Today in Great Lakes History

[yachtsmanwilly]

Port Authority board hears cruise pitch for Toledo

11/29 - Toledo, Ohio – The executive director of the Great Lakes Cruising Coalition made good on a promise he made in October to visit Toledo and talk about how the city could position itself to be a port of call for a future Great Lakes cruise.

Stephen Burnett’s pitch on Tuesday to rejoin the coalition was made to 11 people inside the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority offices, four of them port board members and one of them Paul Toth, Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority president and chief executive officer.

“We were a founding member, and we paid dues for nine years,” Mr. Toth told him.

The coalition exists to help its member communities become more attractive to cruise lines when they select ports of call.

Mr. Toth invited Mr. Burnett after The Blade published an article on Sept. 29 that stated the port authority had dropped out of the coalition as a budget-cutting move during the nation’s 2008 financial crisis.

Even now, Toledo’s dues would only be $3,750 a year — a fraction of the port authority’s multimillion-dollar operating budget and its $283,000 marketing budget — but Mr. Toth has said the agency was looking for places to cut because of the sour economy.

Port authority revenue declined more than $3.7 million annually between 2007 and 2013. That has reduced the port authority’s budget by 35 percent, which caused 25 staff positions to be eliminated — including 13 in airport operations this year, Mr. Toth said in his invitation.

Mr. Burnett said there are signs the industry is now experiencing a comeback.

No vote was taken, but those who heard Tuesday’s presentation seemed impressed by the possibilities. Mr. Burnett fielded several questions about how the cruise industry, with help from his group, coordinates trips at and between U.S. and Canadian ports. In some cases, the ships rent kayaks or bicycles to accommodate younger travelers, Mr. Burnett told them.

“I think it’s something we really need to take a hard look at,” Jerry Chabler, one of the port board members in attendance said after the meeting. “I felt a lot better about it. I think it’s something we need to pursue.”

Mr. Chabler said he expects the full board to consider rejoining the coalition at its December meeting.

Mr. Burnett, who drove about eight hours from his office in Kingston, Ont., gave an overview on Great Lakes cruising history and his perception of market trends that have infused new life into it. Six small cruise ships are expected to ply Great Lakes water next summer, marketed as luxury cruises to tourists in North America and abroad. Many of the tourists are expected to be from Europe, he said.

Great Lakes cruises usually take 100 to 400 people, with an average cost of $5,000 per person for a nine-day cruise. They are smaller and less expensive than Caribbean cruises, which may have 1,000 passengers, but they offer a mix of different sight-seeing opportunities — from moose to museums. They offer a slice of North America’s heartland, a taste of its big cities, and the allure of some small, charming towns, he said.

“We have nothing to be ashamed of. We have an excellent cruise product in the Great Lakes. It’s refreshing. It’s invigorating,” Mr. Burnett said.

When the Great Lakes had nine cruises about a decade ago, they were credited for generating an estimated $36.8 million for the region’s economy, he said.

During his presentation, Mr. Burnett laid out three examples of day-long side trips Toledo could offer if it ever became a port of call.

They included various combinations of shuttling tourists to sites such as the Toledo Museum of Art, Tony Packos, the Valentine Theatre, the Libbey Glass factory outlet, the Hollywood Casino, Real Seafood, Mancy's, and to a Toledo Mud Hens game at Fifth Third Field.

The packages would ideally be themed. One theme could be about architecture and include a visit to the Our Lady Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Cathedral in Toledo’s Old West End. The cathedral has a five-star rating on tripadvisor.com.

Another trip could emphasize history, with a trip to Fort Meigs, LaRoe’s restaurant in Grand Rapids, the remnants of the Miami and Erie Canal inside Providence Metropark, and the Ludwig Mill.

Officials would want to strike a balance between new development, shopping, historic, and outdoorsy themes, each of which draw different tourists, Mr. Burnett said.

He said the historic theme should not be overlooked. “Giving foreign visitors a window into why people came here and settled is extremely important,” he said.

Casinos, on the other hand, aren’t as important to some Europeans because many have access to them in their homeland. Europeans tend to be “sports crazy,” though, he said, and probably would get excited about a Mud Hens game if it doesn’t go too late into the night and conflict with the time they need to be back on their cruises, Mr. Burnett said.

He said Toledo should aggressively promote itself as a potential port of call to existing cruises now to better position itself for future cruises. The cruise industry tends to flock to established ports “like lemmings,” he said.

Toledo has not hosted cruise passengers for years.

Detroit has been “one of the hardest sells we’ve had,” Mr. Burnett said, alluding to the city’s reputation. But he said cruise passengers who have stopped there, especially from other countries, often remark how much they enjoyed it after seeing sights such as the Motown Museum, the Henry Ford Museum, Greenfield Village, Greektown, and the Detroit Institute of Arts.

“Detroit really, really delivers,” Mr. Burnett said. “As a destination for a short visit, they really have it.”

Incoming Toledo Mayor D. Michael Collins and outgoing Mayor Mike Bell have both said they support the general concept of marketing Toledo to the cruise industry.

Both have said they believe the Maumee River waterfront near downtown will play a key role if the city is to ever achieve the economic prosperity some envision.

Toledo Blade



Lookback #12 – Daniel J. Morrell sank in Lake Huron on November 29, 1966

11/29 - The ore carrier Daniel J. Morrell broke in two in a 60 m.p.h. gale on Lake Huron 47 years ago today. The 600-foot-long, 60-year-old vessel, went down in the lake off Harbor Beach, Michigan, while en route, in ballast, from Cleveland to Taconite Harbor.

The hull cracked at #11 hatch and broke up quickly. While several of the crew made it to the life rafts, only one man, Dennis Hale, survived the sinking after a harrowing ordeal drifting on the frigid lake. He was rescued alive close to 38 hours after the ship broke up. The other 28 sailors on board perished.

The two sections of the Daniel J. Morrell have been located on the bottom of the lake. They are about five miles apart and both are upright. The bow sank first with the clock having stopped at 0155 hours. The stern steamed on longer and apparently went down at 0328 hours.

The Daniel J. Morrell sailed for the Cambria Steamship Company under the management of Bethlehem Transportation. It had passed its five-year inspection in February 1966. A sister-ship, Edward Y. Townsend, also sustained a deck crack in the same storm but did not break up. It was condemned at Sault Ste. Marie and sold for scrap.

The Daniel J. Morrell had weathered many bad storms in the past. Its crew was the last to see the Adella Shores, lost with all hands on Lake Superior on April 30, 1909, and the last to see the Benjamin Noble, which disappeared in Lake Superior with all hands on April 28, 1914.



Today in Great Lakes History - November 29

In 1953, BENJAMIN F. FAIRLESS, Captain H. C. Buckley, transported the last iron ore of the season through the Soo Locks. The ore originated at Two Harbors and was unloaded at Conneaut. After unloading, the FAIRLESS headed for Monroe, Michigan, for layup.

On 29 November 1886, ALFRED P. WRIGHT (wooden propeller tug, 56 gross tons, built in 1877, at Buffalo, New York) was towing the schooner A J DEWEY in a blizzard and gale in the harbor at Manistee, Michigan. The towline parted and fouled the WRIGHT's propeller. Disabled, she capsized and her crew clung to the overturned hull. One crewman swam 1,000 feet to shore and summoned the U.S. Lifesaving Service. The WRIGHT's and DEWEY's crews were both rescued but three lifesavers were lost in this effort.

On November 29, 1966, the DANIEL J. MORRELL sank approximately 20 miles north of Harbor Beach in Lake Huron. Her nearly identical sistership, the EDWARD Y. TOWNSEND, was traveling about 20 miles behind the MORRELL and made it to the Lime Island Fuel Dock in the St. Marys River where cracks were found in her deck; the TOWNSEND proceeded to Sault Ste. Marie where she was taken out of service. The TOWNSEND sank in the Atlantic on October 7, 1968, while being towed overseas for scrap.

E. B. BARBER was laid up for the last time at Toronto, Ontario, on 29 Nov. 1984.

On November 29, 1903, snow and stormy seas drove the two-and-a-half year old J. T. HUTCHINSON onto an uncharted rock (now known as Eagle River Reef) one-half mile off shore and 10 miles west of Eagle Harbor, Michigan near the northwestern coast of the Keweenaw Peninsula.

On November 29, 1974, the PERE MARQUETTE 21 was loaded with remnants of Port Huron's Peerless Cement Dock, which reportedly were bound for Saudi Arabia, and cleared there in tow of the Great Lakes Towing Co., tugs AMERICA and OHIO.

SYLVANIA was in a collision with the DIAMOND ALKALI in the Fighting Island Channel of the Detroit River on 29 Nov 1968, during a snow squall. SYLVANIA's bow was severely damaged.

The propeller BURLINGTON had barges in tow up bound on Lake Erie when she was damaged by the ice and sank in the Pelee Passage.

On 29 November 1856, ARABIAN (3-mast wooden bark, 116 foot, 350 tons, built in 1853, at Niagara, Ontario) had stranded on Goose Island Shoal, 10 miles ENE of Mackinac Island ten days earlier. She was relieved of her cargo and was being towed to Chicago by the propeller OGONTZ when a gale blew in and the towline parted. ARABIAN made for shore, her pumps working full force and OGONTZ following. During the night they were separated and ARABIAN sank off Point Betsey in Lake Michigan. Her crew escaped in her yawl.

In 1903, the PERE MARQUETTE 19 arrived Ludington on her maiden voyage. Captain John J. Doyle in command.

On 29 November 1881, the 149 foot wooden propeller NORTHERN QUEEN, which had been involved in a collision with the 136 foot wooden propeller canaller LAKE ERIE just five days before, struck the pier at Manistique so hard that she was wrecked. Besides her own crew, she also had LAKE ERIE's crew on board.

On 29 Nov 1902, BAY CITY (1-mast wood schooner-barge, 140 foot, 306 gross tons, built in 1857, at Saginaw, Michigan as a brig) was left at anchor in Thunder Bay by the steamer HURON CITY during a storm. BAY CITY's anchor chain parted and the vessel was driven against the Gilchrist dock at Alpena, Michigan and wrecked. Her crew managed to escape with much difficulty.

