Great Lakes & Seaway Shipping News Archive

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Recent rains lead to higher Lake Superior water levels

10/31 - Duluth - Rainfall in October and late September has sent the level of Lake Superior way up in recent weeks, with the big lake now closer to normal water levels than it is to record low levels. Torrential rains have ended a 16-month-long drought in the region and have been pushing the level of the lake up over the past two months.

Lake Superior is up 3.5 inches from this time last year, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and is only a foot below normal. That's the closest to normal the lake has been in more than a year, after having been as much as 20 inches below normal earlier this year.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Great Lakes Research Laboratory hydrological graph for the lake shows Superior now about halfway to a normal level for this time of year, compared to record low levels seen in recent months. The lake set monthly records for low water in August and early September and appeared poised to break the all-time record low, set in April 1926, sometime next spring.

But the drought ended rapidly and the lake has responded faster than expected, said Carl Woodruff, hydraulic engineer for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Detroit District. “It’s still low. It’s just not nearly as low,’’ Woodruff said Monday.

Duluth received 4.25 inches of rain in September, a quarter-inch above normal. In October, Duluth has received 6.8 inches of rain — an astounding 4.8 inches above normal. Duluth now is less than an inch short of moisture for the year, and more rain is in the forecast.

From the Duluth News-Tribune

 

Port Reports - October 31

Twin Ports - Al Miller
The Twin Ports’ fall grain rush, which was the biggest in recent years, seems to have slacked off in the past week or two. On Tuesday morning the only elevator loading ships was CHS, which had Canadian Prospector in berth 1 and BBC Finland in berth 2. Elsewhere, Indiana Harbor was loading coal at Midwest Energy Terminal.
Paul R. Tregurtha was due to load next, but it was docked at the Duluth port terminal’s berth 2, which usually is used for quick repairs.

Goderich - Jacob Smith
On Tuesday, the Federal Mattawa was in port, followed by the Algoway later in the day.

Alpena & Stoneport - Ben & Chanda McClain
On Sunday the Earl W backed into the coal dock slip at Lafarge and unloaded cargo into the storage hopper.
Tuesday morning the tug G. L. Ostrander and barge Integrity was under the silos at Lafarge loading for Milwaukee. Once the Integrity departed the Buffalo came in to unload coal.

The Buffalo was outbound in the bay around 6 p.m.
The research vessel Spencer F. Baird was out and about, likely releasing fish in certain areas.
At Stoneport on Tuesday there was uncommon visitor at the dock, the Algomarine. It loaded cargo throughout the morning.
The Sam Laud was due later in the evening.

Buffalo - Brian Wroblewski
The English River left the inner harbor Tuesday morning, unaided, at approximately 7:45.

Tonawanda - Tom
The tug Herbert P Brake and barge PAV102 were tied up along the wall on the Tonawanda side. The tug skipper said he was coming from Erie PA and heading to Albany. The barge was brand spanking new (built in Erie) with a pristine paint job - black on the bottom and bright red on top.

 

Updates - October 31

News Photo Gallery updated

Reserve Conversion Gallery

Public Photo Gallery updated

 

Today in Great Lakes History - October 31

On this day in 1984, at approximately 10:30 p.m., the International Railroad bridge at the Soo went askew and blocked boat traffic until 3:40 p.m., on 11/2/84. Twelve boats that were delayed up to 41 hours by the incident cost the operators an estimated $350,000.

On 31 October 1888, A W LAWRENCE (wooden propeller tug, 72 foot, 51 gross tons, built in 1880, at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin) blew her boiler at 2:30 a.m. off North Point near Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The tug quickly sank. Four of the six aboard were lost. None of their remains were ever found. The tug MERRILL rescued the cook and a passenger. The LAWRENCE was owned by Capt. Mc Coy & Banner and valued at $5,000.

CANADIAN EXPLORER's sea trials were conducted on October 31, 1983, on Lake Erie where a service speed of 13.8 m.p.h. was recorded.

The EDWIN H GOTT was christened October 31, 1978.

On October 31, 1973, the H M GRIFFITH entered service for Canada Steamship Lines on her maiden voyage bound for Thunder Bay, Ontario to load iron ore for Hamilton, Ontario. The GRIFFITH was rebuilt with a new larger forward section and renamed b.) RT. HON. PAUL J MARTIN in 2000.

The CADILLAC was launched October 31, 1942, as a.) LAKE ANGELINE.

ELMGLEN cleared Owen Sound, Ontario on October 31, 1984, on her first trip in Parrish & Heimbecker colors.

On October 31, 1966, while down bound in the St. Marys River loaded with 11,143 tons of potash for Oswego, New York, the HALLFAX ran aground on a rocky reef and settled to the bottom with her hold full of water. She had grounded on Pipe Island Twins Reef just north of DeTour, Michigan.

The CHARLES L HUTCHINSON, a.) WILLIAM C MORELAND, struck a reef the night of October 31, 1925 three miles south of Manitou Island, off the Keweenaw Peninsula, on Lake Superior.

On October 31, 1983, the SYLVANIA was towed out of Toledo's Frog Pond by the harbor tugs ARKANSAS and WYOMING. She was handed over to the tug OHIO for delivery to the Triad Salvage Co., at Ashtabula, Ohio, arriving there on November 1st. Dismantling was completed there in 1984. Thus ended 78 years of service. Ironically the SYLVANIA, the first built of the 504 foot class bulkers, was the last survivor of that class. During her career with Columbia Transportation, the SYLVANIA had carried over 20 million tons and netted over $35 million.

On 31 October 1883, CITY OF TORONTO (wooden passenger-package freight sidewheeler, 207 foot, 898 gross tons, built in 1864, at Niagara, Ontario) caught fire at the Muir Brothers shipyard at Port Dalhousie, Ontario and was totally destroyed. She previously had her paddle boxes removed so she could pass through the Welland Canal, and she was in the shipyard to have them reassembled that winter.

On 31 October 1874, the tug FAVORITE was towing the schooner WILLIE NEELER on Lake Erie. At about 10:30 p.m., near Bar Point, the schooner suddenly sheered and before the tow line could be cast off, the FAVORITE capsized and sank. One life was lost. The rest of the crew clung to the upper works which had become dislodged from the vessel and they were rescued by the schooner's lifeboats.

On 31 October 1821, WALK-IN-THE-WATER (wooden side-wheeler, 135 foot, 339 tons, built in 1818, at Black Rock [Buffalo], New York) was wrecked on Point Abino, on the Canadian shore of Lake Erie during a storm. She was the first steam-powered vessel above Niagara and her frequent comings and goings during her career were very much in the newspapers in Detroit but her loss was not mentioned not at all since this steamer was virtually the only source of news from the east. Her engine was installed by Robert Fulton himself. After the wreck, it went into the steamer SUPERIOR and later ran a lumber mill in Saginaw, Michigan.

On 31 October 1880, TRANCHEMONTAGNE (wooden schooner, 108 foot, 130 tons, built in 1864, at Sorel, Quebec) was loaded with rye and sailing in a storm on Lake Ontario. She struck the breakwater at Oswego, New York head-on at about 3:00 a.m. She stove in her bow and quickly sank. The crew took to the rigging, except for one who was washed overboard and rode a provision box from her deck to shore. The Lifesaving Service rescued the rest from the breakwater. The schooner broke up quickly in the storm.

Data from: Joe Barr, Dave Swayze, Jody Aho, Russ Plumb, Father Dowling Collection, Ahoy & Farewell II and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series. This is a small sample, the books include many other vessels with a much more detailed history.

 

Twin Port security system coming
A new federal security protocol soon will be coming to the Twin Ports.

10/30 - Duluth/Superior - Jim Sharrow, facilities manager for the Duluth Seaway Port Authority, said he expects that by the start of the next shipping season, dockworkers in Duluth and Superior will need federal clearance to continue with their waterfront jobs. The Transportation Security Administration is launching its Transportation Workers Identification Credential, or TWIC, program in an effort to keep the nation’s ports secure from terrorist attack.

Thirteen days ago, Wilmington, Del., became the first U.S. port to begin testing the new system. Longshoremen, truckers, mariners and others who have ready access to key port operations will be required to undergo background checks before they can be issued TWIC cards, complete with biometric identification in the form of electronic fingerprint scans.

The cards won’t come cheap. Each will cost $132.50 and will remain valid for five years. Lose or damage one, and a replacement costs $60. Workers with valid merchant marine licenses will be eligible for a price break and can buy cards for $105.25.

Developing the TWIC program has cost the federal government about $100 million, The program, which has encountered delays, by law was to have gone live at the nation’s 10 highest-risk ports by July and at 40 more by year’s end. Even though pilot testing of the system began Oct. 16 in Wilmington, key pieces of the network remain in development. For instance, the card readers that port facilities are supposed to use to authenticate TWIC ID cards have yet to be produced.

In testimony before a congressional subcommittee earlier this year, TWIC Program Director Maurine Fanguy explained that developing a secure and fully integrated system has been a complicated challenge. “Technology programs always require comprehensive testing and TWIC is no different,” she said. “That is why we are focused on a rigorous program to flight-test TWIC before we go out to the ports. All the internal moving parts must work together, and they must work in combination to conduct accurate and timely security threat assessments. Rigorous performance testing is the only way to know for sure that TWIC is ready to go live.”

Sharrow said he feels fortunate that the TWIC system won’t arrive in the Twin Ports until it has been tested elsewhere. “I’d rather have someone else go first and work the kinks out of it,” he said. “We breathed a sigh of relief when learned that we we’re not likely to be hit with this before the next shipping season.”

The American Maritime Officers, a union representing merchant marine officers aboard U.S.-flagged vessels, has questioned the necessity of an entirely new credential and has instead recommended adding a biometric identifier to maritime licenses.

If background checks reveal past convictions for violent or sexual crimes, they may be deemed ineligible to receive a TWIC card. Concerns also have been raised about false matches and inaccuracies to be found in the federal terrorist watch list. It is feared that these flaws could lead to the wrongful flagging and disqualification of applicants.

Port facilities, too, could face a steep price associated with the TWIC program. By some estimates, they will need to invest $1.2 billion in additional security equipment to meet new federal standards. Jerry Fryberger, president of the Twin Ports’ Hallett Dock Co., sees massive security investments in bulk facilities such as the ones he oversees as misguided. “We don’t handle anything that’s hazardous or particularly sensitive,” he said, adding that the higher costs of shipping will be passed onto consumers.

Sharrow acknowledged that, depending on how it’s implemented, the program could prove a burden to some Twin Ports facilities, but he said the U.S. Coast Guard has been working with dock operators to minimize any disruptions. “There will be growing pains, but I’m confident we’ll get by,” Sharrow said. Fryberger suggested that, instead of taking a wide-sweep approach, the federal government should focus on key infrastructure, such as the Soo Locks and the Welland Canal.

Gary Nicholson, president of Lake Superior Warehousing Co. Inc., remains more resigned. Like them or not, he said the Twin Ports ultimately will need to comply with new federal standards. “We’ve all known this was coming,” he said. “It’s just another thing we have to deal with.”

From the Duluth News-Tribune

 

Port Reports - October 30

Cheboygan - Jon Paul Michaels
The tug Michigan and barge Great lakes arrived Monday morning on its weekly trip from Whiting, IN to the BP Tank Storage facility with a load of gasoline.

Buffalo - Brian Wroblewski
The English River arrived around 10 a.m.. Monday.

Ashland - Chris Mazzella
The American Mariner arrived at the Reiss Coal Dock in Ashland around 10:30 a.m. with 12,000 ton of coal.

