11 - Erie, Pa. – A wetter-than-usual year has been good for Lake Erie and the rest of the Great Lakes basin. Water levels across the Great Lakes are up, with Lake Erie now above its long-term average for the first time in more than two years.

The latest forecast from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which tracks water levels, calls for Erie to remain above its long-term average for at least the next six months.

This turnabout is in stark contrast to a year ago, when each of the Great Lakes was either at or closing in on record low levels. Sunday's pool level for Lake Erie was reported at 571.36 feet, slightly above the long-term average for that day of 570.80 feet.

Compared with a year ago, Lake Erie is up about 8 inches. That's been good news to boaters and to personnel and visitors at Presque Isle State Park.

Before levels climbed back, "we were worried about having to close some launching areas," said Ryan Rager, assistant park manager at Presque Isle State Park. Rager said the lake levels started climbing back in November and reached average numbers in June.

The rising water levels coincide with the region's wet weather. Year-to-date precipitation for the city of Erie is nearly 8 inches above normal and 13 inches above the same time period in 2012.

According to data from the National Weather Service in Cleveland, as of Sunday night Erie had received 34.86 inches of precipitation (mostly rain) so far this year. Normally, Erie receives 26.9 inches to this point. In 2012, Erie had just 21.88 inches by this time.

A similar weather pattern has been experienced across the Great Lakes. Chicago, Detroit and Marquette, Mich., are all well ahead of average and year-ago rainfall amounts.

Water levels across the Great Lakes have risen throughout the year. Most trailed their year-ago levels until June. Now, Lakes Erie and Ontario are above their long-term average and Superior is just below its long-term average. Lakes Michigan and Huron remain far below their long-term averages but are well above their record lows of a year ago.

Erie Times-News



Manitowoc port spurs economy

9/11 - Manitowoc, Wis. – Manitowoc is one of the larger commercial ports in Wisconsin that combined with those handle more than 40 million tons of cargo valued at more than $8 billion and are the link to supporting almost 10,000 jobs, according to a news release from the state transportation office proclaiming this “Wisconsin Ports Week.”

Among the products shipped out of Manitowoc recently were 26-ton spools of oil pipe from DeepFlex, eventually flown using the world’s largest airplane to Amman, Jordan, in the Middle East.

The initial leg of the trans-continental journey was coordinated by Peninsula Logistics. Based at One Maritime Place across from the Wisconsin Maritime Museum, brothers Alex and Peter Allie and their business partner, Troy Flentje, are seeking to increase activity in the port of Manitowoc.

“The most challenging part of getting our business off the ground is getting our name out there,” Alex Allie said of the 3-year-old venture. “We have a world-class facility with heavily reinforced steel wall, 600-ton crane pads and rail access ... we’re letting customers know we can save them a lot of money.”

Water transportation is an efficient and environmentally responsible way to transport bulk commodities, the Ports Week release states. A barge can move one ton of cargo more than 600 miles on a gallon of fuel. This is more than by rail, 478 miles, or by truck, 150 miles.

In 2012, nearly 270,000 tons of cargo entered or left the port of Manitowoc. The vast majority was shipments of concrete on the St. Marys Challenger and St. Marys Conquest to the St Marys Cement terminal across from the Manitowoc River peninsula manufacturing complex, City Centre, with Peter Allie the principal owner.

The concrete is then delivered to Vinton Construction for road projects, as well as Crew, Fricke and Harvey said Michael Dailey, plant manager for St Marys Cement with its own vessels and port operation. But that is only one commodity that can be efficiently moved via waterways. “We would like to get in more bulk cargo ... pig iron, steel coils, aluminum billets, brass copper coils for the Fox Valley and local businesses,” Flentje said.

“We think there is a lot of potential, underused river footage here that we can put to work especially with the warehousing the Allie family has,” he said.

“I think the growth we’re going to have will take a couple of years until the economy really turns around,” Peter Allie said. “A lot of companies out there haven’t really looked into shipping by water, or even rail.”

The trio have two Manitowoc Company cranes on site that have loaded stone and granite from quarries for shipment by Michaels Corporation out of Brownsville.

Fiberglas tanks were loaded on to a barge for eventual delivery to a nickel mine in Labrador, Canada.

They said their facility is maritime security approved by the U.S. Coast Guard, which allows them to bring in foreign flag vessels from anywhere in the world.

And, unless the straits of Mackinac are frozen over, the shipments from Manitowoc head north out the Great Lakes to the St. Lawrence Seaway and into the Atlantic Ocean or south to Chicago, connecting with the Mississippi River and into the Gulf of Mexico, possibly through the Panama Canal to the Pacific Ocean.

“There’s no glitter to this but Manitowoc is a hardworking port with economic impact to the community,” said James Anderson, chairman of the city’s Harbor Commission. “With an environmental science degree, I thought being connected to water resources would be a good fit with me.”

Anderson and city Harbormaster Paul Braun from the Planning Department, said a hot button issue is dredging, which was last performed in Manitowoc in 2009 with federal stimulus funds.

A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports indicates dredging is currently required and, if not done, could result is job loss locally and regionally.

Its reports states if the harbor was closed to commercial traffic, commodities would have to be transported by rail or truck with increased costs and emissions from exhaust.