1902: The wooden bulk freighter CHARLES HEBARD (i) stranded on the Ontario shore of Lake Superior at Point Mamaise in a snowstorm. The hull broke up but all on board were rescued.

1950: ESSO ROCHESTER, a T-2 tanker, broke in two in heavy weather off Anticosti Island, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence while enroute, in ballast, from Montreal to Aruba. The two sections were taken in tow but the bow had to be cut loose in a storm on December 21, rolled over and was lost. The stern was taken to Newport News, VA and rebuilt. It was a Seaway trader in 1959 and scrapped at Onimichi, Japan, in July 1966.

1959: VILJA went aground in fog while outbound through the Brockville Narrows. The 14-year old ship was refloated on December 13 and had to spend the winter at Prescott. The Norwegian-flag freighter never returned inland and was scrapped at Kaohsiung, Taiwan, as c) SILVER HOPE in 1974.

1960: FRANCISCO MORAZON went aground on the rocks of South Manitou Island, Lake Michigan and the remains of the hull are still there.

1960: CATO II, a small survey vessel, was cut loose by vandals at Port Dalhousie, drifted with the current into Lake Ontario, and stranded on the rocks of the west pier off Port Weller. Despite gale force winds and cold, the hull was salvaged the next day. At last report, the ship was still intact and was owned by Seneca College of Toronto.

1964: The MARIA COSULICH was wrecked at the breakwall at Genoa, Italy, when the engine failed while outbound. The crew was saved but the vessel was a total loss. It had been built at Sturgeon Bay in 1943 as WILLIAM HOMAN.

1985: JALAGODAVARI sliced into the St. Louis road and rail bridge on the Seaway and navigation had to be suspended for seven days. The vessel was removed, taken to Montreal and arrested for damages. The ship was repaired and survived until scrapping as f) BLUE OCEAN in 2000-2001.

[ppat324]

/30 - Buffalo, N.Y. – Lake Erie’s water level in October was 10 inches higher than in the previous October, recovering from the historic drop-off in 2012. The 10-inch rise is equivalent to the water volume in more than two million Olympic-size swimming pools.

Similarly, Lake Ontario’s water level gained nearly a foot between October 2012 and October 2013, and this month remains about three inches above the long-term water level average for November.

The increases are part of an overall rising trend in Great Lakes water levels this year, according to new data reported by federal scientists. An unusually wet spring this year accounted for the resurgence of water levels, which had receded to record lows last fall and winter, according to scientists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Army Corps of Engineers.

But early forecasts indicate that water levels could recede again slightly heading into 2014.

Lake Erie, according to data ending in October, gained 10 inches of water from where the lake level was in October 2012. From December 2011 to October 2012, Lake Erie went through an unprecedented period in which its water level dropped for 10 consecutive months.

“That had never happened before in recorded history,” said Drew Gronewold, a hydrologist with the NOAA’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory.

Despite the recent rise, water levels still remain low for those who frequent the lakes. Scientists still experience difficulty launching their boat into the Black Rock Channel at SUNY Buffalo State’s Great Lakes Center.

“The level doesn’t look like it has gone up 10 inches, but then it was really low,” said Mark D. Clapsadl, the center’s field station manager. “It’s still an issue for us, still tricky to get a boat into the water from a trailer.”

Low water levels can adversely affect fish, primarily those that depend on nursing habitat along the shore, said Clapsadl, a fish biologist.

Low water levels occurred throughout the Great Lakes early this year for two reasons: a dearth of snowfall during the winter of 2011-12 followed by an early spring in 2012. A prolonged period of hot and dry weather brought widespread drought in the Midwest during that summer.

Forecasters project that lake levels will slide again during the next few months – as they normally do – because of the significant evaporation in the late fall and early winter months. When the evaporation of the lake waters exceeds the precipitation falling on them, simple mathematics dictates that water levels will drop.

Evaporation over the Great Lakes seems to concern scientists the most nowadays. The rate of evaporation in the basin has “accelerated over the past 15 years” since the El Niño effect kicked in around 1998.

Scientists think that El Niño, a climate pattern associated with warmer ocean water temperatures, has played a direct role in the “rapid acceleration of evaporation” on the lakes, along with the sudden decrease in winter ice cover and changes to lake water temperatures.

Reduced ice cover on the Great Lakes could be related to an overall change in climate, according to some scientists.

A team of scientists from the United States and Canada continues to research the relationship, if any, that ice cover plays in lake water evaporation.

Early findings suggest that warmer lake waters during the autumn months might lead to the accelerated evaporation with less evaporation during the winter months, with or without ice cover.

Lake Erie probably does evaporate as much as wider and deeper lakes such as Superior, Huron and Michigan because “it often freezes completely over in wintertime,” said Keith Kompoltowicz, watershed hydrology branch chief for the Army Corps. The ice acts as a protective blanket for the waters underneath it, making evaporation close to zero.

That would help explain why Lake Erie hasn’t experienced the sustained and historic low water levels that have gripped the three larger Great Lakes to the west during the last decade.

Less evaporation from Lake Erie combined with larger amounts of rainfall and runoff into its watershed this year bolstered the lake’s “net basin supply,” Kompoltowicz said.

Lake Erie caught up to and briefly exceeded its long-term monthly average for July this past summer, when its water level was about 1.5 inches above average. Since that time, it has remained slightly above or at average.

Scientists discount the suggestion that massive water draws for municipal water supplies, bottled water or hydraulic fracturing operations have any significant effect on Great Lakes water levels. “Consumptive use diversions are very minuscule,” Kompoltowicz said.

Lake levels have consequences for marina operators, recreational boaters, property owners and especially commercial lake freighters that often have to adjust navigation routes or the size of their cargo depending on the depth of the water.

The average water level for Lake Erie this month is 570.82 feet above sea level, according to Army Corps figures. That is down about 3 inches from last month’s average, but almost right at the lake’s long-term November average of 570.83 feet for the recorded period between 1918 and 2012.

And it’s 5 inches above last November’s average.

Lake Ontario stood at 244.79 feet for the month’s average, about an inch less than October, but about 3 inches higher than the long-term average and almost 13 inches over last November, the Army Corps figures show.

Whether the lakes locally – and regionwide – continue to recover more water in 2014 remains to be seen. “The forecast part of this can change very quickly,” said Kompoltowicz.

Rich Davenport, a fisherman from North Tonawanda, said that he has noticed improving water levels in Lake Erie but that overall levels in the larger Great Lakes basin remain low.

“Things have gotten better in Lake Erie this year with the wetter weather,” he said.

The low water level may have improved fishing in the eastern part of Lake Erie by driving fish away from the vast blue-green algae blooms in the western part of the lake, according to Davenport, recording secretary of the Erie County Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Saguenay reaches Aliaga for scrapping

12/2 - The former Canada Steamship Lines bulk Carrier Saguenay arrived off Aliaga, Turkey, on December 1, and is due to be beached for dismantling. The 730-foot-long vessel had departed Montreal, under her own power, on November 6 for a rendezvous with Turkish shipbreakers.

This vessel was built at Hoboken, Belgium, and launched on March 30, 1981. It was completed that June as Federal Thames. The ship began Great Lakes trading the following month. It was a regular visitor at a variety of inland ports over the duration of its career.

Federal Thames opened the navigation season at the St. Lambert Lock on April 2, 1984, as the first saltwater trader up bound for the year. On board was a cargo of sugar from South Africa for Toronto. It then loaded canola at Thunder Bay and 306,000 bushels of wheat at Toledo for delivery to Norway.

The following year, the ship loaded 25,400 tons of chrome ore at Duluth for Sweden. The ore had been mined in Montana during World War Two but had remained stockpiled.

After five trips to the Great Lakes in 1994, Federal Thames was sold and re-registered in the Marshall Islands as Lake Superior. It was the first saltwater ship of the 1995 season in the Welland Canal on March 25 and headed to Burns Harbor, Indiana.

Steel, wheat, flax, peas, bleached pulpwood, coke, corn, soybeans, potash, and sunflower seeds all served as outbound cargoes in the 44 voyages Lake Superior made from the Great Lakes from 1995 through 2008.

Late in 2008, the vessel was resold to Canada Steamship Lines and, the following season, it was renamed Saguenay. It was repainted in CSL colors in 2010 and combined Great Lakes, St. Lawrence and some limited overseas trading on their account to finish a 32 year career.




Port Reports - December 2

Green Bay, Wis. - Wendell Wilke
Tug Undaunted and barge Pere Marquette 41 were at Western Lime unloading stone, the Philip R. Clarke was at C. Reiss Coal unloading coal (and departed midafternoon) and the North Contender was at the VT Venture Dock.

Cedarville & Port Inland, Mich. - Denny Dushane
At Cedarville, the next vessel to load will be the Wilfred Sykes arriving on Monday in the late evening. Presque Isle is due to arrive in the late morning hours on Tuesday and the Calumet is expected to arrive in the early morning hours Thursday to load.

At Port Inland, three vessels are due on Tuesday afternoon, with the barge Ashtabula and tug Defiance along with the Pere Marquette 41 and the Undaunted in the mid-afternoon and Wilfred Sykes arriving in the late afternoon.

Calcite, Mich. - Denny Dushane
American Mariner was expected to arrive at Calcite in the late evening hours on Sunday to load at the South Dock. There are no vessels scheduled Monday-Wednesday. Three vessels are scheduled to load on Thursday, with the Lewis J. Kuber arriving in the very early morning for the North Dock and the Pathfinder at noon for the South Dock. The H. Lee White is also due to arrive at noon on Thursday for the South Dock to load.

Alpena, Mich. - Ben & Chanda McClain
On Friday all three cement carriers were in port to load cement at Lafarge. The Alpena arrived in the morning followed by the tug Samuel de Champlain and barge Innovation. The G.L Ostrander and barge Integrity came in during the evening. On Sunday the Alpena returned to load cement for Green Bay, Wisc. The Cuyahoga tied up at the Alpena Oil dock on Sunday afternoon to unload salt.