Saginaw River - Todd Shorkey
Strong Southerly winds lowered the water level of the Saginaw River Monday afternoon delaying a few vessels from coming in until the water came back up. By early evening, the water was rising and the CSL Tadoussac was inbound for the Essroc dock in Essexville. She was expected to depart early Tuesday morning.
The tug Joe Thompson, Jr. and barge Joseph H. Thompson were lightering just above Essroc at the Sargent dock. The pair then continued upbound to complete their unload at the Saginaw Rock Products dock in Saginaw.
Also inbound in the parade was the tug Victory and barge Lewis J. Kuber who called on the Bay Aggregates dock in Bay City for the second time in as many days.
Finally, the Calumet was inbound late Monday night, bound for the Sargent dock in Zilwaukee. All three of these vessels were expected to be outbound on Tuesday.

 

Updates - October 30

News Photo Gallery updated

Reserve Conversion Gallery

Public Photo Gallery updated

 

Today in Great Lakes History - October 30

On 30 October 1863, TORRENT (2-mast wooden schooner, 125 foot, 412 gross tons, built in 1855, at Newport [Marine City], Michigan) was carrying railroad iron from Buffalo to Little Bay de Noc when she foundered in a storm on Lake Erie, 10 miles east of Port Stanley, Ontario. No lives were lost.

On 30 October 1870, JOSEPH A HOLLON (wooden barge, 107 foot, 158 gross tons, built in 1867, at E. Saginaw, Michigan) was in tow of the tug CLEMATIS (wooden tug, 179 tons, built in 1863, at Cleveland, Ohio) in a terrific gale on Lake Huron. The barge broke free and drifted off. The waves washed completely over her and the captain was swept overboard. Her cabins were destroyed. The next day the wife of the mate and another crew member were rescued by the bark ONEONTA (wooden bark, 161 foot, 499 gross tons, built in 1862, at Buffalo, New York) and taken to Detroit, but the HOLLON was left to drift on the Lake. The newspapers listed her as "missing". Five days later the vessel was found and was towed into Port Elgin, Ontario. A total of four lives were lost: three were missing and the fourth was found "lashed to a pump, dead, with his eyes picked out.

The tugs GLENADA and MOUNT MC KAY towed AMOCO ILLINOIS from Essexville, Michigan on October 30, 1985, and arrived at the M&M slip in Windsor, Ontario on November 1st. where she was to be scrapped.

The Maritimers CADILLAC and her fleetmate CHAMPLAIN arrived under tow by the Dutch tug/supply ship THOMAS DE GAUWDIEF on October 30, 1987, at Aliaga, Turkey to be scrapped.

The ISLE ROYALE (Canal Bulk Freighter) was launched October 30, 1947, as a.) SOUTHCLIFFE HALL for the Hall Corporation of Canada Ltd. (which in 1969, became Hall Corporation (Shipping) 1969 Ltd.), Montreal.

On 30 October 1874, LOTTA BERNARD (wooden side-wheel "rabbit", 125 foot, 147 tons, built in 1869, at Port Clinton, Ohio) was carrying general merchandise from Silver Islet to Duluth when she foundered in a terrific gale off Encampment Island in Lake Superior. Three lives were lost. She was capable of only 4 miles per hour and was at the mercy of any fast rising storm.

During a storm, the schooner ANNABELLA CHAMBERS was wrecked on the islands off Toronto, Ontario on 30 October 1873. One sailor was washed overboard and lost. The skipper was rescued, but he had the dead body of his small son in his arms.

October 30, 1971 - The PERE MARQUETTE 21 was laid up due to coal strike. She never sailed again as a carferry.

On 30 October 1877, CITY OF TAWAS (3-mast wooden schooner, 135 foot, 291 tons, built in 1864, at Vicksburgh [now Marysville], Michigan as a sloop-barge) was carrying 500 tons of iron ore when she struck a bar outside the harbor at St. Joseph, Michigan while attempting to enter during a storm. She drifted ashore with a hole in her bottom and was pounded to pieces. One brave crewman swam ashore with a line and the rest came in on it.

Data from: Joe Barr, Dave Swayze, Max Hanley, Father Dowling Collection, Ahoy & Farewell II and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series. This is a small sample, the books include many other vessels with a much more detailed history.

 

Hamilton Port Authority curtails access to harbour area
Part of post-9/11 security measures

10/29 - Hamilton, Ont. - Post-9/11 security measures are closing a few windows on Hamilton Harbour.

The Hamilton Port Authority, following dictates from Transport Canada, is fencing off many of its facilities and installing card-access locks, electronic gates and video surveillance systems to limit access.

That means you won't be able to drive freely to the water's edge at Eastport along the Beach Strip, where the former Board of Hamilton Harbour Commissioners once maintained two public parkettes and viewing sites. And you may find it hard to reach the water at the foot of some streets in the bay front industrial area.

Danny Slade, manager of marine operations, told city council this week the authority has begun to implement the measures and expects to complete them by year-end. After presenting a general outline, he said, "It would be prudent not to go into greater detail at this time." Linda MacDonald, operations vice-president and harbourmaster, said a public meeting to explain the impact would be held sometime in December.

Ward 5 Councillor Chad Collins, whose east-end ward includes the Beach Strip, noted the harbour Remedial Action Plan calls for greater access and expressed concern over the Fisherman's Pier area and plans for a trail on the bay side of the sand strip.

MacDonald said the authority would soon be inviting proposals for recreational-commercial development at Fisherman's Pier, but has to secure access to its shipping and industrial areas. "We will be controlling access to all of Eastport," she said. "There will be fencing." She told Collins the two formerly public viewing sites "will be part of the controlled facilities."

Chain-link fencing has already gone up between Windermere Basin, which the city is developing as passive parkland, and the authority's road-rail bridge that connects Strathearne Avenue to Eastport across the basin mouth.

When Councillor Terry Whitehead asked how the authority plans mesh with the city's vision of access to the waterfront for the general public, Mayor Fred Eisenberger mentioned that he and councillors Collins and Bob Bratina are on a liaison committee with the authority, though it has not met regularly.

Councillor Brad Clark said he thought the port security measures were in keeping with tightened security around airports.

From the Hamilton Spectator

 

Port Reports - October 29

Hamilton - Eric Holmes
Saturday saw the Algoisle return to port at 8:30 a.m. after cleaning her holds in Lake Ontario. She went to Pier 25 to load grain for the next 36 hours. The tugs Omni Richelieu and LaPrairie departed at 10:30 a.m. for Clarkson and returned at 2:30 p.m.
The Canadian Miner arrived with iron ore for Dofasco at 11:30 a.m. The Rt. Hon. Paul J Martin arrived at at 3:00 p.m. with coal for Stelco. The Quebecois departed at 4 P.m. and went to the anchorage in Burlington Bay waiting for the winds to die down before proceeding to Clarkson. The Canadian Provider arrived at 4:30 p.m. going to Dofasco with iron ore.
Sunday morning saw the Quebecois depart the Burlington Bay anchorage for Clarkson. The Canadian Miner departed at 7:30 a.m. for the canal. The Canadian Provider departed from Dofasco at 12:30 p.m. in ballast for Port Cartier Quebec. The Canadian Leader arrived at 1245 p.m. with iron ore from Port Cartier for Dofasco. The CSL Laurentian arrived at 7 p.m. with iron ore for Stelco. The Federal Pioneer departed at 7:15 pm.

Buffalo - Brian Wroblewski
The Adam E. Cornelius arrived at 8:30 a.m. Sunday for the Gateway Trade Terminal in Lackawanna with stone.

Sarnia - Frank Frisk
The tug Jane Ann IV and  Sarah Spencer departed Sarnia upbound at noon Sunday, following American Integrity and Lee A Tregurtha.

Holland - Bob VandeVusse
The tug Undaunted and barge Pere Marquette 41 arrived light in Holland Sunday afternoon and proceeded to the Padnos dock to take on a load of metal for recycling. The loading process was expected to take 12 to 14 hours.

Saginaw River - Todd Shorkey
The tug Victory and barge Lewis J. Kuber arrived overnight on Sunday to unload at the Bay Aggregates dock in Bay City. The pair was outbound early Sunday morning.
The American Century was also inbound on Sunday, unloading at the Consumers Energy dock in Essexville, but the big news of the day was the arrival of the Michipicoten who also unloaded at the Bay Aggregates dock in Bay City. This was the first visit of the Michipicoten to the Saginaw River under her present name and colors. She was outbound for the lake Sunday evening.

Marquette - Lee Rowe
The H. Lee White arrived at Marquette's Shiras Dock with stone, then moved to the ore dock to take on a load of ore. The Charles M. Beeghly arrived later with coal for the WE Power Plant.

 

Milwaukee Clipper to move to Mart Dock

10/29 - Muskegon - Almost 10 years after it was towed to a temporary site in Muskegon, the S.S. Milwaukee Clipper is returning to its original berth at West Michigan Dock & Market, joining LST-393 and the Port City Princess.

Ray Hilt, president of S.S. Milwaukee Clipper Preservation Inc., said his organization has finalized plans to move the Clipper from the foot of McCracken Street to the Mart Dock. Plans call for the Clipper to be parked behind LST-393 and the Port City Princess. Ironically, the site is where the Clipper was based when it offered Muskegon-to-Milwaukee service for 39 years before being retired in 1970.

Hilt expressed hope the Clipper could be towed to the new site before the end of the year, after the preservation group receives site plan approval from Muskegon and is given the OK by the U.S. Coast Guard to tow the vessel. Because the Clipper technically is considered a building, site plan review and approval is needed from the city's planning commission, he said.

The pending move was announced Friday in Grand Rapids by Max McKee, president of West Michigan Dock & Market. The McKee family owned and operated the Clipper through its Muskegon-based Wisconsin & Michigan Steamship Co. "This is very exciting for us," Hilt said. "We're very pleased to see the Clipper going to a new home."

Hilt said talks with McKee began in earnest in mid-summer and the two sides were able to hammer out a draft agreement in September. Hilt said McKee signed documents finalizing berthing arrangements Thursday, but details are not being publicly released under a confidentiality agreement. Hilt said the preservation association will be paying a dockage fee that falls within its limited budget.

Hilt said the original ticket office, currently used by the Port City Princess, will be remodeled to sell tickets also for LST-393 and the Clipper.

The announcement marks a decade-long effort to find a permanent site for the 361-foot-long Clipper. Ever since the ship was towed into Muskegon on Dec. 2, 1997, it has been "temporarily" berthed at the former Grand Trunk Railroad docks, now owned by Andrie Inc. Hilt said through the years, a number of sites for the ship have been considered.

In 2004, the preservation group and the city agreed in principle to have the Clipper berthed at Hartshorn Marina. But the ship never moved because making it fully accessible at the site would have cost about $1 million.

Hilt said the Mart Dock site does not require major dredging or any modifications to the seawall. Still, the preservation group faces the daunting task of having the Clipper meet building fire, safety and accessibility codes. The Mart Dock site most likely will require the eventual construction of a multi-story access tower off the port side of the ship to provide emergency exits and required elevator service. In addition, the site does not have a nearby supply of water or sewer.

But the move is important because it finally gives the Clipper an address, a long-standing requirement for the preservation group to seek restoration grants. "This now allows us to seek grant funds," Hilt said. "The trouble is ... grants are not available right now because of the economy."

The pending move also is important because it finally frees up the Grand Trunk property. Hilt said Clipper preservationists are grateful for Andrie Inc., which allowed the ship to stay for close to a decade. "If it weren't for the Andries, the Clipper could not have been saved," Hilt said. "Let's face it, we overstayed. It's time we moved."

The Milwaukee Clipper's roots trace back to the turn of the 20th century and the Erie & Western Transportation Corp., a steamship company owned and operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad that launched the steamship Juniata in December 1904.

The ship that was to become the Clipper, the Juniata was launched eight years before the Titanic, and began regular service in May 1905. The ship sailed as the Juniata for 31 years, mostly between Buffalo, N.Y., and Duluth, Minn., before it was mothballed in 1937 because of its fire-prone wooden superstructure.

In 1940, the Muskegon-based Wisconsin & Michigan Steamship Co. purchased the Juniata and converted it to the Milwaukee Clipper. The Clipper shuttled passengers and cargo from Muskegon to Milwaukee for 39 years before it was retired in 1970.