Dailey confirmed loss of channel depth results in light loading and increased transportation costs. When arriving in Manitowoc, the Conquest and Challenger’s hulls are going down about 17 feet into the river.

“We need another two or three feet for fuller loads,” Dailey said. He recently told the commission his company had been awarded a $475,000 Harbor Assistance Grant with the state picking up 80 percent and the Canadian-headquartered company the remainder for a dredging project.

“The depth of the water is the key to having commerce,” said Ron Cleveringa, vice president of sales and marketing for Burger Boat Co., the Manitowoc manufacturer since 1863 initially of small fishing boats and eventually wooden military minesweepers, as well as renowned luxury yachts and commercial vessels.

“From our perspective, we have to be careful we don’t take on something that when we put it in the water, it hits the bottom,” Cleveringa said. “The more water, the more opportunity for Burger and anybody else who uses the river.”

He said Burger Boat is in the final design stage for the Grayling, a fisheries research vessel commissioned by the U.S. Geological Survey to be fabricated in its Manitowoc shipyard for delivery in 2014.

In recent years, Burger also built a vessel for the state Department of Natural Resources and Chicago’s Leading Lady for tourist cruising.

He said the company continues to do refit and repair work for commercial vessels and yachts and supports other shipyards.

Barges filled with giant stone for shoreline reinforcement projects are also part of the economic impact generated for Manitowoc by having a commercial port.

There also is human cargo. Jason Ring, president of the Manitowoc Area Visitor & Convention Bureau, said Great Lakes Cruise Co.’s Grand Mariner docked in Manitowoc five times this year.

“Greet the day in lovely Manitowoc, WI, nestled on the sparking shores of Lake Michigan,” declares its marketing brochure.

“Most times, the ship has 84 passengers ... they dock and take on supplies while the passengers explore downtown,” Ring said, noting Beerntsen’s Confectionary and its old-fashioned candy and ice cream store is popular with the maritime tourists.

They also spend time and money at other businesses and attractions, like the Wisconsin Maritime Museum and Rahr-West Art Museum, Ring said.

Rich Larsen is the president and general manager of the Manitowoc Marina, less than a half-mile from where the Grand Mariner and the Niagara Princess dock in the Manitowoc River near the Cobia submarine.

His business also is part of the economic mix of a commercial port and Lake Michigan harbor. Larsen has entered into a long-term lease to use 20,000 square feet in a new storage facility the Allies are creating on Wollmer Street near their peninsula operations.

Larsen said a travel lift will be able to take boats up to about 90 feet in length the couple of blocks from the river dock to the new facility.

Larsen hopes to lure additional boat owners for winter storage and-or mechanical and maintenance work similar to what the marina already does at its Maritime Boulevard operation. “It’s all about jobs,” he said.

Manitowoc Herald Times




Today in Great Lakes History - September 11

1872, at Milwaukee, the Wisconsin, which was transferred to the Atlantic coast from Lake Erie in 1898, struck Romer Shoal off the shore of Staten Island and was wrecked. She was sailing from Norfolk, Virginia to Saco, Maine at the time. Her crew managed to reach the Life Saving Station through the heavy surf.

September 11, 1969, the Bethlehem steamer LEHIGH, Captain Loren A. Falk, delivered the first cargo to the new Bethlehem Steel mill at Burns Harbor, Indiana. The cargo consisted of 15,700 tons of taconite pellets loaded at Taconite Harbor, Minnesota.

On 11 September 1883, EXPLORER (2-mast wooden schooner, 48 foot, 33 gross tons, built in 1866, at Chatham, Ontario) struck rocks and went down on Stokes Bay on the outside of the Bruce Peninsula. Her crew was visible from shore clinging to the wreck until the vessel broke up. All five were lost.

The GEORGE M. HUMPHREY, of 1927, was patched and refloated on September 11, 1944. She had sunk in 80 feet of water after a collision with the steamer D.M. CLEMSON, of 1916, off Old Point Light, on June 15, 1943. On May 6, 1944, the barges MAITLAND NO. 1 and HILDA were employed as pontoons for the salvage operation positioned over the sunken hull. Cables were attached to the HUMPHREY's hull and to the barges. The hull was raised through a series of lifts, which allowed it to be brought into shallower water. Partial buoyancy was provided by the HUMPHREY's ballast tanks, which were pumped out to about 25 percent of capacity. The HUMPHREY was patched and refloated on September 11, 1944. She was taken to the Manitowoc Ship Building Co. first for an estimate of repairs, which totaled $469,400, and then was towed to Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin for reconditioning which was completed at a reported cost of $437,000. Captain John Roen's Roen Transportation Co. assumed ownership on September 18, 1944, and the next year the ship was renamed b.) CAPTAIN JOHN ROEN. She re-entered service on May 1, 1945, chartered to the Pioneer Steamship Co. on a commission basis. Renamed c.) ADAM E. CORNELIUS in 1948, and d.) CONSUMERS POWER in 1958. She was scrapped at Kaohsiung, Taiwan in 1988.