Stoneport, Mich. - Denny Dushane
The barge Ashtabula and tug Defiance loaded at Stoneport on Sunday and were due to depart around 6 p.m. Monday is expected to be a busy day at Stoneport, with five vessels all scheduled to load limestone cargoes as the season slowly winds down. Due to arrive first in the early morning is the Joseph H. Thompson and Algoma Transport, followed by the Philip R. Clarke in the late morning hours. The Lewis J. Kuber is due in the early afternoon on Monday, and rounding out the schedule will be the Great Lakes Trader due in the early evening on Monday.

Saginaw River - Todd Shorkey
Olive L. Moore - Lewis J. Kuber were the first visitors of December to make a delivery to a Saginaw River dock. The pair traveled upriver Sunday afternoon, calling on the GM dock in Saginaw. They were expected to be outbound late in the evening or early Monday morning.

For the month of November, there were 20 commercial cargo deliveries/vessel passages on the Saginaw River, an increase of three over the same time period last season and three more than the five-year-average. For the year to date, there have been 133 commercial cargo deliveries/vessel passages. This represents an increase of six deliveries more than the same period last season, but four less than the five-year-average.

Toledo, Ohio - Denny Dushane
Kaye E. Barker was expected to arrive at the CSX Coal Dock to load on Sunday in the early evening hours. Following the Barker will be her Interlake fleetmate the Hon. James L. Oberstar, due on Tuesday in the early afternoon. The James L. Kuber is due at the CSX Coal Dock to load on Thursday in the early evening and the American Mariner is due at CSX Coal Dock on Sunday, December 8 in the morning. Vessels due at the Torco Dock with iron ore cargoes include the Lakes Contender and Ken Boothe Sr. due on Wednesday in the mid-afternoon along with the James R. Barker also on Wednesday in the late afternoon. CSL's new Trillium self-unloading laker Whitefish Bay is due on Friday in the morning and wrapping up the schedule will be the American Mariner due on Sunday, December 8 in the early morning hours. Four other vessels – Algoma Olympic, Jiimaan along with the tug Michigan and barge Great Lakes and the tug Mary E. Hannah – were all in port as well.

Sandusky, Ohio - Jim Spencer
The Michipicoten was loading Sunday night at the NS coal Dock. She was reportedly slated for Windsor, Ont.



Lookback #15 – Millenium Eagle blown across Welland Canal on December 2, 2000

12/2 - Wind, particularly cross wind, can play havoc with ships transiting the narrow confines of the Welland Canal. Millenium Eagle, a canal trader under four names, was registered in the Cayman Islands when it was blown across the waterway while approaching Lock 2 up bound 13 years ago today.

Help from the pilot boat and winch lines from the partially tied ship assisted in restoring order and enabling the 577-foot-long freighter to resume its journey.

The vessel was built at Sedota, Japan, in 1983 and made its first appearance in the Seaway on November 18, 1984, as Mangal Desai. It was a frequent Great Lakes trader and, on December 4, 1989, was in position to rescue crew from the U.S.C.G. Mesquite aground near Houghton, Michigan.

Originally under the flag of India, the ship was sold and became Millenium Eagle in 1998 and continued the tradition of regular Great Lakes trading. Another sale in 2002 resulted in the rename of Stokmarnes, with registry in Hong Kong and three more trips to the Great Lakes that year.

It became Seneca, under Maltese registry in 2004 and returned inland the next year. By 2010, its last season as a Seaway trader, this ship was noted as the oldest saltwater ship to visit the Great Lakes that year.

Following a sale to Pakistani shipbreakers, Seneca arrived at Gadani Beach on March 24, 2013, and was pulled ashore for scrapping.


Saltie Gallery updated with pictures of the Apollon, CL Hanse Gate, Emilie, Fraserborg, Hollandia, Kristin Knutsen, and Tiwala.





Today in Great Lakes History - December 2

On this day in 1942, the tug ADMIRAL and tanker-barge CLEVCO encountered a late season blizzard on Lake Erie. The ADMIRAL sank approximately 10 miles off Avon Point, Ohio, with a loss of 11. The CLEVCO sank 30 hours later off Euclid Beach with a loss of 19.

On 02 December 1857, the NAPOLEON (wooden propeller, 92 foot, 181 tons, built in 1845, at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, as a schooner) went to the assistance of the schooner DREADNAUGHT. In the rescue attempt, the NAPOLEON bent her rudder and disabled her engine. Helpless, she went on a reef off Saugeen, Ontario, and was pounded to pieces. Her engine, boiler and gear were salvaged in the autumn of 1858, and sold at Detroit, Michigan.

Hall Corporation of Canada’s OTTERCLIFFE HALL (Hull # 667) was launched December 2, 1968, at Lauzon, Quebec, by Davie Shipbuilding Co. Ltd.

GEORGE R. FINK, b) ERNEST T. WEIR under tow passed Gibraltar on December 2, 1973, and arrived at Gandia, Spain, prior to December 7, 1973, for scrapping.

Pittsburgh Steamship Co.’s GOVERNOR MILLER (Hull # 810) was launched in1937, at Lorain, Ohio, by American Ship Building Co.

NIPIGON BAY last ran in 1982, and was laid up at Montreal on December 2nd.

December 2, 1975, the brand new carferry WOLFE ISLANDER III sailed into Kingston from Thunder Bay, Ontario. The new 55-car ferry would replace the older ferries WOLFE ISLANDER and UPPER CANADA.

On 2 December 1874, the steam barge GERMANIA was launched at King's yard in Marine City, Michigan. The Port Huron Times of 4 December 1874 reported that she "is probably the cheapest boat ever built in Marine City, wages and material, iron, etc. being very low." This was due to the nation just recovering from the "Panic of 1873." The vessel's dimensions were 144 feet overall x 56 feet 2 inches x 11 feet 9 inches.

On 2 December 1832, the wooden schooner CAROLINE was carrying dry goods worth more than $30,000 from Oswego to Ogdensburg, New York, in a violent storm. She capsized and sank off Ducks Island on Lake Ontario with the loss of one life. Five survived in the yawl and made it to the island in 6 hours. After much suffering from the cold and snow, they were rescued by the schooner HURON.

Duluth - December 2, 1950 - In the early part of this week there were as many as 41 Great Lakes vessels lined up in the Duluth-Superior harbor awaiting their turn to take on their cargoes of iron ore. Freezing temperatures prevailed at the head of the lakes and ore steaming operations permitted loading only of about 10 boats per day.

1964: The anchors of AGIOS NICOLAOS II dragged in a storm on the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the ship drifted aground at Sea-Cow Head, near Summerside, Prince Edward Island. The ship was released and towed to Halifax but not repaired. It had first come through the Seaway as a) ALKAID in 1961 and made one trip inland as b) AGIOS NICOLAOS II in 1964. Following a sale for scrap, the ship arrived at Bilbao, Spain, under tow of the tug PRAIA DE ADRAGA, on April 2, 1965.

1967: The tanker LUBROLAKE and tug IRVING BEECH were blown aground on Cape Breton Island, near New Waterford, NS at a site called the No. 12 Stone Dump. Both ships were abandoned and broken up to the waterline there at a later date.

1976: PEARL ASIA went aground off Port Weller while waiting clearance to head upbound to Thorold with a cargo of bauxite. After being lightered to MAPLEHEATH, the vessel was pulled free. It had begun Seaway trading as a) CRYSTAL CROWN in 1960 and first returned as b) PEARL ASIA in 1971.

1977: KEFALONIA SKY arrived at New Orleans with engine trouble that was later deemed beyond economic repair. The vessel was sold for scrapping at Brownsville, Texas, in 1978. It had first visited the Seaway as NIEUWE TONGE in 1960 and returned as b) AMSTELDIEP in 1963.

2006: The tug SENECA broke loose of the SUSAN B. HOEY on Lake Superior and was blown aground 21 miles east of Grand Marais, Mich. It was refloated on Dec. 23 and taken to Sault Ste. Marie for assessment.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Today in Great Lakes History - December 3

In 1918, the forward end of the former Pittsburgh steamer MANOLA sank during a gale on Lake Ontario. The after end received a new forward end and sailed for several years as the MAPLEDAWN.

On 03 December 1881, the DE PERE (wooden propeller, 736 tons, built in 1875, at Manitowoc, Wisconsin) was caught in a severe southwest gale and blizzard on Lake Michigan. She was driven ashore near Two Rivers, Wisconsin. All efforts to free her failed, so she was left to winter where she lay. In April 1882, she was pulled free by the Goodrich tug ARCTIC and towed to Manitowoc for repairs. Little damage was found and she was back in service quickly.

On 03 December 1891, the OGEMAW (wooden propeller freighter, 167 foot, 624 gross tons, built in 1881, at St. Clair, Michigan) sprang a leak on Big Bay de Noc and sank. Her decks and cabins were blown off as she sank in 11 fathoms of water, 1 1/2 miles northwest of Burnt Bluff. Her crew was rescued by her consorts MAXWELL and TILDEN. Although the vessel was removed from enrollment as a total loss, she was later raised, rebuilt, and re-documented in 1894. However, 03 December was a fateful date for this steamer because on that date in 1922, she burned 1-1/2 miles below Grand Point, near Harsens Island, on the St. Clair River Ð this time to a total and final loss.

Upper Lakes Shipping Ltd.'s CANADIAN AMBASSADOR (Hull#70) was launched December 3, 1982, at St. Catharines, Ontario, by Port Weller Drydocks Ltd.

ROBERT W. STEWART, b.) AMOCO MICHIGAN in 1962) was launched in 1927, at Lorain, Ohio (Hull # 802), by the American Ship Building Co.

In 1909, LE GRAND S. DEGRAFF collided with the steamer HARVARD while down bound in the Detroit River in fog.

IRVING S. OLDS was laid up for the final time on December 3, 1981, at the Hallett Dock #5, Duluth, Minnesota, due to market conditions and her inability to compete with the 60,000-ton carrying capacity of the self-unloading thousand-foot bulk freighters.

On 3 December 1872, the officers and crew of the schooner E. KANTER arrived home in Detroit, Michigan. They reported that their vessel was driven ashore near Leland, Michigan in Lake Michigan on 26 November and was broken up by the waves.