The Clipper remained berthed in Muskegon for eight years before it was sold and towed to Chicago's Navy Pier as a floating attraction. In 1990, the ship was purchased by the Hammond, Ind., Port Authority, which attempted to make it into a centerpiece attraction for its large Lake Michigan marina.

The Clipper was towed to Muskegon in late 1997 after being purchased by a nonprofit group now known as the S.S. Milwaukee Clipper Preservation Inc. The ship has been listed on the National Register of Historic Sites since 1983 and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1989.

From the Muskegon Chronicle

 

Doug Fairchild/Boatnerd Memorial Fund

The Board of Directors of Great Lakes and Seaway Shipping Online, Inc., the 501(c)(3) non-profit organization supporting this website, has approved the establishment of a Memorial Fund to have a memorial bench installed in Rotary Park, at Mission Point, in Sault Ste. Marie in memory of the late Douglas Fairchild.

Fairchild, who died unexpectedly in March, was a dedicated boat watcher and supporter of the Boatnerd website. He also had a great interest in the aviation industry, and shared his experiences and information with everyone he met.

The permanent bench will be similar to the present memorial benches in Rotary Park and will be installed in this location favored by boat watchers and photographers from all around the Great Lakes.

Donations should be made to the Boatnerd Memorial Fund, and mailed to Great Lakes and Seaway Shipping, 1110 South Main Street, Findlay, OH 45840-2239. Donations may be tax-deductible depending upon your individual circumstances.

 

Updates - October 29

News Photo Gallery updated

Reserve Conversion Gallery

Public Photo Gallery updated

 

Today in Great Lakes History - October 29

On this day in 1924, the LEONARD B MILLER collided with the GLENORCHY in the fog on Lake Huron. No lives were lost but the GLENORCHY sank and the estimated damage to the two vessels was $600,000.

The whaleback Barge 127 (steel barge, 264 foot, 1,128 gross tons) was launched by the American Steel Barge Company of W. Superior, Wisconsin on 29 October 1892. She lasted until 1936, when she was scrapped at New Orleans, Louisiana.

On 29 October 1906, the schooner WEST SIDE (wooden schooner, 138 foot, 324 gross tons, built in 1870, at Oswego, New York) was carrying pulpwood from Tobermory, Ontario to Delray, Michigan when she was caught in a severe gale on Lake Huron. There was no shelter and the vessel was lost about 25 mile off Thunder Bay Island. The skipper and his crew, consisting of his wife and three sons aged 10 to 18, abandoned in the yawl. They all suffered from exposure to the wind and waves, but luckily the FRANK H PEAVEY (steel propeller freighter, 430 foot, 5,002 gross tons, built in 1901, at Lorain, Ohio) picked them up and brought them to Port Huron, Michigan.

ALGOLAKE (Hull# 211) was launched October 29, 1976, at Collingwood Shipyards, Ltd. for the Algoma Central Railway.

On October 29, 1986, the JAMES R BARKER, who had suffered an engine room fire, was lashed side-by-side to the thousand-foot WILLIAM J DE LANCEY and towed to Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin for repairs.

The pieced together CANADIAN EXPLORER (Hull#71) was christened on October 29, 1983, at the Port Weller Dry Docks. She was created from the bow section of the NORTHERN VENTURE and the stern of the CABOT. The stern of the EXPLORER is now the stern of the CANADIAN TRANSFER.

The National Transportation Safety Board ruled on October 29, 1991, that Total Petroleum was responsible for the fire that destroyed the tanker JUPITER because of faulty moorings and exonerated the BUFFALO from primary responsibility.

On the afternoon of October 29, 1987, while up bound with coal from Sandusky, Ohio, the ROGER M KYES, went aground on Gull Island Shoal in Lake Erie's Middle Passage and began taking on water. About 3,000 tons of coal was transferred to the AMERICAN REPUBLIC after which the KYES freed herself the next morning. Damage from the grounding required extensive repairs. She was renamed b.) ADAM E CORNELIUS in 1989.

The tug portion of the PRESQUE ISLE departed New Orleans, Louisiana on October 29, 1973.

The H C HEIMBECKER's last trip started at Thunder Bay, Ontario with a load of grain bound for Owen Sound, Ontario where, on October 29, 1981, it was discovered that one of her boilers was cracked. When unloading was completed on October 30th, the HEIMBECKER proceeded under her own power to Ashtabula, Ohio for scrapping.

On 29 October 1892, ZACH CHANDLER (3 mast wooden schooner-barge, 194 foot, 727 gross tons, built in 1867, at Detroit, Michigan) was carrying lumber from Ashland, Wisconsin in tow of the steamer JOHN MITCHELL when the two became separated in a northerly gale in Lake Superior. The CHANDLER was overwhelmed and broke up on shore about three miles east of Deer Park, Michigan. Five of the crew made it to shore in the lifeboat and the Lifesaving Service saved two others, but one perished. Three years earlier, the CHANDLER stranded at almost the same spot and sustained heavy damage.

On 29 October 1879, AMAZON (wooden propeller freighter, 245 foot, 1,406 tons, built in 1873, at Trenton, Michigan) was carrying "provisions" - 900 tons of freight plus 7,000 barrels of flour - from Milwaukee to Grand Haven, Michigan. She struck the notorious bar off of Grand Haven in a gale and broke up. All 68 aboard survived. Her engine was later recovered.

On 29 October 1880, THOMAS A SCOTT (4-mast wooden schooner-barge, 207 foot, 1,159 tons, built in 1869, at Buffalo, New York as a propeller) was riding out a storm at anchor one mile off Milwaukee when she was struck by the big steamer AVON (wooden propeller, 251 foot, 1,702 gross tons, built in 1877, at Buffalo, New York). The SCOTT sank quickly. She had been bound from Chicago for Erie, Pennsylvania with 44,000 bushels of corn. Three of her crew scrambled onto the AVON while the seven others took to the yawl and were towed in by the Life Saving Service.

Data from: Joe Barr, Dave Swayze, Russ plumb, Ahoy & Farewell II, Historical Collections of the Great Lakes at B.G.S.U and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series. This is a small sample, the books include many other vessels with a much more detailed history.

 

Port Reports - October 28

Sarnia - Frank Frisk
Jane Ann IV and Sarah Spencer
have been reunited in the north slip in Sarnia on Saturday. As soon as a fuel blend is available they will be departing.

Buffalo - Brian Wroblewski
The Rt. Hon. Paul J Martin arrived late on Thursday night with coal for Lackawanna. She must have unloaded and then shifted under the spouts to load because she did not depart until 11 p.m. Friday.

Sturgeon Bay - Jeff Birch
The Milwaukee to Muskegon ferry Lake Express is on the floating drydock at Bayship.

Bay City - Todd Shorkey
The tug Kurt Luedtke moved a derrick barge and mud scows into position between Liberty and Veteran's Memorial bridges on Saturday in preparation to begin dredging operations. That particular area has been a trouble spot in recent years as a number of vessels have become stuck there due to shoaling made worse by low water levels. MCM Marine is continuing its contract dredging work from the Saginaw River Front Range to about two miles out into the Saginaw Bay. Both projects are expected to be finished before the end of the year.

 

Updates - October 28

News Photo Gallery updated

Reserve Conversion Gallery

Public Photo Gallery updated

 

Today in Great Lakes History - October 28

On this day in 1939, the Pittsburgh steamer D G KERR, Captain H. D. McLeod, rescued six men from the cabin cruiser FRANCIS J H that was disabled and sinking on Lake Erie.

On this day in 1953, the McKEE SONS loaded her first cargo of 17,238 tons of stone at Port Inland for delivery to East Chicago. Originally built as the C-4 MARINE ANGEL, the McKEE SONS was the first ocean vessel converted to a Great Lakes self unloader.

On this day in 1978, a new 420 foot tanker built at Levingston Shipbuilding, Orange, Texas, was christened GEMINI during ceremonies at Huron, Ohio. The GEMINI was the largest American flagged tanker on the lakes with a capacity of 75,000 barrels and a rated speed of 15.5 mph. Sold Canadian and renamed b.) ALGOSAR in 2005.

On 28 October 1891, DAVID STEWART (3-mast wooden schooner, 171 foot, 545 gross tons, built in 1867, at Cleveland, Ohio) was dragged ashore off Fairport, Ohio by a strong gale. She was stranded and declared a total loss. However, she was salvaged and repaired in 1892 and lasted one more year.

The CANADIAN PIONEER's maiden voyage was on October 28, 1981, to Conneaut, Ohio to take on coal for Nanticoke, Ontario.

The CANADIAN TRANSPORT was launched October 28, 1978, for Upper Lakes Shipping Ltd., Toronto, Ontario.

The FRED G HARTWELL (Hull# 781) was launched October 28, 1922, by American Ship Building Co. at Lorain, Ohio for the Franklin Steamship Co. Renamed b.) MATTHEW ANDREWS in 1951. Sold Canadian in 1962, renamed c.) GEORGE M CARL. She was scrapped at Aviles, Spain in 1984.

D M CLEMSON (Hull# 716) was launched October 28, 1916, at Lorain, Ohio by American Ship Building Co. for the Pittsburgh Steamship Co., Cleveland, Ohio.

CHARLES M WHITE was launched October 28, 1945, as a C4-S-A4 cargo ship a.) MOUNT MANSFIELD for the U.S. Maritime Commission (U.S.M.C. Hull #2369).

On 28 October 1887, BESSIE BARWICK, a 135 foot wooden schooner built in 1866, at St. Catharines, Ontario as a bark, left Port Arthur for Kingston, Ontario with a load of lumber during a storm. For more than ten days, her whereabouts were unknown. In fact, a westerly gale drove her into the shallows of Michipicoten Island and she was pounded to pieces. Her crew was sheltered by local fishermen and then made it to the Soo in a small open boat.

On 28 October 1882, RUDOLPH WETZEL (wooden propeller tug, 23 tons, built in 1870, at Buffalo, New York) was racing for a tow with the tug HENRY S SILL when her boiler exploded 12 miles north of Racine, Wisconsin. She quickly sank. All three on board were killed and none of the bodies were ever found.

Data from: Joe Barr, Dave Swayze, Russ Plumb, Father Dowling Collection, Ahoy & Farewell II and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series. This is a small sample, the books include many other vessels with a much more detailed history.

 

 

Man dies after tug capsizes

10/27 - Byng Inlet - A Port Hope man died Sunday morning after the tugboat he was on capsized off the shore of Byng Inlet.

Around 8 a.m. Sunday, Donald Orange, 65, of Port Hope, along with Bryan Hogg, 58, of Thornhill, Ronald Orange, 62, and Shawn Orange, 23, both of Penetanguishene, started to drive the 45-foot tugboat to Midland from where is was moored near the Sawmill Lodge.

About four miles out, the tugboat started to take on water and eventually capsized after being struck by a wave that put the nose under water, said Britt and area fire chief Larry Olds. All four men were wearing lifejackets and swam for the aluminum boat they were towing, police reported. By the time Donald Orange was pulled into the boat he had no vital signs, said Mr. Olds.

An autopsy to determine the cause of death was completed Monday, but results weren't released that afternoon pending notification of next of kin, said Kristine Dawson, West Parry Sound OPP community services officer.

The men headed for the Sawmill Lodge where firefighters worked to revive Donald Orange for 90 minutes. The Britt and Area Fire Department were called to the scene at 11 a.m.

The father of two was a member of the Newcastle Yacht Club and his sail boat was scheduled to come out of the water for the winter this past weekend, said Richard Christensen, commodore of the club.

"He's kind and generous and always (willing) to help," said Mr. Christensen.

From the Perry Sound Press

Editor's note - This same tug sank while trawling off of Port Dover, Ontario on March 24, 1974. Her crew of two were both lost. Aletha B. was built as a fish tug by Russel Bros in Owen Sound in 1945.