September 11, 2001, the former Bob-Lo boat STE. CLAIRE was towed from Detroit to Toledo by Gaelic's tug SHANNON. In August 2005, she was taken to Belanger Park in River Rouge and in the spring of 2006 she was returned to Nicholson's Slip in Ecorse by Gaelic's tugs PATRICIA HOEY and CAROLYN HOEY.

Carrying cargoes off the lakes, CANADA MARQUIS departed Halifax bound for Philadelphia with a cargo of grain. HON. PAUL MARTIN departed Halifax the same day on her way to Tampa with a load of gypsum.

HORACE JOHNSON sailed on her maiden voyage light from Lorain, Ohio, on September 11, 1929, bound for Two Harbors, Minnesota to load iron ore.

On 11 September 1895, S.P. AMES (2 mast wooden schooner, 61 foot, 43 gross tons) was driven ashore at Pointe aux Barques, Michigan, in a storm. She was quickly stripped before she went to pieces. She had been built in 1879, at Montrose, Michigan, in farm country, well inland, on the Flint River by Mr. Seth Ames. He wanted to use her to return to sea, but he died the day before her hull was launched.

On 11 September 1876, the schooner HARVEST HOME sank on Lake Michigan while bound from Chicago for Cleveland with a load of scrap iron. She was about 26 miles off Grand Haven, Michigan. The crew was taken off by the schooner GRACIE M. FILER just as the boat was going down.

1942: H.M.C.S. CHARLOTTETOWN, a Canadian naval corvette built at Kingston, ON in 1941, was torpedoed and sunk by U-517 on the St. Lawrence near Cap Chat, QC. Nine of the 64 on board were lost. 1946:

The former Hall freighter LUCIUS W. ROBINSON, heading for new service in the Far East as b) HAI LIN, ran into a typhoon on the Pacific during its delivery voyage but was unscathed.

1961: The retired PERSEUS, under tow for scrapping overseas, broke loose of the tug ENGLISHMAN, and was abandoned in rough seas near the Azores. It was later found drifting and taken in tow only to sink on September 21.

1968: GRINDEFJELL, a pre-Seaway and Seaway-era visitor for the Norwegian Fjell Line from 1953 to 1965, put into Mozambique as b) LENRO after fire had broken out in a cargo hold. The flames spread and, at one time the hull glowed red hot. The ship was gutted, later capsized and was abandoned as a total loss. The vessel was enroute from Assab, Ethiopia, to Rotterdam, with a cargo of bagged niger seed expellers and had to take the long way around due to the Suez Canal being closed. The hull was either scrapped or scuttled.

1987: An arson fire gutted the bridge and top deck of the laid up former C.S.L. package freighter FORT YORK at Sarnia. There had been another suspicious fire three weeks earlier that had been extinguished.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Lakes limestone trade up nearly 13 percent in August

9/12 - Cleveland, Ohio – Shipments of limestone on the Great Lakes totaled 3.6 million tons in August, an increase of 3.7 percent compared to July, and 12.8 percent better than a year ago.

Shipments from U.S. ports totaled 3.15 million tons, an increase of 18.1 percent compared to a year ago. Loadings at Canadian quarries slipped by nearly 13 percent, falling to 485,000 tons.

Year-to-date the Lakes limestone trade stands at 16.5 million tons, a decrease of 4.6 percent compared to a year ago, and 7 percent below the long-term average for the January-August timeframe.

Lake Carriers Association




City moves to seize Captain John's restaurant

9/12 - Toronto, Ont. – The captain of Captain John’s is ready to go down with his ship. Councillors on the government management committee gave the order Monday to seize the ship, which has been at the centre of a waterfront battle, according to local Councillor Pam McConnell.

City officials maintain John Letnik — the owner of the floating former restaurant at the foot of Yonge St. — owes almost $750,000 in taxes and hasn’t paid his water bill since 2006. The exact advice to city staff approved by the committee remains confidential and council still has to approve the next steps.

But despite the gathering storm, Letnik says he won’t abandon ship. “I am not leaving the boat,” Letnik said after the vote. “They may have to force me. We’re probably going to end up in court with a long battle.”

Letnik wouldn’t rule out chaining himself to the ship if officials try to evict him.

“Why don’t they give me a fair lease?” he asked. “I’d like to walk off the ship after ... 43 years with dignity not like a dog.”

The restaurant hasn’t served food since June 2012 when the city shut off the water supply.

McConnell said “enough is enough” when it comes to Captain John’s.

“As much as I think we enjoyed Captain John’s at the time in which he was running a great restaurant, that time is over,” she said. “The bills are still remaining and he is not going to be able to get another lease so therefore he has to make a decision, does he go with dignity or do we fight him to the death.”

McConnell admitted the ship is an “icon of the city and well-known” but added it has become “rusted and dead.

“I would recommend to him that he figure out a way to walk off that gangplank and to get on with the rest of his life because Captain John’s is over,” she said.

Former councillor Chris Korwin-Kuczynski appeared before the committee in defense of Letnik.

“He brought so much to this city and today you are going to kick him in the butt,” Korwin-Kuczynski told the committee.

Mark Richardson, vice president and general counsel for the Toronto Port Authority, confirmed the federal agency has a lien over the ship for berthing fees of more than $200,000.