On 3 December 1850, HENRY CLAY (2-mast wooden brig, 87 foot, 163 tons, built in 1842, at Huron, Ohio) was driven ashore at Point Nipigon in the Straits of Mackinac. She suffered little damage, but she was high and dry and unsalvageable. Her crew and passengers were picked up by the passing steamer TROY.

Back during the rough days of November on the lakes, the crews of the Imperial Oil tankers would wet the tablecloths in the mess rooms to keep plates, glasses and silverware from sliding off the tables.

1909: BARGE 101, a whaleback built on the Great Lakes in 1888, sank off Seal Island, Maine enroute from Boston to Halifax with coal tar. The crew of seven was lost.

1942: Yesterday and today the tug ADMIRAL and petroleum barge CLEVECO were lost with all hands off Euclid Beach, Ohio. A total of 32 sailors perished.

1954: The tug ROUILLE sank off Cape Smoky, NS with the loss of 5 lives. The vessel was built in 1929 as Hull 83 at the Collingwood Shipyard and had been on the lakes earlier in the year.

1959: THEODORUS A., seized earlier on Lake St. Clair due to debts, went aground twice while under tow to be unloaded. The vessel was released and spent the winter on the lakes. The crew was sent home.

1963: LIONEL and MANCHESTER MERCHANT collided at the entrance to the Seaway. The former caught fire and was beached at Ronde Island with heavy damage. It was rebuilt at Drammen, Norway, in 1964, returned inland as b) SKAGATIND in 1965 and was scrapped following another fire as e) ALECOS in 1982.

1967: TORONTO CITY, a Seaway trader from 1959 through 1962, went aground near the Elbe I Light enroute from Rostock, Germany, to Rotterdam, Holland, as d) EMMANUEL M. The crew was rescued and the ship was refloated July 7, 1970, sold for scrap, and broken up at Hamburg, Germany.

1985: An engine room fire broke out aboard the SKRADIN at Augusta, Italy, and the ship was a total loss. It had been a Seaway trader as b) BALTIC WASA beginning in 1971 and first returned under the current name in 1976. The damaged vessel was quickly sold for scrap and arrived at Split, Yugoslavia, December 28, 1985, for dismantling.

1987: The former Straits of Mackinac passenger and auto ferry VACATIONLAND sank off Oregon while under tow for scrapping in the Far East.

1993: HOPE I was seriously damaged when it hit bottom east of Quebec City. The ship had traded inland as a) NOSIRA MADELEINE beginning in 1983 and had returned as b) HOPE I earlier in 1993. It was repaired at Lauzon and continued Great Lakes service through 2002. The bulk carrier was back as c) HOPE in 2004.

1995: The former Canada Steamship Lines bulk carrier RIMOUSKI, renamed b) CANADIAN HARVEST, broke in two 114 miles NE of Sable Island while under tow for scrapping in India. The stern sank first. The bow was released two days later and was also lost.



Obituary: Capt. James J. Bishop

12/3 - Capt. James J. Bishop, 87, of St. Ignace, Mich. passed away peacefully on November 1 at Mackinac Straits Hospital after suffering a stroke on October 19 at his home. He was born in Sault Ste. Marie on April 3, 1926 to Capt. Melvin (Mike) and Eileen (Hassett) Bishop.

Capt. Bishop had his own ferryboats (Fairy Isle and the Shawnee) that serviced St. Ignace to Mackinac Island during the 1960s. During this time, he started the Mighty Mac Cruises, taking tourists below the Mackinac Bridge at night aboard the Fairy Isle to view the bridge lights.

In the early 1970s, he was night watchman on the hand-fired train ferry Chief Wawatam. After that, he began a charter fishing business out of Charlevoix. Once he retired that business, he served as a relief captain for the Arnold Line and Star Line ferryboats in St. Ignace. For many years, he was a licensed tugboat captain and worked on the Great Lakes until retirement.

He graduated from St. Leo High School in Chicago and joined the U.S. Merchant Marine under the U.S. Coast Guard, serving active duty in the Atlantic War Zone and the Mediterranean-Middle East War Zone on the John F. Cushing and the Kettle Creek from 1943 to 1945. He was honorably discharged in May 1945 and was then drafted in the Army during the Korean War and served until 1952.

At the captain's request, there will be no memorial service at this time. There will be much music and merriment next summer when the family hosts a gathering on the shores of Lake Michigan to celebrate his life.

Soo Evening News



Empire Mine shutdown caused by early morning fire

12/3 - Palmer, Mich. – A fire broke out early Tuesday at the Empire Mine in Palmer, causing a temporary shutdown of the facility. Company officials said they did not know how long the iron ore mine would remain shuttered.

Jennifer Huetter, district manager of public affairs Cliffs Natural Resources, said a fire broke out at the mine's limestone feeding system, which is how crushed limestone gets to the mine.

All employees were evacuated safely, Huetter said, and there were no injuries. Huetter said no damage estimate had been established, and the cause of the fire is unknown. Cliffs Natural Resources, the United Steelworkers and the Mine Safety Health Administration are investigating the fire. The Empire Mine is one of two iron ore mines Cliffs operates in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

The Mining Journal



Port Reports - December 3

Marquette, Mich. - Rod Burdick
A busy Monday at the Upper Harbor ore dock included visits by Herbert C. Jackson, Lakes Contender and Lee A. Tregurtha.

Soo
On Friday, CSL Assiniboine hit a buoy 30 nautical miles southeast of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. The vessel reported damage to the propeller.

Marblehead, Ohio - Jim Spencer
The Interlake fleet tug Dorothy Ann and barge Pathfinder loaded Monday at the LaFarge stone dock. Loading continued into the evening.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Great Lakes continue move toward normal levels

12/4 - Lake Superior declined by less than it usually does in November, and Lakes Huron and Michigan actually rose in a month they nearly always decline. That was the report Monday from the International Lake Superior Board of Control.

Lake Superior declined a bit less than its usual 2-inch drop for November and sat just 2 inches below its long-term average for Dec. 1. The lake is now 13 inches above the Dec. 1 level in 2012.

Huron and Michigan reversed the usual decline of 2 inches for November and instead rose by 0.4 inches. The lakes are now 15 inches higher than on Dec. 1, 2012, and just 13 inches below the long-term average for this time of year.

The lakes have been generally trending back toward normal in 2013 after several years below normal.



Mackinaw scheduled to arrive at Navy Pier Friday with Christmas trees

12/4 - Chicago, Ill. – The Coast Guard Cutter Mackinaw, serving once again as this year’s Christmas Ship and loaded with more than 1,200 Christmas trees, is returning to Chicago on Dec. 6, at 8:30 a.m. for a two-day event re-enacting an annual Chicago tradition from the late 1800s and early 1900s.

The Christmas trees, purchased by the Chicago’s Christmas Ship Committee, will be offloaded on the morning of Dec. 7 by members of the Coast Guard and local youth volunteers including the Sea Cadets, Venture Crews, Sea Scouts and the Young Marines, following a brief, public ceremony beginning at 10 a.m.

The ceremony will take place at the west end of Navy Pier, near the Captain at the Helm statue. The first tree will be presented to a representative family. The remaining trees will be loaded onto trucks for distribution by 18 local community organizations to more than 1,200 deserving families throughout Chicago.

The Mackinaw’s reenactment continues a treasured piece of Chicago’s maritime tradition. Herman Schuenemann, captain of the original Christmas Ship, delivered fresh evergreens and wreaths for the holiday season from Michigan to Chicago for more than 30 years during the late 1800s and early 1900s. On Nov. 23, 1912, Captain Schuenemann was at the helm of the fabled Christmas Ship the Rouse Simmons, transiting from Michigan. On that day, Captain Schuenemann, the Rouse Simmons and 16 crew were lost in a storm between Kewaunee and Two Rivers, Wis.

During its transit to Chicago this year, the crew of the Mackinaw will hold a solemn tribute and drop a wreath into the waters near the resting place of the Rouse Simmons, which was located in 1971.

Chicago’s boating community has been re-enacting the landing of the Rouse Simmons in Chicago for the past 14 years. The Chicago’s Christmas Ship Committee is comprised of and supported by all facets of the Chicago’s boating community including the International Shipmasters Association; Chicago Marine Heritage Society; the Navy League of the United States; Chicago yacht clubs; Friends of the Marine Community; the Chicago Yachting Association, the Cruise Ship Mystic Blue and others. Navy Pier hosts the event in support of this ongoing tradition.

Free public tours of the Mackinaw will be available on Dec 7, from 1:30 p.m. to 5 p.m.



Obituary: Captain Roderick Graham

12/4 - Captain Roderick Graham of Howard City, Michigan, passed away Saturday, November 30, at the age of 84. Captain Graham had a career of over 40 years sailing the lakes on different types of carriers including tankers, cement boats, passenger boats, ferries, excursion boats and bulk carriers.

He was captain of the Straits trainferry Chief Wawatam from 1974 until 1983. In 1945 he signed aboard the tanker Imperial Cornwall. In 1949 he started work with Georgian Bay Lines, serving in both North and South American and reaching the rank of first mate. He sailed on the South American through the 1967 season, her last. He later sailed the bulk carriers of the Shenango and Bethlehem fleets until the Chief Wawatam job opened up. After leaving the Chief, he sailed the Bo-Lo boat St. Claire before retiring.

He is predeceased by his wife Joan, whom he met on the North American. He is survived by his two daughters, Lori and Heather, as well as a son Bruce, and many grandchildren.



Lookback #17 – Captain C.D. Secord needed help on December 4, 1961

12/4 - The bulk carrier Captain C.D. Secord became disabled off Isle Royale 52 years ago today. Earlier, while up bound in the St. Marys River, the ship suffered from engine trouble and sustained propeller damage. Fleetmate Sir Thomas Shaughnessy took the vessel in tow and headed across Lake Superior for the Canadian lakehead communities of Fort William and Port Arthur.

Superior was in a foul mood, as it often can be that time of year, and the towline broke in a storm. The U.S. Coast Guard ship Woodrush reconnected with Captain C.D. Secord and brought the ship out of danger. Another fleetmate, Mohawk Deer, completed the tow to Port Arthur.

The ship dated from 1900 and first sailed as Charles R. Van Hise. It began service as part of the Bessemer Steamship Co., and was an original member of the United States Steel fleet in 1901.