 

Port Reports - October 27

Toledo - Sheldon Rody
On a misty rainy Friday morning the Spruceglen was loading at the Port of Toledo.

Goderich -
Cuyahoga backed into Goderich elevators to unload a cargo of corn Friday night.

Menominee - Dick Lund
The old tug, Nicole S, which first arrived in Menominee about a year ago was finally on the move today. The Selvick tug Jimmy L assisted the Nicole S down-river and through the Ogden Street Bridge out to the bay of Green Bay before turning the Nicole S around and handing over the tow to the small tug, Park State. Their ultimate destination is Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.

Alpena - Ben & Chanda McClain
The silos at Lafarge were busy on Friday with all three cement carriers arriving throughout the day. The Alpena was in port first loading for Superior, WI. By early afternoon the Alpena departed and exchanged salutes with the incoming tug G. L Ostrander barge Integrity. By nightfall the Samuel de Champlain and barge Innovation arrived and tied up at the coal dock. Once the Integrity left the Innovation moved over to the loading dock where it will likely take a delay waiting for product.

Toronto - Charlie Gibbons
The saltie Scoter got underway early today from Redpath. Stellanova remained at Pier 51.  The catamaran Bearcat II has been on Toronto Drydock for the past couple of days.

 

Wisconsin gains 28th shipwreck on historic registry

10/27 - Algoma, Wi - The wooden schooner Daniel Lyons, which has rested at the bottom of Lake Michigan for nearly 130 years, has been placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The three-masted, 143-foot long vessel struck and nearly sliced the ship named Kate Gillett on Oct. 18, 1878, about nine miles northeast of Algoma, according to a news release from the University of Wisconsin's Sea Grant Institute.

Gillett's captain worked to keep the bow of his ship lodged in the Lyons hull to keep it from flooding, so the five crew members could get onto the Gillett, according to the institute. When the boats separated, the Lyons settled at the stern, rolled to its side and sank bow first.

The vessel was built to fit through the locks of Welland Canal, which bypass the Niagara Falls between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. It transported grain from ports on western Lake Michigan, collected from newly settled farmlands of the Midwest, to eastern ports on Lakes Erie and Ontario, according to the institute.

Wisconsin now has 28 shipwrecks listed on the National Register, more than any other state, according to Keith Meverden, an underwater archaeologist at the Wisconsin Historical Society.

Meverden led a team of nautical archeologists and other divers to conduct a survey of the wreck in 2005, getting the information in order to nominate the vessel.

From the Chicago Tribune

 

Updates - October 27

News Photo Gallery updated

Reserve Conversion Gallery updated

Public Photo Gallery updated

 

Today in Great Lakes History - October 27

On this day in 1979, the MESABI MINER delivered her first cargo of coal to Port Washington, Wisconsin. The 21 foot draft restriction of the harbor limited the cargo to 39,000 tons.

While in tow of the tug MERRICK on 27 October 1879, the NIAGARA (wooden schooner, 204 foot, 764 gross tons, built in 1873, at Tonawanda, New York) collided with the PORTER (wooden schooner, 205 foot, 747 gross tons, built in 1874, at Milwaukee, Wisconsin) which was in tow of the tug WILCOX at the mouth of the Detroit River. The PORTER sank but was salvaged and repaired. She lasted another 19 years.

The PAUL THAYER, was christened on October 27, 1973, at Lorain, Ohio. Renamed b.) EARL W OGLEBAY in 1995.

While the JAMES R BARKER was up bound October 27, 1986, on Lake Huron above buoys 11 & 12, a high pressure fuel line on the starboard engine failed causing an engine room fire, which was extinguished by on-board fire fighting equipment. Fortunately no one was injured.

On her maiden voyage the HOCHELAGA departed Collingwood on October 27, 1949, for Fort William, Ontario to load grain for Port Colborne, Ontario.

The FRANCIS E HOUSE was laid up at Duluth, Minnesota on October 27, 1960, and remained idle there until April, 1966, when she was sold to the Kinsman Marine Transit Co., Cleveland and was renamed c.) KINSMAN INDEPENDENT. She was scrapped at Santander, Spain in 1974.

On October 27, 1973, the HENRY LA LIBERT struck an embankment while backing from the Frontier Dock Slip at Buffalo, New York and damaged her steering gear beyond repair. As a consequence she was laid up there.

The RED WING and the FRANK A SHERMAN departed Lauzon, Quebec on October 27, 1986, in tandem tow by the Vancouver based deep-sea tug CANADIAN VIKING bound for scrapping in Taiwan.

On 27 October 1869, ALFRED ALLEN (wooden schooner, 160 tons, built in 1853, at Pultneyville, New Jersey as J J MORLEY) was bound for Toledo, Ohio with 500 barrels of salt when she went on the Mohawk Reef near Port Colborne, Ontario in a blizzard. She washed free and drifted to the mainland beach where she was pounded to pieces. No lives were lost.

During a snow storm on the night of 27 October 1878, the propeller QUEBEC of the Beatty Line ran aground on Magnetic Shoals near Cockburn Island on Lake Huron. She was four miles from shore and one of her arches was broken in the accident.

October 27, 1854 - Well-known Pere Marquette carferry captain Joseph "Joe" Russell was born in Greenfield, Wisconsin.

Data from: Joe Barr, Dave Swayze, Max Hanley, Russ Plumb, Father Dowling Collection, Ahoy & Farewell II, Historical Collections of the Great Lakes at B.G.S.U and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series. This is a small sample, the books include many other vessels with a much more detailed history.

 

Griffon mystery runs deep
Steve Libert believes he has discovered ship that sunk in 1679

10/26 - Traverse City - On its second voyage, the wooden ship Griffon sank and sparked a mystery that has spanned centuries.

Built in 1679 north of Niagara, the 60-foot-long, 16-foot-wide ship was dispatched to Green Bay to load a rich cargo of furs. The largest cargo on the largest ship to ever sail the upper Great Lakes — in fact, the first European vessel to do so — vanished shortly after sailing. The disappearance launched a quest that has captivated countless historians, archeologists, divers and amateurs across the ages.

Steve Libert is one of those bewitched by the French ship Le Griffon and he has spent 30 years searching for clues both above and below the waves.

A senior intelligence analyst with the federal government who lives in the northern Virginia area, Libert discussed his odyssey Saturday evening at the Grand Traverse Heritage Center. His talk was part of the center's "Mysteries of the Lake: Lake Michigan Legends and Lore” exhibit, which runs through December 1. The event drew 125 people and also featured short presentations by Ken Vrana, president of the Center for Maritime and Underwater Resource Management and Richard Gross, a historical researcher from Schaumburg, Ill..

Bottom line: Libert believes that in 2001 he located the Griffon in Michigan waters off of the coast of Wisconsin. "I've been looking into the Griffon for 30 years and it's been a long road and a lot of hardships, I've lost a lot of money and been in a lot of danger,” he said. Although further exploration, documentation, confirmation and preservation of this promising wreck are tied up until the resolution of a federal court case with the state of Michigan, Libert shared what he has learned so far.

The legendary French explorer Rene-Robert Cavalier, Sieur de La Salle built the Griffon. La Salle envisioned that the Griffon's cargoes of furs would finance his explorations down the Mississippi River as he sought the river's end. The actions of La Salle, who eventually claimed the land west of the Mississippi that later comprised President Thomas Jefferson's Louisiana Purchase, are intricately tied to United States and Great Lakes history.

Unraveling this mystery, Libert believes, will only deepen our understanding of the country's founding plus the purchase and development of land that comprises two-thirds of the land mass today. "I'm not a treasure hunter, I'm a historical shipwreck hunter,” said Libert.

Gathering a team of like-minded people into the Great Lakes Exploration Group, LLC, of which he is the president, Libert has spent years sifting through historical documents, reading first-hand accounts of the ship's maiden voyage to Wisconsin and exploring miles of lake bottom in his quest. Six years ago, the team finally located what may be the bowsprit of the Griffon and other wreckage but has not explored further until the legal issues are settled.

"I narrowed it down to a few square miles but it still took 14 years to find the vessel,” said Libert, who became entranced by the Griffon story when he was in eighth grade. "There have been about 52 discoveries of the Griffon and about 90 percent of them have been in Lake Huron.”

The Huron Islands clue led those other explorers to the Great Lake of the same name but Libert looked at old charts and a journal wrote by Father Hennepin, who sailed on the maiden voyage. The information in these documents led him to western Lake Michigan and the area where he eventually found the promising artifacts.

"How historians missed it, I have no idea,” said Libert. "That was probably one of the most significant factors for me looking where we did.”

For more information visit the Griffon project website.

From the Traverse City Record-Eagle

 

Port Reports - October 26

Goderich - Dale Baechler
Algosoo backed into the channel under sunny skies and started loading at the Sifto Salt dock at 9:30 a.m. Thursday.

Grand Haven - Dick Fox
The Maumee came in very late Wednesday evening with a load of stone for Meekhof's dock in Ferrysburg. It was gone by dawn.

Toronto - Clive Reddin
Scoter is at the Redpath sugar refinery and Stellanova is in port.

Lorain - C. Mackin
The American Republic passed through the Berry Bridge at 8 a.m. Thursday on its way upriver to R.E.P.

 

Tugboat will go back to work in Twin Ports

10/26 - Duluth - A once-retired Great Lakes tugboat, the Forney, soon will return to service in a new home: the Twin Ports. The vessel has been purchased by a Knife River family with a deep ship-handling heritage.

Mike Ojard and his sons, Pat and Vince, together purchased the Forney, which last saw service in Manitowoc, Wis., where it has been moored since 2004.

The Ojard name is synonymous with tugboats. Mike’s uncle, Adolph Ojard, served as skipper of the Edna G. Mike’s father, Edward “Harvey” Ojard, served as the vessel’s chief engineer. The two brothers worked side by side for 20-plus years, until the Edna G. was retired in 1981. The tug is now a Two Harbors museum boat. (Adolph Ojard was the father of Adolph N. Ojard, executive director of the Duluth Seaway Port Authority.)

Mike Ojard, 61, went on to build his own business, London Auto Body, before retiring and handing it over to his sons five years ago. But he never completely turned his back on the marine service industry. “Tugboats have always been one of Dad’s passions since he was 4 years old, and now he’s doing what he always wanted to do,” Vince Ojard said.

The Ojards had attempted to purchase the 64-year-old tug Lake Superior earlier this year from the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center, but they were outbid by Bob Billington of Billington Construction Co. Vince Ojard declined to say what his family paid for the Forney but said it was significantly more than the $56,000 for which the Lake Superior sold.

Mike Ojard plans to rename the Forney the Edward H., in honor of his father and in the style of the Edna G. Vince Ojard said his 19-year-old son, Vince, plans to join the crew of the Edward H. when it begins service in the Twin Ports early next year. If he does, he will become the fourth generation of the Ojard family to work aboard a Great Lakes tug.

On Wednesday evening, the Forney had taken shelter behind a breakwater at Whitefish Point and was waiting out poor weather. Paul Von Goertz, a friend of Mike Ojard’s and member of his crew, said the tug set out Sunday morning and encountered rough conditions on Lake Michigan. The National Weather Service reported 12-foot seas at the time.

“We’re still learning this tug, and we made a few mistakes. There were a few anxious moments,” said Von Goertz, recalling how the boat’s engine briefly conked out in treacherous waters. But Von Goertz said the Forney’s experienced crew responded adeptly and soon had the vessel restarted and back on course.

The tug is powered by its original engine — an 850-horsepower Enterprise diesel. The 86-foot vessel was built in 1944 by a New Orleans shipyard. It served in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ fleet for many years until its retirement three years ago.

Von Goertz said he hoped to leave Whitefish Point this morning, assuming the weather improves. If so, the Forney, with a maximum speed of about 10 mph, probably will reach Duluth on Friday.