Richardson said although a number of individuals have come forward with proposals to buy the ship and move it out of Toronto, any sale would need the consent of the owner and all of the creditors — unless otherwise ordered by the court.

Waterfront Toronto says Letnik owes them $140,000 for the use of the land adjacent to his ship.

Toronto Sun




Today in Great Lakes History - September 12

On 12 September 1903, the R E SCHUCK (steel propeller bulk freighter, 416 fott, 4713 gross tons) was launched by the American Ship Building Company (Hull #327) at Lorain, Ohio for the Gilchrist Transportation Company. She was purchased by the Interlake Steamship Co. (Pickands, Mather & Co., Mgrs.) in 1913, and renamed b.) HYDRUS. However, she foundered in the "Big Storm" of 1913, on Lake Huron with all hands; 24 lives were lost.

On 12 September 1902, EXPERIMENT (2-mast wooden schooner, 65 foot, 50 gross tons, built in 1854, at St. Joseph, Michigan) was carrying firewood in a storm on Lake Michigan when she went out of control in the harbor at St. Joseph, Michigan after swerving to miss an unmarked construction crib. She wrecked and was declared a total loss. Her crew was rescued by the Lifesaving Service. Three days later she was stripped and abandoned in place.

ROGER BLOUGH was laid up at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin from September 12, 1981, through 1986, because of economic conditions.

CANADIAN PIONEER was christened at Port Weller Drydocks Ltd. on September 12, 1981, by Mrs. Louise Powis, wife of the Chairman and President of Noranda Mines for Upper Lakes Shipping Ltd. Renamed b.) PIONEER in 1987.

CARTIERCLIFFE HALL, a.) RUHR ORE, was towed by the tug WILFRED M. COHEN to Collingwood, Ontario for repairs from a June 5th fire and arrived at Collingwood Shipyards Ltd. on September 12, 1979. Renamed c.) WINNIPEG in 1988, and d.) ALGONTARIO in 1994.

Canadian Shipbuilding & Engineering Limited at Collingwood, Ontario closed the yard on September 12, 1986, after 103 years of shipbuilding. Collship was famous for its spectacular side launches. 214 ships were built at Collingwood.

While unloading steel in South Chicago from the a.) CANADA MARQUIS on September 12, 1988, a shoreside crane lifting a payloader into the hold collapsed onto the ship. CANADA MARQUIS had a hole in her tank top and damage to her hatch coaming. She sails today on the ocean and lakes as e.) BIRCHGLEN, for CSL.

On 12 September 1900, ALBACORE (2 mast wooden schooner, 137 foot, 327 tons, built in 1872, at Port Dalhousie, Ontario) had a storm blow out her sails, driving her into the seawall at Fort Bank just east of Oswego, New York where she broke up. The tug J NAVAGH tried unsuccessfully to save her. Her crew of seven was rescued by the U.S. Lifesaving Service.

After an extremely dry summer, forests were burning all over the Great Lakes region in the autumn of 1871. The smoke from these fires affected navigation. Newspaper reports stated that on 12 September 1871, 38 ships and four strings of barges anchored near Point Pelee on Lake Erie due to the restricted visibility caused by the smoke from the forest fires.

On 12 September 1900, the schooner H. W. SAGE was raised by the McMorran Wrecking Company and was then towed to Port Huron for repairs. She had sunk near Algonac, Michigan in a collision with the steamer CHICAGO on 30 July 1900.

1889: ROTHESAY, a wooden sidewheel passenger vessel, collided with the tug MYRA in the St. Lawrence between Kingston and Prescott. The latter sank with the loss of 2 lives. The former was beached on the Canadian shore where it settled and was abandoned. The wreck was dynamited in 1901 and part of it remains on the bottom in 35 feet of water.

1900: The wooden steamer JOHN B. LYON began taking water in a storm about 25 miles east of Ashtabula and sank in Lake Erie. There were 9 lost with only 6 rescued from the 19-year old vessel.

1917: GISLA was built at Wyandotte, MI in 1916 and went overseas for war duty. The vessel was hit by gunfire from U-64 in the western Mediterranean off Cape Palos, Spain, and sunk by a timed bomb. The ship was carrying nuts and vegetable oil from Kotonou, Dahomey, for Marseilles, France, when it was attacked.

1919: The wooden barge CHICKAMAUGA began leaking in huge seas off Harbor Beach, MI while under tow of the CENTURION and the ore laden vessel sank the next day. The crew of 10 was rescued by the JAMES WHALEN and the wreck was removed the following year.

1928: B.B. McCOLL was virtually destroyed by a fire at Buffalo while loading and had to be abandoned as a total loss. The ship was salvaged, rebuilt and last sailed as h) DETROIT. The ship was scrapped in 1982-1983 at Lake Calumet, IL.

1953: MARYLAND was mauled by a storm on Lake Superior and 12 hatch covers were blown off. The ship was beached near Marquette and all 35 on board were saved. The ship was abandoned but the extensive bottom damage was repaired and the ship resumed service as d) HENRY LALIBERTE.