During World War One, the vessel was cut in two so it could be towed from the lakes and enter saltwater service. Fortunately, the war ended before the 458-foot-long bulk carrier departed, so it was rebuilt at Ashtabula and lengthened to 557 feet overall before resuming service as the A.E.R. Schneider in 1920. In later years it was known as S.B. Way and J.M. Oag before becoming Captain C.D. Secord for the Mohawk Navigation Co. in 1937.

It last operated in 1967 and, following a sale for scrap, the ship finally reached the Atlantic in August 1968, 50 years after the first attempt to go to sea was halted. The final port was Santander, Spain, and the 68-year-old freighter arrived there, under tow for dismantling, on August 21.



Today in Great Lakes History - December 4

In 1947, EMORY L. FORD, Captain William J. Lane, departed the Great Northern Elevator in Superior, Wisconsin, with the most valuable cargo of grain shipped on the Great Lakes. The shipment, valued at more than $3 million, consisted of 337,049 bushes of flax valued at $7 a bushel and 140,000 bushels of wheat.

On 04 December 1891, the side-wheel wooden passenger steamer JEANIE, owned by John Craig & Sons, caught fire at the Craig & Sons shipyard in Toledo, Ohio, and burned to the water's edge. She was valued at $25,000 and insured for $10,000.

Algoma Central Marine's ALGOSOO was the last ship built on the Lakes with the traditional fore and aft cabins; her maiden voyage took place today in 1974.

IMPERIAL QUEBEC entered service on December 4, 1957. Renamed b.) SIBYL W. in 1987, and c.) PANAMA TRADER in 1992. Scrapped in Mexico in 1997.

LIGHTSHIP 103 completed her sea trials December 4, 1920.

At 0210 hours on December 4, 1989, the U.S.C.G.C. MESQUITE ran aground in 12 feet of water at a point one-quarter nautical mile off Keweenaw Point. After a struggle to save the ship, the 53 persons aboard abandoned ship at 0830 hours and boarded the Indian salty MANGAL DESAI, which was standing by.

On 4 December 1873, a gale struck Saginaw Bay while the CITY OF DETROIT of 1866 was carrying 8,000 bushels of wheat, package freight and 26 crew and passengers. She was also towing the barge GUIDING STAR. The barge was cut loose in the heavy seas at 3:30 a.m. and about 7 a.m. the CITY OF DETROIT sank. Captain Morris Barrett of the GUIDING STAR saw three of the CITY OF DETROIT's crew in one lifeboat and only one in another lifeboat. The CITY OF DETROIT went down stern first and the passengers and crew were seen grouped together on and about the pilothouse. Capt. Barrett and his crew of seven then abandoned GUIDING STAR. They arrived at Port Elgin, Ontario on 6 December in their yawl with their feet frozen. The barge was later found and towed in by the tug PRINDEVILLE.

On 4 December 1838, THAMES (wooden passenger/package-freight side-wheeler, 80 foot, 160 tons, built in 1833, at Chatham, Ontario) was burned at her dock in Windsor, Ontario by Canadian "patriots" during a raid on Windsor involving more than 500 armed men.

EMERALD ISLE completed her maiden voyage from Beaver Island to Charlevoix on December 4, 1997. Her first cargo included a few cars and 400 passengers. EMERALD ISLE replaced BEAVER ISLANDER as the main ferry on the 32-mile run.

1920: The first RENVOYLE went to saltwater for war service in 1915. It foundered in shallow water on this date in the Bay of Biscay in 1920. Salvage attempts failed. The hull was broken up by the elements and part was scrapped on site.

1951: CAPTAIN C.D. SECORD was disabled and under tow of the SIR THOMAS SHAUGHNESSY when it broke loose in a storm off Isle Royale. The ship was retrieved by U.S.C.G. WOODRUSH and taken to safety and eventually to Port Arthur for repairs.

1966: NAKWA RIVER sustained extensive fire damage at Montreal. The flames broke out while outbound from the Great Lakes.

1986: AMERICAN REPUBLIC was blown on the breakwall at Lorain, Ohio, and received a five-foot gash on the side about 15 feet above the waterline.

1990: IONIA caught fire in the engine room about 90 miles south of Puerto Rico while enroute from Tampa to Chittagong, Bangladesh. The damage was not repaired and the hull was towed to Aliaga, Turkey, as f) ONIA in 1991 and scrapped. The vessel began Seaway service in 1971 as the British flag freighter ZINNIA, returned as b) TIMUR SWIFT in 1983 and as d) ZENOVIA in 1985.

1992: ZEUSPLEIN caught fire in the bridge at Campana, Argentina, and became a total loss. The vessel was sold to shipbreakers in India and arrived for scrapping on June 1, 1993. It had first traveled the Seaway as a) ZEUS in 1972 and had been rebuilt as a container ship in 1983.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Steel production rises by 16,000 tons in Great Lakes states

12/5 - Raw steel production in the country's Great Lakes region rose to 692,000 tons in the week that ended Saturday, according to an American Iron and Steel Institute estimate.

Production rose by about 16,000 tons, or about 2.3 percent, from the week prior. 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 693,000 tons, down from 627,000 tons a week earlier.

Total domestic raw steel production last week was about 1.81 million tons, which was down slightly from 1.85 million tons a week earlier.

U.S. steel mills had a capacity utilization rate of 75.6 percent last week, down from 77.2 percent a week earlier. The capacity utilization rate had been 70.1 percent at the same time last year.

So far this year, domestic steel producers have had a capacity utilization rate of 77.1 percent, which is down from 77.5 percent during the same period in 2012.

Domestic mills have produced an estimated 88.7 million tons of steel this year, down 1.6 percent from the same period last year. The mills had made about 90.1 million tons of steel by Nov. 30, 2012.

In October, steel imports rose by 8.4 percent, according to the American Institute for International Steel.

"Steel imports jumped in October as pricing for semi-finished steel products, used by the domestic industry to augment their raw steel capacity, strengthened this fall," said executive director Richard Chriss. "Semi-finished imports accounted for over three-fourths of the increase in the month-to-month comparison. While we believe that for the most part the improvement in market conditions reflects re-stocking by service centers and distributors –and not a real improvement in underlying demand – import arrivals reacted predictably during the month in response to improved market conditions."

Northwest Indiana Times


Prelude, the world’s largest ship, launched

12/5 - Take the Empire State Building, lay it on the ground and add another 150 feet. Then put it out to sea. That’s essentially what Shell did today with the launch of the 1,601-foot Prelude mega-ship.

At 600,000 tons and 243 feet wide, when the Prelude left its dry dock in South Korea after a year-long build, it unseated the Emma Maersk (1,302 feet) as the world’s largest ship. But calling it a ship is almost a misnomer. The Prelude is a floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facility that will be posted off the coast of Western Australia and will stay there for the next quarter-century.

As an FLNG plant, the Prelude handles everything involved in capturing, processing, and storing liquid natural gas, sucking the stuff from deep within the Earth and refining 3.9 million tons each year before it’s offloaded onto smaller ships that bring it back to the mainland.

Since the Prelude has to process and hold 175 Olympic swimming pools’ worth of the liquid natural gas year-round, it has to withstand anything Mother Nature sends its way. For that, there’s a 305-foot-tall turret that runs through the ship and into the seafloor, keeping the Prelude anchored and allowing it to slowly pivot to the direction of the wind. Between the moorings, the turret, and the three 6,700-horsepower engines, the ship can handle a category 5 hurricane.

The Prelude is set to launch in 2017, and will settle into its new home 300 miles north-east of Broome, Western Australia through 2042.

Wired



Lookback #18 – Henry Steinbrenner sank following collision on December 5, 1909.

12/5 - It was 104 years ago today that the first Henry Steinbrenner sank for the first time. The 440 foot long, 8-year old bulk carrier was down bound with iron ore when it collided with the up bound, and coal laden, Harry A. Berwind. The accident occurred in the Mud Lake section of the St. Marys River near Sault Ste. Marie.

Heavy snow limited visibility. The Steinbrenner received a 40-foot hole in her hull and sank with the cabins remaining above the water line. The ship spent the winter on the bottom. This steamer was refloated in 1910 and rebuilt at Cleveland to continue service in the Kinsman Transit Co. fleet.

Henry Steinbrenner was subsequently lost on Lake Superior when the weather turned bad on May 11, 1953. The ship was again loaded with iron ore. The wild winds, and up to 19-foot waves, ripped off three hatch covers. Seventeen sailors were lost while another 14 were rescued when the vessel sank about 15 miles south of Isle Royale.




Today in Great Lakes History - December 5

In 1927, ALTADOC crashed on the rocks of the Keweenaw Peninsula when her steering gear parted during a Lake Superior storm. The machinery and pilothouse of the wreck were recovered in 1928. The pilothouse was eventually refurbished in 1942 and opened as the Worlds Smallest Hotel in Copper Harbor, Michigan. The owners resided in the captains’ quarters, a gift shop was set up in the chart room, a guest lounge was set up in the wheelhouse, and there were two rooms for guests.

On 05 December 1897, the GEORGE W. MORLEY (wooden propeller bulk freighter, 193 foot, 1045 gross tons, built in 1888, at W. Bay City, Michigan) was sailing light from Milwaukee to Chicago when a fire started near her propeller shaft. It blazed up too quickly for the engineer to put it out and before he could get the fire pump started, the flames drove on deck. The firemen were kept at their posts as the vessel was steered to shore. She sank 100 yards off Greenwood Avenue, Evanston, Illinois. Luckily no lives were lost. The vessel’s engine was recovered in October 1898.

Tanker SATURN (Hull#218) was launched in 1973, for Cleveland Tankers at Jennings, Louisiana, by S.B.A. Shipyards, Inc.

SIR JAMES DUNN (Hull#109) was launched in 1951, for Canada Steamship Lines at Port Arthur, Ontario, by Port Arthur Shipbuilding Co. Ltd.

The keel was laid for the E.G. GRACE on December 5, 1942. This was the last of the six ships built by AmShip in the L6-S-A1 class for the United States Maritime Commission and was traded to the Interlake Steamship Company in exchange for older tonnage. She would later become the first of the "Maritime Class" vessels to go for scrap in 1984.