From the Duluth News-Tribune

 

Edmund Fitzgerald Memorial Service planned for River Rouge

10/26 - River Rouge, MI - A memorial service for the Edmund Fitzgerald will be held in Dr. Henri Belanger Park, in River Rouge, MI, on November 10, the anniversary of the famous sinking.

The service will be held at the Mariners Memorial Lighthouse from at 6 to 8 p.m.

The mailboat J. W. Westcott will be on hand to take out a wreath to be placed on the river. There will also be a plaque presentation, bell ringing, and lantern lighting. Refreshments will be served following the service.

For more information call Tony Laginess at 313-595-6963.

 

Updates - October 26

News Photo Gallery updated

Reserve Conversion Gallery updated

Public Photo Gallery updated

 

Today in Great Lakes History - October 26

On 26 October 1878, the new steamer CITY OF DETROIT (composite side-wheel passenger-package freight steamer, 234 foot, 1,094 gross tons, built in 1878, at Wyandotte, Michigan) arrived in Detroit from Cleveland with 276 tons of freight, mostly iron, on deck, and no freight in her hold. This experiment was tried to see if the steamer would show any signs of "crankiness", even under a load so placed. She responded well and lived up to the expectations of her designers.

On 26 October 1882, the sunken schooner-barge NELLIE MC GILVRAY was dynamited as a hazard to navigation by the Portage River Improvement Company. She sank at the entrance to the Portage Canal in the Keweenaw Peninsula on 28 August 1882, and all attempts to raise her failed.

LOUIS R DESMARAIS was christened October 26,1977. She was reconstructed at Port Weller Drydocks and renamed b.) CSL LAURENTIEN in 2001.

On October 26, 1968, the R BRUCE ANGUS grounded in the St. Lawrence River near Beauharnois, Quebec, sixteen hundred tons of iron ore were lightered to free her and she damaged 65 bottom plates.

The HUTCHCLIFFE HALL and OREFAX were sold October 26, 1971, to the Consortium Ile d'Orleans of Montreal made up of Richelieu Dredging Corp., McNamara Construction Ltd. and The J.P. Porter Co. Ltd.

On October 26, 1924, the E A S CLARKE of 1907, anchored in the Detroit River opposite the Great Lakes Engineering Works because of dense fog was struck by the B F JONES of 1906, near her after deckhouse which caused the CLARKE to sink. No lives were lost.

On October 26, 1977, the MENIHEK LAKE struck a lock in the St. Lawrence Seaway sustaining damage estimated at $400,000.

On October 26, 1971, the ROGERS CITY's, A-frame collapsed while unloading at Carrollton, Michigan on the Saginaw River. Her unloading boom was cut away and temporary repairs were made at Defoe Shipbuilding Co., Bay City, Michigan.

The tug ROUILLE was launched on October 26, 1929, as Hull#83 of Collingwood Shipyards Ltd.

The schooner HEMISPHERE, which was being sought by the U.S. Marshals at Detroit and the St. Lawrence River, escaped at the Gallop Rapids and has gone to sea.

On 26 October 1851, ATLAS (wooden propeller, 153 foot, 375 tons, built in 1851, at Buffalo, New York) was carrying flour from Detroit to Buffalo when she was blown to shore near the mouth of the Grand River (Lorain, Ohio) by a gale, stranded and became a total loss. No lives were lost.

On 26 October 1895, GEORGE W DAVIS (wooden schooner, 136 foot, 299 gross tons, built in 1872, at Toledo, Ohio) was carrying coal in a storm on Lake Erie when she stranded near Port Maitland, Ontario. A few days after the stranding, she floated off on her own, drifted two miles up the beach and sank. No lives were lost.

Data from: Joe Barr, Dave Swayze, Max Hanley, Father Dowling Collection, Ahoy & Farewell II and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series. This is a small sample, the books include many other vessels with a much more detailed history.

 

Cutter Mackinaw goes hunting for lake buoys

10/25 - Cheboygan - Another buoy season has arrived for the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Mackinaw, which has departed for Wisconsin's Door Peninsula.

Last week, the Mackinaw's crew completed a week of buoy-deck operations training conducted by the buoy-deck training team from the National Aids to Navigation School in Yorktown, Va.

“Approximately 41 buoys will be pulled from Lake Michigan and Lake Huron and stowed for the winter in Cheboygan,” said Cmdr. John Little, the ship's captain. “Depending on the location and waterway, some of the buoys will be replaced with smaller, more ice resilient winter marks - which means that the chain and concrete sinker will remain on station in the lake. Others will be pulled entirely and will include the buoy, chain and sinker.”

Little said that in most cases the buoys that the Mackinaw's crew will remove weigh more than 12,000 pounds each; the chain over 4,000 pounds and the concrete sinker in excess of 8,500 pounds.

“This critical buoy-deck training involved classroom instruction and hands-on step-by-step procedures on our buoy-deck operations,” Little continued. “Actual buoys were shifted across the deck and placed over the side. The evolution is quite dangerous, especially when you add underway rolling and pitching experienced when working aids to navigation in the open Great Lakes during the ‘gales of November.' Little added that constant training and drills are part of life for Coast Guardsmen involved in buoy work.

“It is imperative to hone these buoy-deck procedures pier-side before putting them into practice in the lakes,” Little said. “Once we begin the fall buoy run, the cutter will be working aids as far south as Gary, Ind., in Lake Michigan and Saginaw Bay in Lake Huron. The ship will also be removing all of the NOAA weather buoys from both lakes by the first week in December.”

The buoy-deck training team was led by buoy-tending veteran Chief Warrant Officer Dave Merrill, who has more than 30 years of aids to navigation experience, including duties as a temporary new Mackinaw crewmember during last years fall buoy run. Merrill was assisted by Chief Boatswain's Mate Jason Wyglendowski, Boatswain's Mate 1st Class Chris Wilcox, and Boatswain's Mate 1st Class John Bagley.

The Mackinaw will return in time for Friday's Haunted Ship display at the Millard D. Olds Memorial Moorings.

By Mike Fornes for the Cheboygan Daily Tribune

 

Port Reports - October 25

Twin Ports - Al Miller
CHS grain elevator in Superior remains busy. On Wednesday morning the Federal Hudson was in berth 1 waiting to load under clear skies while Maritime Trader was in berth 2 to load.
Elsewhere, American Integrity was loading at Midwest Energy Terminal.
Later in the morning, Presque Isle was due at the CN/DMIR ore dock to load for Nanticoke.

Saginaw River - Todd Shorkey & Stephen Hause
The Calumet was inbound the Saginaw River Tuesday night, headed up to the GM dock in Saginaw to unload. She turned in the Sixth Street Basin Wednesday morning and was outbound for the lake.
The American Mariner was inbound Wednesday morning calling on the Consumers Energy dock in Essexville to unload coal. She backed from the dock and out to Light 12 to turn Wednesday afternoon.
Also on the Saginaw River are crews from both MCM Marine and Luedtke Engineering who are working on separate dredging projects. The tugs Kurt Luedtke and Gretchen B. Luedtke along with three barges arrived on the Saginaw River late Monday evening, tying up at the Essroc dock in Essexville.

Toledo -
Cuyahoga was unloading at ADM on Wednesday.

Hamilton - Eric Holmes
Wednesday afternoon and evening was a busy one in Hamilton. The tug Anglian Lady and barge PML2501 arrived at 3:30 p.m.
Hamilton Energy arrived back in port at 4 p.m. after bunkering the Halifax in the Burlington Bay anchorage. Tug Bagotville departed at 4 p.m. and was heading to Oshawa.The tug Americo Dean arrived at 4:15 p.m. from Bronte. The Ocean Group tug LaPrairie departed at 4:30 p.m. heading to Clarkson.
She was followed out by the Spruceglen who departed Pier 12 at 4:30 p.m. and was headed to the Welland Canal and onto Toledo in ballast. The tug Annie M Dean and work barge Canadian Jubilee arrived at 6 p.m. from Bronte.
CSL Tadoussac then arrived at 6:30 p.m. with iron ore pellets for Stelco.

Milwaukee - Paul Erspamer
Federal Mattawa (reg. Monrovia) was berthed stern-in at Milwaukee's outer harbor terminal #2 Wednesday evening, delivering steel.
BBC Finland (reg. Naples) remained at the heavy lift dock in the inner harbor, unloading windmill blades.

 

Collingwood-built vessel to be broken up

10/25 - Marine News, published by the World Ship Society, reported in the October edition that the self discharging bulk carrier Baron arrived at Alang, India on August 23 to be broken up.

She had been built by Collingwood Drydocks in 1976 as Gypsum Baron. IMO No. 7356525.

Reported by René Beauchamp

 

Updates - October 25

News Photo Gallery updated

Reserve Conversion Gallery

Public Photo Gallery updated

 

Today in Great Lakes History - October 25

On this day in 1975, a 96 foot mid body section was added to the ARTHUR B HOMER at Fraser Ship Yards, Superior, Wisconsin. The HOMER became the largest American flagged freighter to be lengthened. This modification increased her length to 826 feet and her per trip carrying capacity to 31,200 tons.

On 25 October 1872, the crew of the small tug P P PRATT (wooden propeller steam tug, 14 tons, built in 1866, at Buffalo, New York), went to dinner at a nearby hotel while the tug was docked in Oswego, New York. While they were gone, the tug's boiler exploded. A large piece of the boiler, weighing about five hundred pounds, landed on the corner of West First and Cayuga Street. A six-foot piece of rail impaled itself in the roof of the Oswego Palladium Newspaper's offices. Amazingly, no one was hurt. The hulk was raised the following week and the engine was salvaged.

On 25 October 1888, AMETHYST (wooden propeller tug, 14 gross tons, built in 1868, at Buffalo, New York) caught fire and burned to a total loss at Duluth, Minnesota.

The ALGOBAY departed on her maiden voyage October 25, 1978, from Collingwood light for Stoneport, Michigan to load stone for Sarnia, Ontario.

The STERNECLIFFE HALL entered service for the Hall Corporation of Canada on October 25, 1947.

The HURON arrived at Santander, Spain October 25, 1973, in consort with her sister WYANDOTTE towed by the German tug DOLPHIN X. for scrapping.

October 25, 1895 - SHENANGO NO 2 (later PERE MARQUETTE 16) was launched in Toledo, Ohio. She was built by the Craig Shipbuilding Company for the United States & Ontario Steam Navigation Company and later became part of the Pere Marquette carferry fleet.

The engines of the propeller WESTMORELAND, which sank in 1854, near Skillagalee Reef in Lake Michigan, were recovered and arrived at Chicago on 25 October 1874.

ARK was built on the burned out hull of the steamer E K COLLINS as a side wheel passenger steamer in 1853, at Newport, Michigan, but she was later cut down to a barge. On 25 October 1866, she was being towed along with three other barges down bound from Saginaw, Michigan in a storm. Her towline parted and she disappeared with her crew of 6. The other three tow-mates survived. There was much speculation about ARK's whereabouts until identifiable wreckage washed ashore 100 miles north of Goderich, Ontario.

On 25 October 1833, JOHN BY (wooden stern-wheeler, 110 foot, built in 1832, at Kingston, Ontario) was on her regular route between York (now Toronto) and Kingston, Ontario when a storm drove her ashore near Port Credit, a few miles from York. Her terrible handling in open lake water set the precedent that stern-wheelers were not compatible with lake commerce.

On 25 October 1887, VERNON (wooden propeller passenger/package-freight steamer, 158 foot, 560 tons, built in 1886, at Chicago, Illinois) foundered in a gale 6 miles northeast of Two Rivers Point on Lake Michigan. The death toll was estimated at 31 - 36. The sole survivor was picked up on a small raft two days later by the schooner POMEROY. He was on the raft with a dead body. Most casualties died of exposure. There were accusations at the time that the vessel was overloaded causing the cargo doors to be left open which allowed the water to pour in during the storm. This accusation was confirmed in 1969 (82 years after the incident) when divers found the wreck and indeed the cargo doors were open.