1989: POLARLAND began visiting the Great Lakes in 1968 and returned as b) ISCELU in 1980, c) TRAKYA in 1981 and d) TRAKYA I in 1982. The ship was lying at Hualien, Taiwan, as e) LUNG HAO during Typhoon Sarah and got loose in the storm prior to going aground. The hull broke in two and was a total loss.

1989: SACHA, Liberian registered SD 14, began Seaway trading in 1973. It returned as b) ERMIONI in 1982. The ship stranded on the wreck of the ORIENTAL PEARL while approaching Bombay, India, from Tampa as d) SAFIR on December 22, 1984, and sustained considerable damage. This was repaired but SAFIR was lost after stranding on a reef off Tiran Island in the Red Sea on September 12, 1989.

2006: TORO went aground in the St. Lawrence off Cornwall Island with damage to the bulbous bow and #2 hold. The ship, enroute from Thunder Bay to Progresso, Mexico, with a cargo of wheat, was released September 18 and repaired at the Verreault shipyard in Les Mechins, QC before resuming the voyage on October 27. The vessel had previously visited the Great Lakes as a) LA LIBERTE, c) ASTART and d) ULLOA. It was still sailing as g) XING JI DA as of 2011.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Poe Lock closed for repairs Thursday

9/13 - Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. The Poe Lock closed Thursday at 10:20 a.m. for 8-10 hours for unspecified repairs. Vessels needing to use the Poe were being advised to either anchor or to tie up (with lockmaster approval) at the lock wall. Downbound vessels delayed were Ken Boothe Sr. and barge Lakes Contender, Emilie, Burns Harbor. Federal Rideau was upbound. Traffic was moving again by mid-evening.

Phil Clayton



Great Lakes iron ore trade down 9 percent in August

9/13 - Cleveland, Ohio – Shipments of iron ore on the Great Lakes totaled 5.8 million tons in August, a decrease of 10 percent compared to July, and a drop of 9 percent compared to a year ago. Loadings also trailed the month’s long-term average by 10 percent.

Shipments from U.S. ports totaled 5.1 million tons, a decrease of 6 percent compared to a year ago. The August total included 447,000 tons shipped to Quebec City for loading into oceangoing vessels and delivery overseas. Year-to-date overseas exports from U.S. Great Lakes ports total 1,994,000 tons.

Shipments from Canadian ports to Great Lakes destinations totaled 728,000 tons, a decrease of 24 percent compared to a year ago.

Year-to-date, the Lakes iron ore trade stands at 35.4 million tons, a decrease of 8 percent compared to a year ago. Loadings are 5 percent below the long-term average for the January-August timeframe.

Lake Carriers Association



Dredging projects planned for part of Detroit River, Lake Superior harbor in Upper Peninsula

9/13 - Detroit, Mich. - Dredging projects are planned for part of the Detroit River as well as a Lake Superior harbor in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said.

The Corps' Detroit District announced this week that Cheboygan-based Ryba Marine Construction Co. got a nearly $1.5 million contract for maintenance dredging of the lower Detroit River. It includes dredging 150,000 cubic yards of material where the river runs into Lake Erie.

"This important dredging project will help maintain a key Great Lakes navigational channel to keep cargo moving — products like iron ore, limestone, coal and cement that are vital to the regional economy," Lt. Col. Robert Ells, district engineer, said in a statement.

Work in the East Outer Channel is to begin in mid-September and end in mid-November.

Meanwhile, Muskegon-based Great Lakes Dock & Materials got a $265,500 contract for maintenance dredging of Little Lake Harbor, located about 30 miles east of Grand Marais. It includes dredging 31,000 cubic yards of material that will be used to build up area beaches.

"This dredging project provides access to a designated harbor of refuge that offers mariners shelter from storms," Ells said. "The recreational and fishing boat traffic in Little Lake Harbor is also vital to the local economy."

The work on that project is to begin in mid-September and end by early October.

The Associated Press



Great Lakes water levels improve, but still too low

9/13 - Water levels in the western Great Lakes are back up a bit, but the debate continues over how and whether to seek additional gains.

Early this year, Lake Superior's water level was well down, and the connected lakes, Michigan and Huron, hit record lows. Superior is now close to average for this time of year, and the others are up some, but still below average.

At the Great Lakes Commission meeting in Milwaukee Monday, Scudder Mackey, of the Ohio office of coastal management, said climate change may bring more variability to lake levels, but generally long-term lows. “Low water impacts on Lake Michigan [and] Huron may remain if we continue to have increased evaporation and decreased precipitation, irrespective if we've put in a 5-10” compensatory structures in the upper St. Clair River.”

The St. Clair River near Detroit remains a point of contention, as some say too much water is emptying southbound out of Lake Huron and adding to the problems in Huron and Michigan.

Roger Gauthier is with Restore Our Water International, a U.S/Canadian group of shoreline property owners and businesses. He says changes should be installed in the St. Clair River to retain water. He also wants more dredging in the 140 Great Lakes harbor mouths, so bigger vessels can use shallower harbors. “Michigan came up with $20 million, which was a very significant endeavor to start that process, but a number of coastal communities are highly affected by not being on the priority list.”

Gauthier says some of the structural changes near Detroit could happen within 5 to 7 years, with a price tag of around $300 million, though he agrees climate change could be the main influence on what happens to lake levels.