On 5 December 1874, the steam barge MILAN was scheduled to be hauled ashore at Port Huron to replace her "Mississippi wheel" with a propeller.

The wooden 100-foot schooner BRILLIANT was close to Sheboygan, Wisconsin, on 5 December 1857, where she was scheduled to pick up a load of lumber when she went on a reef close to shore and sank. No lives were lost.

1909: HENRY STEINBRENNER (i) sank in a snowstorm on Mud Lake following a collision with the HARRY A. BERWIND. The superstructure remained above water and the ship was later refloated and repaired.

1927: The wooden steamer ADVANCE went aground off Manitoulin Island and two sailors were lost. The ship was salvaged but tied up at Cornwall later in the month and never operated again.

1935: The lumber carrier SWIFT caught fire at Sturgeon Bay and was a total loss. The remains were scrapped in 1936.

1935: The 65-year old wooden tug LUCKNOW burned outside the harbor at Midland and the ship was beached as a total loss.

1952: The wooden tug GARGANTUA departed Collingwood under tow and sought shelter from a storm early the next day behind Cabot Head. The ship was scuttled to avoid the rocky shore with the main part of the hull above water. The intent was to refloat the vessel in 1953 but it was abandoned instead.

1964: FAYETTE BROWN, enroute to Bilbao, Spain, for scrap, broke loose of the tug BARENTSZ ZEE in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and drifted aground on the south shore of Anticosti Island. Salvage efforts were not successful and the remains of the hull, now broken into many pieces, are still there.

1971: VENUS CHALLENGER was sunk by a missile in the India-Pakistan war while 26 miles south of Karachi. The ship broke in two and sank in 8 minutes. All 33 on board were lost. The vessel was completely darkened and going at 16 knots when hit. The ship had been a Seaway trader earlier in 1971 and as b) PLEIAS in 1968.

1976: TATIANA L. and RALPH MISENER sustained minor damage from a collision in the St. Lawrence. The former was scrapped at Gadani Beach, Pakistan, as c) LUCKY LADY in 2009, while the latter arrived at Aliaga, Turkey, for dismantling as c) DON in September 2012.

1987: The CASON foundered off Punta Rostro, Spain, enroute from Hamburg to Shanghai, due to heavy weather. There were 8 survivors but another 23 sailors perished. There were explosions and fires in deck containers and the hull broke in two during a salvage effort in May 1988. The ship had come through the Seaway as b) WOLFGANG RUSS in 1978 and FINN LEONHARDT in 1979.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Lookback # 19 – Monarch stranded on Isle Royale on December 6, 1906.

12/6 - The wooden passenger and freight steamer Monarch was built at Sarnia in 1890 and lost off Isle Royale on this date 107 years ago.

The 248-foot, 6-inch-long vessel, built of the finest white oak and braced with iron, usually operated between Sarnia and the Canadian lakehead. It was carrying 12 passengers and a crew of 32 on what proved to be its final voyage.

After loading bagged flour, Monarch sailed from Port Arthur only to strike Blake Point on the northeast part of Isle Royale. The stern broke off and sank in deep water and all but one on board reached safety. They huddled on shore and built fires both for heat and to attract attention. Crewmembers from the steamer Edmonton spotted their plight and summoned help from Port Arthur. The tugs James Whalen and Laura Grace responded and while only one life was lost, a deck watchman, the 16-year old Monarch was a total loss.



Today in Great Lakes History - December 6

On 06 December 1886, C. McElroy purchased the steamer CHARLIE LIKEN for use as a ferry at St. Clair, Michigan to replace the burned CLARA.

In 1988, Canada Steamship Lines’ HON. PAUL MARTIN was renamed b.) ATLANTIC ERIE.

American Steamship Co.’s H. LEE WHITE (Hull#711) was launched December 6, 1973, at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin by Bay Shipbuilding Co.

CONSUMERS POWER was laid up for the last time at Erie, Pennsylvania on December 6, 1985.

On December 6, 1988, an arsonist set fire to the after end of FORT CHAMBLY while she was laid up at Ojibway Slip in Windsor, Ontario.

GOLDEN HIND was launched at Collingwood, Ontario on December 6, 1951, as the tanker a.) IMPERIAL WOODBEND (Hull#147).

N.M. Paterson & Sons LAWRENDOC (Hull#174) was launched December 6, 1961, at the Collingwood Shipyards.

On 6 December 1874, the Port Huron Times reported that the Port Huron Dry Dock Co. had been declared bankrupt and Mr. John Johnston had been appointed assignee of the company by the U.S. District Court.

OCONTO grounded near Charity Island in Saginaw Bay on 6 December 1885. The passengers and crew were saved. She was built at Manitowoc in 1872, by Rand & Co. and owned by Capt. Gregory W. McGregor and Rensselaer VanSycle. She was later recovered but only lasted until July 1886, when she went down in the St. Lawrence River with a valuable cargo of merchandise. Although several attempts were made to recover her, she remains on the bottom and is a frequent charter dive target to this day.

1906: MONARCH, carrying a cargo of bagged flour, struck Blake Point, Isle Royale and broke in two. The stern sank in deep water and the survivors huddled on shore. They were spotted the next day by the passing steamer EDMONTON who had help sent out from Port Arthur. Only one life was lost.

1906: R.L. IRELAND went aground off the Apostle Islands, Lake Superior, while loaded with coal. Some of the crew rowed a lifeboat to Bayfield for help. The vessel was salvaged and last sailed as c) ONTADOC (i)in 1970.

1909: BADGER STATE caught fire at Marine City, drifted downstream and stranded off Fawn Island. The hull burned to the waterline. 1910: DUNELM went aground on Isle Royale while downbound with grain for Montreal. It was salvaged on December 21 and taken to Port Arthur for repairs.

1917: TUSCARORA, recently cut in two, towed through the Welland and St. Lawrence Canals, and rejoined at Montreal, sank with the loss of all hands off Cape Breton Island on the delivery voyage to the East Coast.

1924: MIDLAND PRINCE was swept onto a reef while under tow in the outer harbor at Port Colborne and sank the tugs JOSEPH H. and HOME RULE in the process. The laker was released the next day but the tugs were a total loss.

1961: The listing freighter MARIANGELA B. was abandoned on the Mediterranean south of Formentera, Spain, after the cargo of zinc shifted in a storm. The vessel was towed to Cartagena, Spain, on December 8 but soon sold to Italian shipbreakers for dismantling at La Spezia in 1962. The vessel had been built at Sturgeon Bay as LABAN HOWES in 1943.

1977: The passenger ship ROYAL CLIPPER caught fire in the engine room at Montreal. After five hours, the ship rolled on its side and sank. It was salvaged in 1982, towed to Port Maitland, and scrapped during 1984-1986.

1992: WILLIAM R. ROESCH was inbound at Holland, Mich., with a cargo of slag when it went aground. The ship was stuck for two hours.

2001: NANCY MELISSA visited the Great Lakes in 1980. It began taking water as e) EMRE BAY in the Ionian Sea and the crew abandoned the ship. The grain laden vessel was taken in tow to safety but was later sold for scrap and arrived at Aliaga, Turkey, for dismantling as f) RESBE on April 9, 2003.

2002: SAGINAW sustained rudder damage while backing away at Thorold and had to go to Hamilton for repairs.

[ppat324]

On 07 December 1893, the hull of the burned steamer MASCOTTE (steel ferry, 103 foot, 137 gross tons, built in 1885, at Wyandotte, Michigan) was towed from New Baltimore to Detroit by the tug LORMAN for repairs. She was rebuilt and put back in service. She went through nine owners in a career that finally ended with another fire in Chicago in 1934.

In 1990, the ENERCHEM LAKER was sold to Environment Protection Services, Inc., Panama and departed Montreal on December 7, 1990, for off-lakes service with the new name d) RECOVERY VIII. Built for Hall Corp. of Canada as a.) ROCKCLIFFE HALL, converted to a tanker renamed b.) ISLAND TRANSPORT in 1985, and c.) ENERCHEM LAKER in 1986. Renamed e.) MORGAN TRADER in 1993, and currently serves as a bunkering tanker in Suez, Egypt as f.) ANNA II, renamed in 1997.

The LEADALE, a.) JOHN A. KLING sank in the Welland Canal on December 7, 1982, and was declared a constructive total loss.

The GEORGE R. FINK, under tow, arrived at Gandia, Spain prior to December 7, 1973, for scrapping.

W. W. HOLLOWAY was laid up December 7, 1981, for the last time in Toledo’s Frog Pond.

On December 7, 1932, the MARQUIS ROEN caught fire at Meacher's dock at Bay City, and before the fire was brought under control, the cabins and after end were destroyed.

Captain John Roen of the Roen Steamship Co. died on December 7, 1970.

On December 7, 1906, the R. L. IRELAND stranded on Gull Island in the Apostle Islands, Lake Superior. PERCIVAL ROBERTS JR. (Hull#398) was launched December 7, 1912, for the Pittsburgh Steamship Co at Lorain, Ohio by the American Ship Building Co.

The steel side-wheel passenger steamer EASTERN STATES (Hull#144) was launched on December 7, 1901, by the Detroit Shipbuilding Company for the Detroit and Buffalo Steamship Company.

The railcar ferry ANN ARBOR NO 2 (Hull#56), was launched on December 7, 1892 at Toledo, Ohio by Craig Ship Building Co. Sold in 1914 and cut down to a barge, renamed b.) WHALE in 1916, abandoned in 1927.

In 1906, the ANN ARBOR NO 4 arrived Frankfort on her maiden voyage.

On 7 December 1894, KEWEENAW (steel steamer, 291 foot, 2511 gross tons, built in 1891, at W. Bay City, Michigan) was seen groping toward the coast of the State of Washington in a severe gale. With distress signals flying, she put back to sea and foundered. She was built by F. W. Wheeler (Hull #73) for saltwater service. Built in two pieces, she was towed down the St. Lawrence and reassembled at Montreal.

On 7 December 1866, M. BALLARD (2-mast wooden schooner, 116 foot, 288 tons, built in 1855, at Cleveland, Ohio) was lost with all hands in a storm on Lake Ontario.