Data from: Joe Barr, Dave Swayze, Max Hanley, Russ Plumb, Father Dowling Collection, Ahoy & Farewell II and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series. This is a small sample, the books include many other vessels with a much more detailed history.

 

Stellanova loses steering

10/24 - The Jumbo, heavy lift vessel Stellanova, lost her steering while up bound for Toronto at calling in point 7 in the St Lawrence Seaway near Cornwall, Ontario, on Tuesday.

Steering regained, Stellanova was ordered to go to anchor at St Zotique, Quebec, for further inspection.

This is the same vessel that lost steering October, 14,2002 in the St. Lawrence Seaway at Kahnawake which resulted of Stellanova being in a frontal collision with the Canadian Prospector causing substantial damage to both vessels.

By 10 p.m., Stellanova is heading West once more, after losing steering, the Jumboship heavy lift vessel was ordered to go to St. Zotique anchorage . The Netherlands registered vessel is bound for Toronto, Ontario.

Reported by Walter Statham & Kent Malo.

 

Port Reports - October 24

Goderich - Jacob Smith
On Tuesday morning, the Cuyahoga was into port loading at the elevators.

Milwaukee - Paul Erspamer
Cement carrier Integrity with its tug G. L. Ostrander arrived in Milwaukee's inner harbor about midnight Monday night, then turned and docked at LaFarge. Integrity continued unloading cement on Tuesday.
Also Tuesday, BBC Finland arrived and turned in the inner harbor turning basin about 2:30 p.m., berthing at the heavy lift dock with a deck cargo of wind turbine blades.

Escanaba - Dick Lund
The Earl W paid a visit to Escanaba on Tuesday afternoon when it arrived for a load of taconite pellets.

 

Fines imposed for pollution spills

10/24 - Montreal Two separate investigations by Transport Canada recently led to charges in Penal and Criminal Court followed by an imposition of fines. The Italian-flag ship Crystal Rubino and the Canadian-flag ship Catherine Desgagné were both found guilty of hydrocarbon pollution.

Under the Oil Pollution Prevention Regulations and the Canada Shipping Act, Judge Pierre Fortin of the Montréal Criminal and Penal Court recently ordered the Crystal Rubino to pay a $15,000 fine for dumping six liters of hydrocarbon residues in the Saint Lawrence River. The discharge occurred April 18, 2004 when the Crystal Rubino was moored in the Port of Montréal and transferring hydrocarbon residues to a tank truck.

On the other hand, Judge Anne-Marie Jacques of the District of Richelieu Criminal and Penal Court found the Catherine Desgagné guilty of dumping about 10 liters of oily water from its machine room bilges into the Saint Lawrence River. An $18 000 fine was imposed on the ship. The discharge occurred on July 24, 2004 when the ship was moored at the Sorel wharf.

Transport Canada is committed to ensuring that commercial shipping operations in Canadian waters respect the environment and to prosecuting marine polluters whenever there is sufficient evidence. The penalties imposed by the courts serve as deterrents to potential polluters.

In addition, under the Health of the Oceans Initiative, the Government of Canada strengthened its commitment regarding the national water strategy announced in the Budget 2007. With an investment of $61.5 million over five years, divided among five federal departments, the Health of the Oceans funds are designated exclusively to protect fragile marine ecosystems and Canada's ocean resources for coastal communities. Transport Canada will use its assigned amounts to increase protection of Canada's navigable waterways by fighting pollution from ships.

Source - Transport Canada

 

Indian firm buys Minnesota Steel; will build steel plant

10/24 - Nashwauk - A financial manager in Grand Rapids offered what’s become an often-heard comment about a $1.6 billion steel mill proposed on Minnesota’s Iron Range.

“He was sitting next to me and he said: ‘I didn’t realize that this was going to be such a big project,’ ” said Peter McDermott, president of the Itasca Economic Development Corp. “It’s like a lot of other people. They don’t believe it until they see it.”

On Monday, the largest industrial project in the history of the Iron Range gave residents one more reason to believe, taking one of its final steps toward completion. Essar Global Limited, a steelmaker based in India, bought Minnesota Steel Industries and its steelmaking facility proposed near Nashwauk. The project holds potential to transform the region by adding good-paying jobs, creating spinoff businesses, attracting new families to the region and boosting school enrollments.

“I think this is pretty exciting, myself,” said Peter Kakela, a Michigan State University professor who studies the iron ore industry. “We’ve been importing about 10 million tons of steel slabs per year over the last 10 years. It would be great to have a domestic source.” “I don’t know if people understand what the magnitude of this is,” Marvin Vuicich, president of American Bank in Hibbing, said of the project. “It’s going to have an absolutely huge impact. It’s going to create a huge housing need in several Iron Range cities, increase property values, rental rates and create a huge need for workers. Maybe it’s going to be a way to keep more young people on the Range.”

Minnesota Steel officials would not comment on the sale price. However, the transaction means construction of the mammoth project probably will begin early in 2008. “Essar Steel is a global conglomerate and is now going to take the project to successful fruition,” said Steve Hicks, Minnesota Steel vice chairman. “Yes, they will be able to construct the project.” Full financial closure for the steel plant, in which Essar would secure $1.6 billion for construction, is expected by January.
The project has been about 11 years in the making.

To be built on about 20,000 acres west of Nashwauk and north of Highway 169, the operation would include a new open-pit taconite mine; crushing, concentrating and pelletizing plants; a direct-reduced iron facility; and a steel slab plant capable of producing 2.5 million tons of slabs a year. Steel slabs produced at the plant would range in size from 45 inches to 96 inches wide, 8 to 10 inches thick, and 12 to 30 feet long. Slabs would be shipped by rail to North American steelmakers to be reheated and rolled into steel products.

North American steelmakers have been importing steel slabs for years from plants in Russia, Ukraine, Brazil and Mexico. The Itasca County plant would give North American steelmakers access to domestically manufactured steel slabs that company officials say would be produced at the lowest cost in the world.

“We haven’t seen anything like this in 100 years,” McDermott said. “Frankly, I see this as the tipping point. Our economy has been flat for 25 years. In the 1980s, our average wage per job [in Itasca County] was more than the state average. But we’ve lost mining and wood products jobs. Now, our average wage per job is $30,779 and the state average is $41,244. This is something that gets the news out to young people who have left the area that there are jobs here.”

Itasca County once was a hotbed of natural iron ore mining, in which high-quality iron ore that required little processing was removed from the Earth. But depletion of the high-grade ore led to the closure of nearly all Itasca County mines. Mining and processing of lower-grade taconite ore replaced natural ore mining, but most taconite plants are east of Itasca County. Today, layoffs at wood products plants and other employers within the county have translated into an Itasca County unemployment rate of about 6.4 percent, McDermott said.

“We have a high level of unemployment in our area and have been deemed by the state to be a distressed county,” McDermott said. “We need these mining jobs.” Phase I construction at the steel plant would produce about 1.25 million tons of steel slabs annually.

Essar announced a $1.5 billion deal on April 16 to acquire Algoma Steel, a Sault St. Marie, Ontario, steelmaking facility. Two days later, Essar announced the deal to acquire Minnesota Steel. Slabs produced at the steel plant could help feed Algoma. Algoma produces sheet steel shipped to U.S. automakers General Motors and Ford.

Because the site near Nashwauk has access to two rail lines, water transportation routes and natural gas from Canada, it offers Essar key advantages, Hicks said. Butler Taconite operated a taconite plant at the proposed steel site from 1964 until 1985, when the plant was torn down after a bankruptcy. Before that, natural ore mining had occurred on the proposed steel site since 1902. Much of the land the steel plant will be built on is abandoned Butler Taconite property such as mining dumps and an old tailings basin. An estimated 1.4 billion tons of high-quality iron reserves remain at the site. That’s enough feed for the steel plant to operate for about 100 years.

Mining, processing and producing steel at a single site would make the facility the world’s lowest-cost producer of steel, company officials say.

A 600,000 metric ton-per-year iron nugget plant also is in development near Aurora. Steel Dynamics of Fort Wayne, Ind., will own and operate the plant. That plant would be the first of its kind in the world. “Both [the steel and nugget plant] are starting out kind of small, but they’re both pretty high up the value chain,” Kakela said. “It’s new stuff. It’s the first time in 40 years that anything new has been made of Iron Range ore.”

From the Duluth News-Tribune

 

Erie Canal recovers from last year's dismal boating season

10/24 - Rochester, NY - Rebounding from a dismal boating season in 2006, the Erie Canal has had one of its best in recent years, officials say, despite an earlier-than-planned closing next month.

Through September, 132,838 boats had gone through a canal lock this year, up nearly 30 percent from 102,364 for the same period in 2006, when much of the canal was closed for six to eight weeks due to flooding. This year's total is even 2 percent higher than that for the same time in 2005, considered a good year for canal traffic, when 129,699 boats entered a lock.

"Marinas and businesses say it's the best year they've had in decades," said Canal Corp. Director Carmella Mantello. "They were devastated by flooding and rains last year. This year, they have completely bounced back and more."

On Oct. 8, state officials announced that the typical closing date of Nov. 15 would be moved up to Nov. 7 for commercial traffic and Nov. 1 for recreational boaters due to persistent dry weather in the Mohawk Valley. The earlier closing won't affect Lee Poinan, who owns and operates the Colonial Belle, a boat that offers daily dining excursions on the canal from Fairport. His last cruise is scheduled on Oct. 31. "We've been told we have to be out of here by the 7th," Poinan said.

It was business as usual last week, with crews taping paper placemats onto tables aboard the boat as a group of luncheon diners was about to board. "We had a great season," he said. "The weather made it a great season for boating." Water levels in the canal here have been about normal, Poinan said, ranging from 12 to 15 feet deep in the man-made sections.

About five miles to the east at Macedon Landing in Wayne County, Dan Wiles, part of a family that owns Mid-Lakes Navigation in Skaneateles, Onondaga County, was busy power-washing the hulls of canalboats taken out of the water for the season. His sister, Libby Wing, said rentals of 11 packet boats this year were popular. "The tourists are taking advantage of the canal more," she said.

The increase wasn't hard to achieve this year. In 2006, flooding rains closed the canal in the Mohawk Valley for six to eight weeks. Signs of the flood remain: Lock houses are still being repaired, landscaping restored, trees planted and dams rehabilitated. "We're continuously working on it," Mantello said. "We're close to 70 percent done with storm recovery. We should be fully recovered, minus dam rehabilitation, by the summer of 2008."

This year's problem was a lack of water. The Hinckley Reservoir, which straddles Herkimer and Oneida counties, provides drinking water for that region as well as being a major source for water in the canal. When the reservoir reached drought levels this summer, Oneida County declared an emergency. "We went to water conservation measures," Mantello said. Locks were opened only once an hour, the first time that had been done since a drought in 1980. "Every time you open the lock and close it, it's releasing 1.5 million gallons of water," she said.

Even though water levels have risen in the Mohawk Valley, the canal will close early, as advertised. The warning was needed to give boaters, including those who may be scattered around the Great Lakes, time to get through. It can take more than three weeks to navigate from the Great Lakes through the waterway and into the Hudson River.

Water will remain in the canal for about two weeks after it closes as workers remove buoys and winterize floodgates and dams. Fishing and private boating will still be allowed, but the lift bridges and locks won't be operating.

More than 680 boats docked overnight this season at Brockport's Welcome Center on the canal, the most in the center's three years of operation, said volunteer Charlene Whipple. The center closed for the season earlier this month. "There were so many nice people from all over the world," Whipple said. "I saw one boat that said 'Hamburg' on the back of it; I assumed they were from the Hamburg here (in Erie County). But they said they were from Hamburg, Germany, and left in 2000 to travel to all of the places they wanted to visit."

Gary Rainey of Erie Pa., spent five days this summer taking his 42-foot boat, Panache, from Newport, R.I., up the Hudson River and through the canal to Lake Erie. It was his first trip on the canal and, he said, likely not his last. "It was wonderful," Rainey said. "It's well-maintained, and the lock tenders and all the employees are so courteous. They really want you to use the canal."