Superior Telegram



Steel production rises by 27,000 tons in Great Lakes states

9/13 - Raw steel production in the country's Great Lakes region was about 655,000 tons in the week that ended Saturday, according to an American Iron and Steel Institute estimate.

Production rose by about 27,000 tons, or about 4.3 percent from the week prior, marking the second straight week of increased production in the Great Lakes region after six straight weeks of declines. Most of the raw steel production in the Great Lakes region takes place in Indiana and the Chicago area.

Production in the Southern District was estimated at 671,000 tons last week, down from 705,000 tons a week earlier.

Total domestic raw steel production last week was about 1.87 million tons, up from 1.86 million a week prior

U.S. steel mills had a capacity utilization rate of 78.1 percent last week, which is up from 77.5 percent a week earlier. The capacity utilization rate had been 70.4 percent at the same time last year.

So far this year, domestic steel producers have had a capacity utilization rate of 77.2 percent, which is up from 77 percent during the same period in 2012.

Domestic mills have produced an estimated 66.5 million tons of steel this year, down 4.4 percent from the same period last year. The mills had made about 69.4 million tons of steel by Sept. 7, 2012.

Steel exports increased by 2.2 percent in July over June, according to the American Institute for International Steel. Total steel exports rose to 1.087 million tons in July, up from 1.064 million the month prior.

The demand for steel internationally remains weak despite the gain. Exports have dropped 9.5 percent so far this year, compared to the same period in 2012.

Northwest Indiana Times



We Energies asks to close plant in city

9/13 - Marquette, Mich. - We Energies has filed a request with its regional transmission organization to suspend operations at the Presque Isle Power Plant.

The request comes just weeks after Cliffs Natural Resources announced it would switch electric suppliers for the Empire and Tilden mines, shifting from We Energies to Chicago-based Integrys Energy Services Inc.

"The reason that we have made that filing and have requested to suspend operations ... was because after the decision by the mines to change the power suppliers, we had to rebalance our supply in order to better match what is now a reduced demand," We Energies spokesman Brian Manthey said today. "That supply comes from the Presque Isle Power Plant, for the most part."

We Energies filed a recent request with its regional transmission organization to suspend operations at the Presque Isle Power Plant, seen here from Lake Superior. The request, officials said, is a direct result of a decision by Cliffs Natural Resources to no longer purchase power from We Energies. (Journal photo by Jackie Stark)

Cliffs energy usage totaled about 85 percent of We Energies' electrical demand in Michigan, Manthey said.

The request - filed recently with the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, which oversees electric distribution in 15 states and the Canadian province of Manitoba - calls for plant operations to be suspended beginning in February of 2014. Manthey said officials anticipate an approved suspension would be for about a year. The company would then have the ability to request extensions.

However, if MISO ultimately decides the plant is too vital to the stability and reliability of the regional electric grid, the organization may agree to offer "system support resource payments" to We Energies in exchange for keeping the plant in operation. Those payments may ultimately be factored into electric rates across the MISO footprint.

"We've got to look at whatever options or whatever is out there to rebalance the supply or to take a look at what the costs are and if the costs should be borne at this point, with the reduced demand," Manthey said.

Previous MISO studies have indicated that the Presque Isle Plant is important to regional electric reliability, but have advised against the construction of additional major transmission infrastructure in the event the plant is operational.

The Cliffs decision has also impacted the long-term prospects for the plant, and Manthey said officials are revisiting the specifics of a joint venture with Cadillac-based Wolverine Power Cooperative.

The original deal called for Wolverine to invest between $130 million and $140 million in pollution controls at the plant, in exchange for a minority share.

"Because of the change in our perspective to the plant, our supply of power, we have talked with Wolverine about making changes in the joint agreement," Manthey said. "For the long term, unless changes can be made to the agreement, the situation could lead to the full or partial death of the plant."

Manthey would not state what changes, exactly, We Energies officials were hoping to see.

He said the current agreement has been approved by the public service commissions of both Michigan and Wisconsin, as well as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Approval is still needed from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.

Ken Bradstreet, government affairs consultant with Wolverine, verified today that talks were ongoing with We Energies. He said the specific details of the discussions were unknown.

"Of course we're talking to We Energies, because this is an important project we're engaged in and there's some real significant issues that have come out as a result of the decision by Cliffs," he said. "We're still continuing to pursue the necessary permits, and we'll continue to do so until instructed otherwise."

About 170 people are currently employed at the Presque Isle Power Plant.

The Mining Journal



Red Cliff band resumes barrel recovery operation off North Shore

9/13 - Duluth, Minn. – The U.S. Coast Guard confirmed Wednesday that a barrel recovery operation is in progress on Lake Superior near the McQuade Safe Harbor.

A crane on a platform being held by a tugboat could be seen at the popular landing Wednesday afternoon about 13 miles northeast of Duluth. Buoys marked a safety zone around the area.

According to the Coast Guard, it’s a continuation of a project being paid for with $3.3 million of U.S. Department of Defense money through the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa based near Bayfield.

The band raised 25 barrels last summer through its contractor, EMR of Duluth, and found that they contained active explosives — detonators for cluster bombs — along with other industrial waste. Experts earlier this year said the materials did not pose any immediate threat to human health or the environment.