The wooden propeller bulk freighter MORLEY was launched at Marine City on 7 December 1878. She was on the stocks for two years and was built for the Morley Brothers and Hill. She was a double decker with side arches between decks with iron straps. She also had iron trusses running through the center. Her boiler was on the main deck and she had the engine from the tug WM PRINGLE. She had three spars, a centerboard, and could carry 45,000 bushels of grain.

1909: MARQUETTE & BESSEMER NO. 2 disappeared with all hands in the overnight hours of December 7-8 while crossing Lake Erie from Conneaut to Port Stanley with 30 loaded railway cars. The hull has never been located.

1912: The whaleback BARGE 134 was operating on the East Coast as b) BANGOR when it stranded and broke up near Hampton Roads, Va. The hull was salvaged by blasting and dredging in 1975.

1917: SIMCOE, of the Canadian Department of Marine & Fisheries, left the Great Lakes earlier in the fall for new work on the Bay of Fundy. It sent out an S.O.S. that it was sinking in heavy seas and the ship was never seen again. The only trace was a lifering that came ashore at Sable Island. There were 44 on board.

1927: KAMLOOPS, inbound for the Canadian Lakehead, disappeared with all hands overnight December 6-7. The hull was finally found by divers off 12 O'Clock Point, Isle Royale, in 1977.

1927: AGAWA stranded on Advance Reef, Georgian Bay along the south shore of Manitoulin Island. It spent the winter aground and was not released until Nay 16, 1928. The hull had been declared a total loss but was rebuilt at Collingwood as the ROBERT P. DURHAM and then later sailed as c) HERON BAY (i).

1927: The first MARTIAN went aground off Hare Island, Lake Superior and was not released until December 14.

1929: ULVA sank in the ice at Port Colborne but was raised, refitted and returned to service in 1930. The British built freighter operated between Maritime Canada and the Great Lakes until about 1939. It was torpedoed and sunk by U-60 northwest of Ireland on September 3, 1940.

1941: The tanker MAKAWELI was reported to be anchored at Pearl Harbor during the infamous Japanese attack and damaged. The ship was built at Ashtabula as COWEE in 1919 and returned to the Great Lakes for Lakeland Tankers in 1946.

1967: FIR HILL, a Seaway trader in 1961, went aground off Yasuoka, Japan, as d) UNIVERSAL CRUSADER. It was lightered and released but sold for scrap and broken up at Hirao, Japan, in 1968. 1969: The bulk carrier PETITE HERMINE and TEXACO CHIEF (ii) collided in fog near Prescott and both ships had slight damage. The former became c) CANADIAN HUNTER while the latter last operated on the lakes as c) ALGONOVA (i).

1976: The Liberian flag bulk carrier UNIMAR grounded leaving Thunder Bay with a cargo of grain and was not released until December 15.

1976: HARRY L. ALLEN of the Kinsman fleet went aground in Lake St. Clair, near St. Clair, Mich., and was held fast in the ice before being freed by tugs.

1982: LEADALE (ii) finished unloading salt at Thorold and backed into a concrete dolphin while departing the dock. A hole was punched in the hull and the ship sank while trying to get back to the dock. LEADALE was refloated December 19, towed to Port Colborne and scrapped by Marine Salvage in 1983. 1983: UNISOL had been docked at Chandler, Que., to load newsprint but left to ride out an approaching storm after being pounded against the dock. The ship ran aground while outbound and the crew was saved by a Canadian Forces helicopter. The vessel, noted as the first Peruvian flag freighter to transit the Seaway earlier that year, broke up in the storm.

1983: The Norwegian freighter WOODVILLE began visiting the Great Lakes in 1962. It ran aground near Palau Mungging, Malaysia, enroute from Bangkok, Thailand, to Malacca, Malaysia, as d) PETER RICH and was abandoned as a total loss.

1989: CAPITAINE TORRES, enroute from the Great Lakes, got caught in a vicious storm on the Gulf of St. Lawrence on December 7-8 after the cargo shifted. All 23 on board were lost when the ship went down.

2005: ZIEMIA LODZKA collided with and sank the VERTIGO in shallow water in the Great Belt off Denmark. All were saved. The former began Great Lake trading in 1992.

2010: The passenger ship CLELIA II, a Great Lakes visitor in 2009, was hit by a monstrous wave in the Antarctic Ocean smashing the pilothouse window and damaging electronic equipment. The vessel made Ushusia, Argentina, safely and only one member of the crew had a minor injury.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Great Lakes iron ore trade up 7 percent in November

12/8 - Cleveland, Ohio – Shipments of iron ore on the Great Lakes totaled 5.5 million tons in November, an increase of 7 percent compared to a year ago. The November ore float was also 4.1 percent ahead of the month’s 5-year average, but trailed October by 7.7 percent.

Shipments from U.S. ports totaled 4.9 million tons, an increase of almost 10 percent compared to a year ago. The November total included 366,000 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 2,883,000 tons. Through November of last year, overseas exports from U.S. ports totaled 3,544,000 tons.

Shipments from Canadian ports to Great Lakes destinations totaled 619,000 tons in November, a decrease of 9.3 percent compared to a year ago.

Year-to-date, the Lakes iron ore trade stands at 53.2 million tons, a decrease of 3.6 percent compared to a year ago. Loadings are 2.1 percent below the long-term average for the January-November timeframe.

Lake Carriers Association represents 17 American companies that operate 57 U.S.-flag vessels on the Great Lakes and carry the raw materials that drive the nations economy: iron ore and fluxstone for the steel industry, aggregate and cement for the construction industry, coal for power generation, as well as salt, sand and grain. Collectively, these vessels can transport more than 115 million tons of cargo per year.

More information is available at www.lcaships.com.


Lakes Pilots Association seeking applications

12/8 - Lakes Pilots Association, Inc., based in Port Huron, Mich., is seeking applications to fill vacancies of U.S. registered pilots on foreign vessels in District 2 of the Great Lakes.

Lakes Pilots provides pilotage service in all the waters and ports on the St. Clair and Detroit Rivers and Lake Erie, excluding the Welland Canal. Applicants must hold a U.S. Master, Mate or Pilot license with at least 24 months licensed service or comparable experience on vessels or integrated tugs and tows, of 4,000 gross tons, or over, operating on the Great Lakes or oceans. Those applicants qualifying with ocean service must have obtained at least six months of licensed service or comparable experience on the Great Lakes. A complete list of requirements may be found in CFR Title 46, Shipping, Part 401, Subpart B. Anyone interested must first apply to the Director of Great Lakes Pilotage in Washington, D.C. for a preliminary review to determine eligibility. Once approved, applications will be forwarded to Lakes Pilots Association and reviewed as positions become open. Those seriously interested are encouraged to call Lakes Pilots Assn. for more details about the job.

Applications and Information can be obtained on the web at: www.uscg.mil/hq/cg5/cg552/pilotage.asp

For more information contact:

Lakes Pilots Association
P.O. Box 610902
Port Huron, MI 48061
[phone]




Today in Great Lakes History - December 8

On 08 December 1917, DESMOND (wooden propeller sand-sucker, 149 foot, 456 gross tons, built in 1892, at Port Huron, Michigan) sprang a leak off Michigan City, Indiana, during gale and then capsized within sight of the lighthouse at South Chicago, Illinois. Seven lives were lost. Six others were rescued by the tugs WILLIAM A. FIELD, GARY and NORTH HARBOR.

CANADIAN ENTERPRISE (Hull#65) was christened December 8, 1979, at St. Catharines, Ontario, by Port Weller Drydocks. Ltd.

JAMES DAVIDSON was laid up for the last time on December 8, 1969, at Toledo, Ohio.

MERLE M. McCURDY collided with U.S. Steel’s PHILIP R. CLARKE opposite Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan on Lake St. Clair, December 8, 1974.

On 8 December 1886, BELLE (2-mast wooden schooner, 61 foot, 40 gross tons, built in 1866, at Port Dalhousie, Ontario) burned while frozen in at anchor.

On 8 December 1854, WESTMORELAND (wooden propeller passenger/package freight vessel, 200 foot, 665 tons, built in 1853, at Cleveland, Ohio) was carrying supplies for Mackinac Island, including liquor and supposedly $100,000 in gold. She capsized in a storm due to the heavy seas and the weight of the thick ice on her superstructure. She sank in the Manitou Passage in Lake Michigan and dragged one of the loaded lifeboats down with her. 17 lives were lost. There were many attempts to find her and recover her valuable cargo, but her wreck wasn't found until 1874, twenty years after she sank.

1876: IRA CHAFFE was driven ashore in a severe snowstorm near the Chocolay River, Lake Superior, near Munising. All on board were saved and the ship was eventually released.

1909: Fire broke out in the hold of the CLARION off Southeast Shoal, Lake Erie. Six sailors who huddled on the stern were picked up in a daring rescue by the LEONARD C. HANNA the next day. Another 14 were lost when their lifeboat was swept away in the storm and one more perished when he went into the hold to fight the fire.

1909: W.C. RICHARDSON stranded on Waverley Shoal, 2 miles west of Buffalo. A storm had prevented entrance to Buffalo and the ship was riding out the weather on the lake. The hull had to by dynamited as a navigational hazard when salvage efforts failed. Five lives were lost.

1927: ALTADOC (i) stranded on the rocks of the Keweenaw Peninsula when the steering failed while upbound, in ballast, for Fort William. The hull could not be salvaged and it was cut up for scrap on location during World War Two.

1927: LAMBTON stranded on Parisienne Shoal, Lake Superior, with the loss of 2 lives. The engine was removed for the FERNIE and the hull salvaged in 1928 for further work as the barge c) SALVUS.

1963: FORT ALBANY sank in the St. Lawrence off Lanorie after a collision with the PROCYON, and five members of the crew were lost. Heavy fog persisted at the time. The hull was refloated in June 1964, taken to Sorel, and scrapped.

1971: HARMATTAN was attacked with missiles and gunfire by Indian Naval units south of Karachi, Pakistan, and heavily damaged. Seven sailors were killed and the ship was abandoned. It arrived at Karachi March 2, 1972, and was scrapped. The ship had been a Seaway trader earlier in 1971.