Rainey said the only possible downside of travel on the canal is the 10 mph speed limit in most sections. "It gives you plenty of time to watch the world go by," he said. "It's a very pretty ride."

From the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

 

Updates - October 24

News Photo Gallery updated

Reserve Conversion Gallery

Public Photo Gallery updated

 

Today in Great Lakes History - October 24

On 24 October 1886, the wooden steam barge RUDOLPH burned on Lake St. Clair and was beached. She was loaded with lumber from East Saginaw, Michigan for Cleveland, Ohio.

On 24 October 1902, W T CHAPPELL (2-mast wooden schooner, 72 foot, 39 gross tons, built in 1877, at Sebewaing, Michigan) was carrying stove wood from Grand Marais, Michigan to the Soo in a severe storm on Lake Superior when she sprang a leak. She was blown over and sank 4 miles from the Vermillion Life Saving Station. The Life Saving crew rescued the 2-man crew in the surf boat and took them to the Whitefish Point Lighthouse for the night since the storm was so severe.

The THUNTANK 6 (Hull#309) was launched October 24, 1969, at Wallsend, England by Clelands Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., for Thun Tankers Ltd., London, U.K.. Renamed b.) ANTERIORITY in 1972. Purchased by Texaco Canada in 1975, renamed c.) TEXACO WARRIOR. Sold off-lakes in 1984, renamed d.) TRADER, e.) SEA CORAL in 1985, f.) TALIA II in 1985, g.) TALIA in 1985, STELLA ORION in 1995 and h.) SYRA in 2000.

The PHILIP D BLOCK along with the W W HOLLOWAY scrap tow arrived at Recife, Brazil. October 24, 1986.

The THOMAS W LAMONT and her former fleet mate, ENDERS M VOORHEES arrived at Alegeciras, Spain on October 24, 1987, on the way to the cutters torch. The LAMONT was one of the last bulkers that retained her telescoping hatch covers to the very end.

The NIPIGON BAY arrived Thunder Bay, Ontario on October 24, 1980, where repairs were made from damage caused by her grounding earlier in the month

On 24 October 1855, ALLEGHENY (wooden propeller, 178 foot, 468 tons, built in 1849, at Cleveland, Ohio) was carrying general merchandise and passengers in a storm, when she anchored near the Milwaukee harbor entrance for shelter. She lost her stack and then was unable to get up steam and was helpless. She dragged her anchor and came in close to the beach where she was pounded to pieces. There was no loss of life. Her engine and most of her cargo were removed by the end of the month. Her engine was installed in a new vessel of the same name built to replace her.

On 24 October 1873, just a month after being launched, the scow WAUBONSIE capsized at St. Clair, Michigan and lost her cargo of bricks. She was righted and towed to Port Huron, minus masts, rigging and bowsprit, for repairs.

On 24 October 1886, LADY DUFFERIN (3-mast wooden schooner-barge, 135 foot, 356 gross tons, built at Port Burwell, Ontario) was lost from the tow of the propeller W B HALL and went ashore near Cabot Head on Georgian Bay. No lives were lost, but the vessel was a total loss.

On 24 October 1953, the Yankcanuck Steamship Lines' MANZZUTTI (steel crane ship, 246 foot, 1,558 gross tons, built in 1903, at Buffalo, New York as J S KEEFE) ran aground south of the channel into the Saugeen River. The tug RUTH HINDMAN from Killarney pulled her free. No damage was reported.

Data from: Joe Barr, Dave Swayze, Father Dowling Collection, Ahoy & Farewell II and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series. This is a small sample, the books include many other vessels with a much more detailed history.

 

Great Lakes Center Captain Dies While Diving

10/23 - Buffalo - John J. Freidhoff, lead boat captain and field station manager for Buffalo State College’s Great Lakes Center for Environmental Research and Education, died Friday while scuba diving in Lake Ontario near Brockport.

Freidhoff, 46, of Angola, was pulled from the bottom of the lake about 1 p.m. and taken to Lakeside Hospital in Brockport, where he died, Monroe County sheriff’s spokesman John Helfer told the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle. Freidhoff, a Coast Guard reservist who was scuba diving with colleague Caleb P. Basiliko, was found with his mask off. The two men were attempting to retrieve sensing equipment used for research by Brockport State College’s Department of Environmental Science and Biology, according to Buffalo State officials.

Rochester media reports indicated the equipment was lost when a cable snapped two weeks ago in lake waters about 100 feet deep.

Freidhoff, who was affectionately known as “Capt. John,” was a certified scuba diver and a licensed boat captain. In 2004 he was nominated as Coast Guard Junior Officer of the Year “for his outstanding performance of duty.”

“He will be remembered for his dedication to improving the environment and for helping to make the Great Lakes Center an important resource for not just Buffalo State College but also for the Western New York/Southern Ontario region,” according to a statement by Phyllis Camesano, public relations director at Buffalo State. “Buffalo State College extends its deepest condolences to Capt. John’s family and friends throughout the community.”

A native of Cambria County, Pa., Freidhoff was a 1986 graduate of Gannon University in Erie, Pa.

Besides his work at Buffalo State College, the father and husband was active in the Angola community as a volunteer for the Lake Erie Beach Fire Department, a Cub Scout leader, softball coach and church youth leader.

From the Buffalo News

 

Port Reports - October 23

Buffalo - Brian Wroblewski
The Herbert C. Jackson backed out of the Buffalo River Monday by the tug New Jersey at approximately 2:15. She was turned around, blasted her horns and made her way out of the inner harbor and onto Lake Erie at roughly 2:25 where she gave one last blast of her horns.
The Karen Andrie departed Buffalo for Detroit with her petroleum barge A-397 at 10 p.m. Monday night.

Grand Haven - Dick Fox
The tug Invincible and barge McKee Sons came in very early Monday morning with a load of coal for the Board of Light and Power Sims Plant on Harbor Island in Grand Haven.

Saginaw River - Todd Shorkey
The American Courage was inbound the Saginaw River, calling on the Bay Aggregates dock in Bay City early Sunday morning. She completed her unload and was outbound for the lake later in the day.
The Algoway was also inbound during the morning hours Sunday, calling on the North Star dock in Essexville. She completed her unload and was also outbound later in the day.
The tug Victory and barge Lewis J. Kuber were inbound next with a split load. The pair called on the Wirt Stone dock in Bay City to lighter and they then continued upriver to finish unloading at the Wirt Stone dock in Saginaw. The Victory & Kuber were outbound from the Sixth Street turning basin early Monday evening.
The Maumee was inbound Monday morning, also calling on the Wirt Stone dock in Bay City. She dropped her entire load there, turned in the basin at the West end of the dock and was outbound for the lake late Monday afternoon.

Marinette - Dick Lund
The Algorail arrived in Marinette around 5:30 p.m. on Monday with a load of salt for Marinette Fuel & Dock.

Alpena & Stoneport - Ben & Chanda McClain
The tug Joyce L. Van Enkevort and barge Great Lakes Trader were loading at Stoneport on an overcast Monday afternoon. The Trader departed after 5 p.m. to head for Marquette.
In Alpena, the tug Samuel de Champlain and barge Innovation arrived at Lafarge Monday evening to dock under the silos.

Calumet -
On Monday an unknown freighter was anchored
4-5 miles off-shore, likely waiting for the very high winds to die down.
Over the horizon came the American Mariner headed for Arcelor (Mittal, ISPAT, Inland) Steel in East Chicago. The Mariner slowed and appeared to be going to anchor, it was waiting for a ship leaving Arcelor. The Mariner was heading to KCBX for coal, and was towed stern first up the Calumet River by the G tug South Carolina

Port Colborne
Around 10 p.m. Monday it appeared a fire has broken out in the forward end of the remains of the L. E. Block being scrapped at IMS in Port Colborne. The fire generated a lot of smoke but due to security restrictions could not be viewed.

Toronto - Charlie Gibbons
The saltie Milo departed Redpath Monday evening with the assistance of Omni Richelieu and La Prairie. The tugs were still in port at midnight, awaiting the arrival of the salty Scoter. Stephen B. Roman was in port all day.

Owen Sound - Peter Bowers
Saginaw cleared the Great Lakes Elevator light Monday night. Her unusual unload using the elevator's leg was prompted by a burned out boom winch motor. After unloading, a crane lifted the replacement motor into place and shortly after she cleared port.

 

Updates - October 23

News Photo Gallery updated

Reserve Conversion Gallery

Public Photo Gallery updated

 

Today in Great Lakes History - October 23

On this day in 1949, the new Canada Steamship Line steamer HOCHELAGA successfully completed her sea trials in Georgian Bay. She departed Collingwood the next day to load her first cargo of grain at Port Arthur.

On 23 October 1887, the small wooden scow-schooner LADY ELGIN was driven ashore about one mile north of Goderich, Ontario in a severe storm that claimed numerous other vessels. By 26 October, she was broken up by the waves.

The CARL GORTHON, was launched October 23, 1970, for Rederi A/B Gylfe, Helsingborg, Sweden. Sold Canadian in 1980, renamed b.) FEDERAL PIONEER and c.) CECILIA DESGAGNES in 1985. In 2000, she was used as a movie set, unofficially renamed LADY PANAMA.

The rail car ferry GRAND RAPIDS was launched October 23, 1926, at Manitowoc, Wisconsin for the Grand Trunk-Milwaukee Car Ferry Co., Muskegon, Michigan. She entered service in December of 1926.

WILLIAM B SCHILLER (Hull#372) was launched October 23, 1909, at Lorain, Ohio for the Pittsburgh Steamship Co., Cleveland, Ohio.

October 23, 1953 - The steamer SPARTAN arrived Ludington on her maiden voyage. Captain Harold A. Altschwager was in command.

On 23 October 1868, F T BARNEY (wooden schooner, 255 tons, built in 1856, at Vermilion, Ohio) collided with the schooner TRACY J BRONSON and sank below Nine Mile Point, Northwest of Rogers City in Lake Michigan. The wreck was found in 1987, and sits in deep water, upright in almost perfect condition.

On 23 October 1873, the wooden steam barge GENEVA was loaded with wheat and towing the barge GENOA in a violent storm on Lake Superior. She bent her propeller shaft and the flailing blades cut a large hole in her stern. The water rushed in and she went down quickly 15 miles off Caribou Island. No lives were lost. This was her first season of service. She was one of the first bulk freighters with the classic Great Lakes fore and aft deck houses.

On 23 October 1883, JULIA (2-mast wooden schooner, 89 foot, 115 gross tons, built in 1875, at Smith's Falls, Ontario) was coming into Oswego harbor with a load of barley when she struck a pier in the dark and sank. No lives were lost.

Data from: Joe Barr, Dave Swayze, Max Hanley, Russ Plumb, Father Dowling Collection, Ahoy & Farewell II and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series. This is a small sample, the books include many other vessels with a much more detailed history.

 

Ice-cutting fees may prompt ferry shutdown

10/22 - Marine City - Southern St. Clair County residents and tourists traveling to Canada may have to go the long way around - through Port Huron and over the Blue Water Bridge - to get to Ontario and back.

The Bluewater International Ferry, which is located just east of state highway M-29, provides the fastest, most convenient rout to Canada; but, due to high marine service fees, ferry management is threatening to close for the winter. The Canadian-owned Bluewater Ferry docks in Sombra, Ontario, and Marine City.

Ferry manager Capt. Morgan Dalgety said exorbitant ice-breaking charges from the Canadian Coast Guard's Oceans and Fisheries Division are putting a financial squeeze on the company. To make matters worse, Dalgety doesn't believe the ferry is receiving any benefits from the Coast Guard's services. He also believes the freighters that regularly pass through the area - which don't pay any de-icing fees - get preferential treatment from the Canadian Coast Guard.