The cache was 45 barrels short of what the band had planned to pull up in 2012. The band cut back on its earlier plan to retrieve 70 barrels to save enough money to deal with the explosives, Melonee Montano told the News Tribune in March. She’s the band’s environmental director.

Messages left with officials with the Red Cliff band were not immediately returned Wednesday.

Because there were no federal Department of Transportation approved facilities to receive explosives on the Great Lakes, and because they couldn’t get a waiver, Red Cliff and EMR staff took the detonators out of the old, rusting barrels, placed them in new containers and threw them back in the lake. In March, band officials said they hoped to get waivers to recover and bring the containers to shore by summer.

It isn’t clear if the effort seen Wednesday was an attempt to claim the barrels dropped last year.

It is estimated that nearly 1,500 barrels from a Honeywell weapons plant in the Twin Cities area were secretly dumped in Lake Superior between 1957 and 1962. They were hauled north of Duluth and dumped offshore from the Lester River area and up to Two Harbors. The existence of the barrels wasn’t confirmed until 1977 and several recovery efforts have been made since then.

Most examinations of the contents of the barrels in the 1990s determined that they were generally safe and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Minnesota Pollution Control Agency concluded that more recovery wasn’t necessary.

The Red Cliff band took up the cause in 2005 when it found it could use federal grants to do more study.

Duluth News Tribune




Today in Great Lakes History - September 13

On 13 September 1894, the GLOBE (steel propeller package freighter, 330 foot, 2,995 gross tons) was launched by the Globe Iron Works (Hull #53) at Cleveland, Ohio. She was lengthened to 400 feet and converted to a bulk freighter in 1899, when she was acquired by the Bessemer Steamship Company and renamed JAMES B. EADS. She lasted until 1967, when she was scrapped at Port Weller Drydocks.

On 13 September 1872, the wooden schooner RAPID left Pigeon Bay, Ontario bound for Buffalo, New York with 5000 railroad ties. While on Lake Erie, a storm blew in and Capt. Henderson decided to turn for Rondeau. While turning, the vessel capsized. Annie Brown, the cook, was trapped below decks and drowned. The seven other crew members strapped themselves to the rail and waited to be rescued. One by one they died. Finally, 60-hours later, the schooner PARAGON found the floating wreck with just one man, James Low, the first mate, barely alive.

The EDMUND FITZGERALD's sea trials occurred on September 13, 1958.

The HOFFMAN (United States Army Corps of Engineers Twin Screw Hopper Dredge) collided with the Japanese salty KUNISHIMA MARU at Toledo, Ohio, September 13, 1962. Reportedly the blame was placed on the pilot of the Japanese salty. Apparently the damage was minor.

On September 13, 1968, the AUGUST ZIESING grounded in fog 200 yards above the Rock Cut in the St. Marys River. The grounded vessel swung into the shipping channel blocking it until September 15th when lightering was completed.

September 13, 1953 - PERE MARQUETTE 22 made her second maiden voyage since she was new in 1924. She was cut in half, lengthened, had new boilers and engines installed.

On 13 September 1875, CITY OF BUFFALO (wooden schooner, 91 foot, 128 tons, built in 1859, at Buffalo, New York, as a propeller canal boat) beached and sank after striking a rock in the St. Marys River. The tug MAGNET worked for days to release her before she went to pieces on 19 September. No lives were lost.

On 13 September 1871, the bark S D POMEROY was anchored off Menominee, Michigan, during a storm. Archie Dickie, James Steele, John Davidson and James Mechie were seen to lower the yawl to go to shore. Later the empty yawl drifted ashore and then the bodies of all four men floated in.

1967 – The former Great Lakes passenger ship NORTH AMERICAN sank in the Atlantic (40.46 N / 68.53 W) while under tow for a new career as a training ship at Piney Point, Maryland.

1988 – The Cypriot freighter BLUESTONE, at Halifax since August 19, had 3 crewmembers jump ship at the last minute claiming unsafe conditions due to corrosion in the tank tops, but this could not be checked as the vessel was loaded.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Great news for the humans AND the bunny huggers! Of course its all about money too though. How many trees had to die and coal get burned to run the power plants to run the lights, make the paper and fuel the legislators cars to get to the air conditioned HILL to lobby? It all plays into the big picture, but does prove letter writing carries a little weight anyhow! ws




Motion to accept consent decree good news for SS Badger

9/14 - Ludington, Mich. – Lake Michigan Carferry is one major step closer to being allowed until the end of 2014 to complete a coal ash retention system that would allow the SS Badger to continue its 60-year history of sailing on Lake Michigan.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a motion to enter the consent decree proposed concerning the SS Badger's discharge of coal ash into Lake Michigan.

Lake Michigan Carferry (LMC) announced Friday evening that "after a thorough and lengthy evaluation of the more than 7,000 public comments submitted during the consent decree public comment period" that the DOJ and EPA filed the motion to enter the decree.

A federal judge will still have to accept it. The agreement will result in the elimination of the Badger’s ash discharge prior to the start of the 2015 sailing season.