1982: The Liberian freighter GENIE came through the Seaway in 1972. It was badly damaged by an explosion and fire on this date while laid up the Seychelles Islands. The hull was taken to Karachi, Pakistan, and scrapped in 1985.

1983: AKTION, a Seaway trader for the first time in 1970, was laid up at Piraeus, Greece, as e) ELISA when fire broke out and the vessel was heavily damaged aft. The hull was towed into Aliaga, Turkey, in October 1984, and broken up for scrap.



Coast Guard begins icebreaking operations in western Great Lakes

12/7 - Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. – U.S. Coast Guard Sector Sault Ste. Marie began Operation Taconite Friday afternoon in response to developing ice conditions in the commercial ports of Western Lake Superior. Before ice impedes commercial navigation, an icebreaker was assigned to the region.

Initially, only one Coast Guard icebreaker will be assigned to Operation Taconite. USCGC Katmai Bay will provide icebreaking services. In the coming days and weeks as ice growth continues on the Great Lakes additional Coast Guard icebreakers will join the operation.

Currently there are no channel closures. However the implementation of Operation Taconite does place additional measures on commercial shipping plying the western Lakes, St. Marys River, and the Straits of Mackinac. These measures include restricting tanker transits to daylight only in the presence of ice, reducing speeds by 2 miles per hour in various locations, and requiring additional voice and position reporting points throughout the operation’s area of responsibility. The Coast Guard would like to advise all recreational ice users there are currently no channel closures, and to plan their activities carefully, use caution on the ice, and stay away from shipping channels. Recreational users and island residents should stay tuned to local media resources for the status of waterway closures.

Ice is forming in the greater Duluth/Superior Harbor and Thunder Bay, Ont., regions. U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Katmai Bay will conduct icebreaking operations to allow the movement of commercial shipping throughout the twin ports and Thunder Bay. U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Alder will relieve the Katmai Bay at a later date. This activity will extend to the end of the shipping season, which normally concludes 16 January.

Operation Taconite is the Coast Guard’s largest domestic icebreaking operation, encompassing Lake Superior, St. Marys River, the Straits of Mackinac and Lake Michigan. As a result of the Operation certain waterways may close once due consideration is given to the protection of the marine environment, waterway improvements, aids to navigation, the need for cross channel traffic (e.g. ferries), the availability of icebreakers, and the safety of the island residents; who in the course of their daily business use naturally formed ice bridges for transportation to and from the mainland.

[yachtsmanwilly]

Port Reports - December 9

Duluth, Minn.
Algoma Montrealais arrived at Duluth late Sunday afternoon on what is widely assumed to be her last trip before heading to the shipbreakers this winter.

St. Marys River - Scott McLellan
Algoma Equinox was on its first trip up the St. Marys River on Sunday.

Sturgeon Bay, Wis.
The CSL Niagara arrived in Sturgeon Bay Saturday and spent the night off of Sherwood Point. Sunday morning they were towed stern first by the tug Jimmy L into the graving dock. The Niagara will be repowered over the winter at the ship yard.

Port Inland
Port Inland finished its shipping season on Saturday loading the Manistee.

Saginaw River - Todd Shorkey
The Olive L. Moore - Lewis J. Kuber were outbound from the Saginaw River, late Saturday afternoon, after unloading at the Wirt Stone dock in Saginaw. USCG Cutter Hollyhock was also outbound late Saturday. Hollyhock arrived on Friday, spending the night at the Consumers Energy Dock in Essexville. She had been working Aids to Navigation in the Saginaw River Entrance Channel.

Sandusky, Ohio - Jim Spencer
The barge James L. Kuber loaded Saturday at the NS coal dock, sailing upbound overnight with the tug Victory.

Huron, Ohio - Jim Spencer
Cason J. Callaway discharged a cargo of Stoneport limestone at the lime dock Sunday, then headed back to Stoneport.



Coast Guard rescues dog, stresses ice safety

12/9 - Cleveland, Ohio – The Coast Guard rescued a dog from the frigid waters of Sturgeon Bay, Wis., Sunday morning after it fell through the ice.

At about 9 a.m., the owner of the dog called Door County, Wis., 911 reporting that her dog had fallen through the ice after chasing a goose out on the ice. A Door County 911 dispatcher then contacted the Coast Guard Station Sturgeon Bay. A short-haul ice-rescue team was dispatched at 9:10 a.m., and the rescue team was on scene with the dog at 9:20 a.m.

"The ice is really new right now, so it is really important to understand the ice conditions," said Petty Officer 2nd Class Nathan Disher, officer-of-the-day at Station Sturgeon Bay. "In this case, the owner of the dog did the right thing by not trying to rescue her dog by herself and calling us for help instead."

After the rescue, the dog was checked out by a veterinarian and was released back to its owner.



Lookback #22 – Commodore stranded on December 9, 1898

12/9 - The wooden freighter Commodore was built at Cleveland by Thomas Quayle in 1875. The 265-foot-long steamer served the Western Transit Company in a variety of trades.

The ship ran aground at Bar Point, Lake Erie, 115 years ago today. Ice was already a problem on the lake and salvage was a challenge. However, some of the cargo was removed and the ship was released on December 12 only to get stuck again before finally floating free.

Commodore was acquired by the Illinois Naval Militia in 1912 and then sold to the U.S. Navy on September 1, 1918. The latter used the vessel as a receiving ship and then had it decked over and converted to a Naval Reserve Armory at Chicago in 1919. The ship was decommissioned on March 10, 1930, and dismantled by U.S. Navy Reservists in 1931.

A second Commodore, a schooner that dated from 1880, sank in Lake Erie on June 17, 1918, after being caught in a storm while under tow of the Jay Gould.



Today in Great Lakes History - December 9

While tied up at Port Colborne, Ontario, waiting to discharge her cargo of grain, a northeast gale caused the water to lower three feet and left the EDWIN H. OHL (steel propeller bulk freighter, 420 foot, 5141 gross tons, built in 1907, at Wyandotte, Michigan) on the bottom with a list of about one foot. The bottom plating was damaged and cost $3,460.19 to repair.

Cleveland Tankers’ JUPITER (Hull#227) was christened December 9, 1975, at Jennings, Louisiana, by S.B.A. Shipyards, Inc.

JEAN PARISIEN left Quebec City on her maiden voyage December 9, 1977.

CLIFFS VICTORY ran aground December 9, 1976 near Johnson’s Point in the ice -laden Munuscong Channel of the St. Marys River.

The FRANK C. BALL, b.) J.R. SENSIBAR in 1930, c.) CONALLISON in 1981) was launched at Ecorse, Michigan by Great Lakes Engineering Works as (Hull #14) on December 9, 1905.

ARTHUR B. HOMER was towed by the tugs THUNDER CAPE, ELMORE M. MISNER and ATOMIC to Port Colborne, Ontario, December 9, 1986, and was scrapped there the following year.

HILDA MARJANNE was launched December 9, 1943, as a.) GRANDE RONDE (Hull#43) at Portland, Oregon, by Kaiser Co., Inc.

The keel for Hall Corporation of Canada’s SHIERCLIFFE HALL (Hull#248) was laid on December 9, 1949, at Montreal, Quebec by Canadian Vickers Ltd.

On 9 December 1871, CHALLENGE (wooden schooner, 96 foot, 99 tons, built in 1853, at Rochester, New York) missed the piers at Sheboygan, Wisconsin, in heavy weather, stove in some of her planking and sank. She was a particularly sleek craft, actually designed as a yacht and once owned by the U.S. Light House Service as a supply vessel.

On 9 December 1874, the Port Huron Times reported that "the old railroad ferry steamer UNION at Detroit is having machinery taken out and preparing to go into permanent retirement, or perhaps to serve as a floating dining room for railroad passengers."

1910: JOHN SHARPLES of the Great Lakes & St. Lawrence Transportation Co., stranded on Galops Island in the St. Lawrence due to low visibility. The vessel was holed fore and aft and not released until April 1911 with the help of the tug HECLA.

1943: SARNIAN, the first member of what became the Upper Lakes Shipping fleet, stranded on Pointe Isabelle Reef, Lake Superior, while downbound with 162,489 bushels of barley. The vessel was not refloated until July 24, 1944, and never sailed again.

1956: FORT HENRY, a package freighter for Canada Steamship Lines, hit Canoe Rocks approaching the Canadian Lakehead, cutting open the hull. It reached the dock safely, quickly unloaded, and went to the Port Arthur shipyard for repairs.

1968: NORTH CAROLINA lost power and sank in Lake Erie five miles west of Fairport, Ohio, in rough weather. The U.S. Coast Guard rescued the three-member crew. The hull went down in about 30 feet of water and is a popular dive attraction.

1980: The salt-laden KINGDOC (ii) was released by the tugs POINT VALIANT and IRVING BIRCH after an earlier grounding at Pugwash, NS

1983: The saltwater ship d) IAPETOS was struck by Iraqi gunners in the Khor Musa Channel about 30-40 miles from Bandar Khomeini, Iran. It was abandoned and struck again by a missile and bombs on March 29, 1984. The vessel began Seaway service as a) JAROSA in 1965 and returned as b) IVORY STAR in 1973 and c) TURICUM in 1975. It was refloated about 1984 and scrapped at Sitalpur, Bangladesh.

2001: The former HAND LOONG, a Seaway trader beginning in 1977, sank as b) UNA in the Black Sea off Sinop, Turkey, enroute from Algeria to Romania with 11,000 tons of iron ore. Seventeen sailors were rescued but one was missing and presumed lost.

2003: STELLAMARE capsized on the Hudson River at Albany, N.Y., while loading turbines. The cargo shifted and three members of the crew were lost. The ship was righted, refloated and repaired as c) NANDALINA S. It was broken up for scrap at Aliaga, Turkey, as d) DOUAA A. in 2011. This heavy-lift freighter first came through the Seaway in 1989 and returned inland from time to time.

2011: VSL CENTURION lost its stern anchor while downbound in the Welland Canal at Port Colborne. Shipping was held up until it was found. The ship first visited the Seaway as a) SAGITARRIUS in 1990 and became d) PHOENIX SUN in 2012.