Ice-cutters routinely escort freighters through ice-jammed waters, he said, yet they won't clear a path from Sombra to Marine City for the ferry. "We were told they go across the channel, but they don't go up and down," Dalgety said.

Currently, he is in litigation with the Canadian Parliament in Ottawa for refusing to pay $168,000 in ice-breaking fees for the past three years. The ferry company is claiming financial hardship. "We make our money in the summer from tourists, vacationers and cottagers; but we lose money through the winter," Dalgety said. "It might be cheaper for us to lay the boat up in the winter."Authorities are in the process of investigating and "rethinking" the situation, he added.

Marine City Commissioner Tony Wren owns the duty-free store at the city's ferry dock. He and many other local Marine City businesses will be greatly impacted if the ferry does not keep running in the winter, he said. "If the ferry closes, this will have a serious impact on the retail economy of Marine City. Not only will I have to lay off six people but also our bars, restaurants and antique shops will suffer," Wren said. "The village of Sombra, on the Canadian side, will suffer even more as they rely on U.S. business."

Jaime Caceres, manager of the Canadian Coast Guard's Central-Artic Marine Division, agreed the fees are expensive and said the Coast Guard is working to come to "some kind of arrangement" due to Dalgety's present circumstances. Each time the Canadian Coast Guard goes out, shipping companies and other commercial operations along the waterway are charged $3,100, he said. In defense of the fees, Caceres said ice-breaking rates for marine businesses operating in the Great Lakes region are only about 10 percent of coast guard costs.
"And there is a cap on the fees," he said. "They are not charged more than eight times during a season and no more than three times a month."

Caceres agreed that the CCG's efforts to help one region sometimes makes it worse for another.

"Lake Huron is not a small lake," he said. "When the weather conditions are shifting, working in concert with the U.S. Coast Guard, we try to break the ice the best we can to keep the shipping channels as clear as possible. We also get information from the ice services and work with the regional operations center in Sarnia. In the end, we have to assess our information and plot a particular route."

CCG Superintendent of Operations Sam Babisky also explained the service they perform with a bigger picture in mind. "The waterway here is at the southern base of Lake Huron," he said. "It creates a lot of ice flow from the shorelines." 

Although the current moves quickly, he said, ice starts to build up while the water is still moving underneath. "It builds up like a glacier," Babisky said. "Left on its own, the ice would scour the shoreline, breaking up docks, boathouses and houses. Ice is tremendously powerful if it builds up enough weight.

"Our primary responsibility is to keep the channel open, flushing it into Lake Erie; keeping it flowing so that it does not destroy shoreside property at facilities on the riverbank."

According to Babisky, the CCG's efforts directly benefit the ferry whether they realize it or not. "It's hard to see when you're fixed in one spot. He doesn't see the ice banking in front of his ferry, but it's because we are flushing the ice so it never builds up," he said. "It's not an act of God when the waterway is open."

He added that while marine operations have a right to the benefits of Coast Guard icebreakers, they are not able to service ferry docks where the water is not deep enough to navigate the cutters. "We can't go in shallow water under 18 feet. We get as close to the shore as we possibly can," Babisky said. "We also can't get in at the Algonac ferry. They might have to use a little tug."

The Coast Guard monitors conditions using radar satellite photography, long before the river plugs up, Babisky said. The equipment checks water and air conditions 24 hours a day and provides the latest marine forecast.
"It provides real time up-to-date information," he said.

The information is available to all shippers and carriers doing business or traveling the waterways - all part of the marine service fee. "We have 45 full-time marine clients," he said. "Shipping, salt and steel companies, tugs, coal ports and coal shippers are using our service." He added that the forecasting service is also available at no extra charge to the Bluewater Ferry to help them prepare for crises or holdups due to the weather.

From the Voice News

 

Port Reports - October 22

Buffalo - Brian Wroblewski
The Adam E. Cornelius arrived at 11 a.m. Sunday morning for the General Mills Frontier Elevator.
At 5 p.m. Sunday, the Herbert C. Jackson was met at the North Entrance by one of the "G" tugs and was towed up to the ADM Standard Elevator.

Marquette - Lee Rowe
The James R Barker brought coal to Marquette Saturday and was still unloading Sunday.

Owen Sound - Peter Bowers
Saginaw arrived with a load of grain early Sunday at the Great Lakes Elevator. She is currently unloading and expected to leave Monday. Unloading is being carried out by using the elevator's leg rather than the usual self-unloader boom to unloading bin mounted on the side of the elevator. The Saginaw's boom was left on the deck and grain was transferred to the hold immediately under the boom's end. The elevator's leg dipped this hold resulting in the leg getting an never ending supply of wheat. This is the first use of the leg in several years and the first unloading in this manner. The last ship to us the elevator's leg was thought to be the Mapleglen.

Goderich - Dale Baechler
Algoway arrived overnight and is loading Monday morning at Sifto Salt.

Twin Ports - Al Miller
Boat watchers in the Twin Ports early Monday found Beluga Efficiency waiting to load at AGP grain elevator in Duluth and Federal St. Laurent at CHS 1 in Superior. Fair weather is predicted for much of the week so grain loading should progress quickly.
Elsewhere, Paul R. Tregurtha was at the Murphy Oil terminal and American Century was loading at Midwest Energy Terminal.
Late Sunday afternoon found Mesabi Miner tied up at the port terminal and Cason J. Callaway fueling before proceeding to Hallett dock to unload stone.

 

Fitzgerald memorial service scheduled

10/22 - Whitefish Point - The Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society will host the annual Edmund Fitzgerald memorial Service on November 10, at the Whitefish Point museum.

The service will begin at 7:00 p.m. and a reception will follow.

Additional information is available at the Society's website.

 

Dossin Museum to host Lost Mariners Remembrance

10/22 - Detroit - On November 10, 1975, the Great Lakes ore freighter Edmund Fitzgerald sank in a furious storm off Whitefish Point in Lake Superior, taking the lives of all 29 crewmen. Another ore freighter, William Clay Ford, was the first boat to arrive on the scene.

As a repository of important artifacts from these ships (the Fitzgerald bow anchor and the Ford pilot house), the Dossin Great Lakes Museum hosts a remembrance for all souls lost on the Great Lakes.

This event includes a lantern-lighting ceremony, prayer service with the Reverend Richard Ingalls, Jr., of Mariners’ Church, music by Great Lakes balladeer Lee Murdock, and the placement of a wreath in the Detroit River in honor of those who lost their lives.

Admission is $10 for Detroit Historical Society and Maritime Auxiliary Group members, $15 for Guests.

Tickets may be purchased by clicking here.

 

Detroit Marine Mart planned for December 8

10/23 - Detroit - The Detroit Historical Society will host an annual marine mart on Saturday, December 8, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the Grosse Pointe War Memorial, 32 Lake Shore Drive, Grosse Pointe Farms.

A flea market for Great Lakes lovers, the annual Marine Mart is a shipload of maritime treasure. Admission: $5 per person (at the door), kids 12 and under get in free. Vendors may rent tables for $30 each.

For additional information or a vendor table, contact call Suzanne Koceyan at (313) 833-1980.

 

Updates - October 22

News Photo Gallery updated

Reserve Conversion Gallery

Public Photo Gallery updated

 

Today in Great Lakes History - October 22

On 22 October 1903, while being towed by the GETTYSBURG in the harbor at Grand Marais, Michigan in a severe storm, the SAVELAND (wooden schooner, 194 foot, 689 gross tons, built in 1873, at Milwaukee, Wisconsin) was torn away and thrown against some pilings which punctured her hull. She sank to her main deck and was pounded to pieces by the storm waves. No lives were lost.

The tug PRESQUE ISLE completed her sea trials on October 22, 1973, in New Orleans.

On October 22, 1986, the ALGOCEN spilled about four barrels of diesel fuel while refueling at the Esso Dock at Sarnia.

The TOM M GIRDLER departed South Chicago light on her maiden voyage, October 22, 1951, bound for Escanaba, Michigan where she loaded 13,900 tons of ore for delivery to Cleveland, Ohio.

The THORNHILL ,of 1906, grounded on October 22, 1973, just above the Sugar Island ferry crossing in the St. Marys River.

On 22 October 1887, C.O.D. (wooden schooner-barge, 140 foot, 289 gross tons, built in 1873, at Grand Haven, Michigan) was carrying wheat in Lake Erie in a northwest gale. She was beached three miles east of Port Burwell, Ontario and soon broke up. Most of the crew swam to shore, but the woman who was the cook was lashed to the rigging and she perished.

October 22, 1929 - The steamer MILWAUKEE (formerly MANISTIQUE MARQUETTE AND NORTHERN 1) sank in a gale with a loss of all 52 hands. 21 bodies were recovered. Captain Robert Mc Kay was in command.

On October 27, 1929, a Coast Guard patrolman near South Haven, Michigan, picked up the ship's message case, containing the following handwritten note: "S.S. MILWAUKEE, OCTOBER 22/29 8:30 p.m. The ship is taking water fast. We have turned around and headed for Milwaukee. Pumps are working but sea gate is bent in and can't keep the water out. Flicker is flooded. Seas are tremendous. Things look bad. Crew roll is about the same as on last payday. (signed) A. R. Sadon, Purser."

On 22 October 1870, JENNIE BRISCOE (wooden schooner, 85 foot, 82 tons, built in 1870, at Detroit, Michigan) was raised from where she sank off Grosse Ile, Michigan a couple of months earlier. She was in her first season of service when she collided with the propeller FREE STATE and sank there. Her raised wreck was sold Canadian in 1871, and she was rebuilt as the propeller scow HERALD.

In a severe gale on 22 October 1873, the three barges DAVID MORRIS, GLOBE, and SAGINAW from Bay City grounded and sank off Point Pelee on Lake Erie.

On 22 October 1887, DOLPHIN (wooden schooner-barge, 107 foot, 147 tons, built in 1855, at Milan, Ohio) and G D NORRIS (2-mast wooden schooner, 128 foot, 262 gross tons, built in 1856, at Cleveland, Ohio) were both carrying lumber and were in tow of the steamer OSWEGATCHIE in a storm on Lake Huron. The tow line broke when the vessels were off Harbor Beach, Michigan. The DOLPHIN capsized and foundered. All 6 or 7 onboard perished. The NORRIS sank to her decks and her crew was rescued by the passing steamer BRECK. The NORRIS drifted ashore near Goderich, Ontario.

Data from: Joe Barr, Dave Swayze, Father Dowling Collection, Max Hanley, Ahoy & Farewell II and the Great Lakes Ships We Remember series. This is a small sample, the books include many other vessels with a much more detailed history.

 

Port Reports - October 21

Toronto - Charlie Gibbons
The saltie Milo arrived Friday afternoon with the Groupe Oceans tugs, and was assisted into Redpath Sugar dock. The tugs returned to Hamilton afterwards.
The tug Evans McKeil and barge Metis arrived at Essroc Cement on Saturday morning. The tug departed for other duties.

Kingsville - Erick Zuschlag
The Jiimaan remained in Kingsville overnight Friday instead of returning to Pelee Island and remained in Kingsville Saturday because of a broken winch on the bow hatch. The winch was damaged while opening during docking in high winds Friday afternoon. Wind speeds were measured at close to 70 MPH (110 KM/H).

Marquette - Lee Rowe
On Friday the Lee A Tregurtha loaded ore in Marquette.

Alpena - Ben & Chanda McClain
Windy weather has slowed vessel activity the past few days. The Drummond Islander II and the tug Beaver State were tied up in the river along with the U. S Fish & Wildlife vessel Spencer F. Baird. MCM's crane barge & dump scow were at the old dock between DPI & Lafarge.
On Saturday morning the Earl W was anchored in the bay due to the strong winds. Later on, the Buffalo arrived and also went to anchor. Both freighters have cargo to deliver to Lafarge. Come nightfall the Buffalo backed into Lafarge to tie up and unload coal.
The tug G. L Ostrander and barge Integrity were expected in port Sunday afternoon.