“The consent decree process has been extensive and has taken much longer than we had hoped. This action is a huge milestone on the long road we have been traveling to keep the Badger sailing. This ensures that the Badger will be sailing long into the future,” stated Bob Manglitz President & CEO of LMC.

“The revised consent decree has been strengthened based on public comments on the proposed consent decree that was lodged in March,” said EPA Region 5 Administrator Susan Hedman. “These revisions increase certainty that the S.S. Badger will stop discharging coal ash to Lake Michigan at the end of the 2014 sailing season.”

According to the EPA, the proposed consent decree has been revised to double stipulated penalties for non-compliance with the deadline for ceasing coal ash discharges, to limit the mercury and coal ash content of coal used by the S.S. Badger during the 2014 sailing season, and to require LMC to report information on the quantity of coal ash discharged by the S.S. Badger. The proposed consent decree also requires LMC to pay a $25,000 civil penalty for violating mercury water quality standards in 2012.

LMC stated it had started taking action to reduce and ultimately eliminate the ash discharge prior to the start of the consent decree process by using coal that produces less ash.

LMC has also been working toward eliminating the ash discharge during the review process by starting the engineering and design work necessary for the installation of a sophisticated ash retention system — a technology never before implemented on a steamship.

In the press release, Manglitz said, “On behalf of the 200 Lake Michigan Carferry employees, we want the people of Ludington and Manitowoc to know that our commitment to providing carferry service between the port cities has never wavered and we thank them for their strong support. In 1992, Charles Conrad had a dream to extend the carferry heritage for another 100 years. Well, we still have 80 years to go to fulfill his dream.”

Ludington Daily News.



Today in Great Lakes History - September 14

September 14, 1962, the HORACE S. WILKINSON was involved in a collision with the Canadian freighter CAROL LAKE in the Welland Canal. Rather than repair the WILKINSON, Wilson Marine had her towed to Superior, Wisconsin, for conversion to a barge. All cabin superstructure, the engine, boilers, and auxiliary machinery were removed. The stern was squared off and notched to receive a tug. The WILKINSON was renamed WILTRANCO I and re-entered service in 1963, as a tug-barge combination with a crew of 10, pushed by the tug FRANCIS A. SMALL of 1966.

September 14, 1963, the BENJAMIN F. FAIRLESS, Captain Earl C. Bauman, received a National Safety Council Award of Merit for operating 1,001,248 consecutive man-hours without a lost time accident. This accomplishment required 15 years, 600 round trips, and 1,200 passages through the Soo locks.

Captain Albert Edgar Goodrich died on September 14,1885, at the age of 59, at his residence in Chicago. He was a pioneer steamboat man and founded the Goodrich Transportation Company, famous for its passenger/package freight steamers on Lake Michigan.

The J. J. SULLIVAN (Hull#439) was launched September 14, 1907, at Cleveland, Ohio, by American Ship Building Co. for the Superior Steamship Co. (Hutchinson & Co., mgr.). Renamed b.) CLARENCE B. RANDALL in 1963. She was scrapped at Windsor, Ontario in 1988.

On September 14, 1871, R. J. CARNEY (wooden barge, 150 foot, 397 gross tons) was launched at Saginaw, Michigan.

The 203-foot wooden schooner KATE WINSLOW was launched at J. Davidson's yard in East Saginaw, Michigan, on 14 September 1872.

The steamer ASIA sank in a storm off Byng Inlet on Georgian Bay September 14, 1882. Over 100 people lost their lives with only two people, a man and a woman, rescued. ASIA was built in St. Catharines, Ontario, in 1873, and was bound from Collingwood, Ontario, to the French River and Canadian Sault.

1960: The Bahamas registered vessel ITHAKA stranded 10 miles east of Chhurchill, Manitoba, after the rudder broke and the anchors failed to hold in a storm. The ship had served on the Great Lakes for Hall as a) FRANK A. AUGSBURY and e) LAWRENCECLIFFE HALL (i), for Canada Steamship Lines as b) GRANBY and for Federal Commerce & Navigation as f) FEDERAL PIONEER.

1965: FORT WILLIAM, which recently entered service as a package freight carrier for Canada Steamship Lines, capsized at Pier 65 in Montreal. There was an ensuing fire when part of the cargo of powdered carbide formed an explosive gas and five were killed. The vessel was refloated on November 22, 1965, repaired, and still sails the lakes a b) STEPHEN B. ROMAN.

1970: The barge AFT, the forward part of the former STEEL KING (ii), arrrived at Ramey's Bend, Port Colborne, under tow of the tug HERBERT A. for dismantling. The barge had been part of a tandem tow with the dipper dredge KING COAL but the latter broke loose in a Lake Erie storm and sank.

1998: The Cypriot-registered STRANGE ATTRACTOR first came through the Seaway in 1989 as a) LANTAU TRADER. It returned under the new name in 1996 and lost power on this date in 1998 while leaving the Upper Beauharnois Lock and had to be towed to the tie up wall by OCEAN GOLF and SALVAGE MONARCH. The ship was soon able to resume the voyage and continued Great Lakes trading through 2003. It arrived for scrapping at Aliaga, Turkey, as d) ORIENT FUZHOU on August 7, 2009.