SS ''Ohio'' was a wooden hulled Great Lakes freighter that served on the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...

of North America from her construction in 1875, to her sinking in September 1894 when she collided with the

schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

barge ''Ironton'' which also sank in the collision. ''Ironton'' was being towed by the steamer ''Charles J. Kershaw'', which was also towing the schooner ''Moonlight''. ''Ohio'' was found upright in 2017, over 122 years after her sinking in over 200 feet of water off

Presque Isle, Michigan Presque Isle Township is a civil township of Presque Isle County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,656 at the 2010 census. Communities Presque Isle is a small unincorporated community located within Presque Isle Township alon ...

. In March, 2023, it was announced that ''Ironton'' had been located in 2019. The researchers who discovered ''Ohio'' plan to nominate her for a listing in the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

History

''Ohio'' (Official number 19438) was an early wooden

bulk carrier A bulk carrier or bulker is a merchant ship specially designed to transport unpackaged bulk cargo — such as grains, coal, ore, steel coils, and cement — in its cargo holds. Since the first specialized bulk carrier was built in 1852, econom ...

. She was built in 1875 by Ohio resident John F. Squires of

Huron, Ohio Huron is a city in Erie County, Ohio, United States. The population was 7,149 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Sandusky, Ohio Metropolitan Statistical Area. Huron Township surrounds the City of Huron. History and culture Huron Townshi ...

. She was launched in April of 1875. Her hull was long, her beam was wide and her cargo hold was deep. She had a

gross tonnage Gross tonnage (GT, G.T. or gt) is a nonlinear measure of a ship's overall internal volume. Gross tonnage is different from gross register tonnage. Neither gross tonnage nor gross register tonnage should be confused with measures of mass or weigh ...

of 1101.81 tons and a net tonnage of 850.82 tons. She was powered by a low pressure condensing engine which was fueled by a single coal-burning Scotch marine boiler. She was used to haul

bulk cargo Bulk cargo is commodity cargo that is transported unpackaged in large quantities. Description Bulk cargo refers to material in either liquid or granular, particulate form, as a mass of relatively small solids, such as petroleum/ crude oi ...

es across the lakes such as

iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the fo ...

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

and

grain A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and legum ...

Final voyage and sinking

In September 1894 ''Ohio'' departed

Duluth, Minnesota , settlement_type = City , nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City , motto = , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...

with a cargo of grain bound for

Ogdensburg, New York Ogdensburg ( moh, Kaniatarahòn:tsi) is a city in St. Lawrence County, New York, United States. The population was 10,436 at the 2019 census. In the late 18th century, European-American settlers named the community after American land owner and de ...

. This journey took ''Ohio'' across

Lake Superior Lake Superior in central North America is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. and the third-largest by volume, holding 10% of the world's surface fresh wa ...

, through the

Soo Locks The Soo Locks (sometimes spelled Sault Locks but pronounced "soo") are a set of parallel locks, operated and maintained by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District, that enable ships to travel between Lake Superior and the lowe ...

into

Lake Huron Lake Huron ( ) is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. Hydrology, Hydrologically, it comprises the easterly portion of Lake Michigan–Huron, having the same surface elevation as Lake Michigan, to which it is connected by the , Strait ...

, and past Presque Isle and Thunder Bay, Michigan. While on the Lake Huron leg of her journey ''Ohio'' encountered heavy weather. The steamer ''Charles J. Kershaw'' was towing two schooner barges, ''Moonlight'' and ''Ironton''. The three vessels were sailing north in rough weather when they saw ''Ohio'' which was also sailing through rough weather about north of Presque Isle. At the moment when the ships were about to pass each other, the

hawser Hawser () is a nautical term for a thick cable or rope used in mooring or towing a ship. A hawser passes through a hawsehole, also known as a cat hole, located on the hawse.The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, third edition, ...

connecting ''Ironton'' and ''Moonlight'' snapped causing ''Ironton'' to veer off course and smash into the side of ''Ohio''. Both ''Ohio'' and ''Ironton'' sank in about half an hour. All sixteen crew members from ''Ohio'' got into lifeboats and were picked up by ''Moonlight''. ''Ohio'' First Mate was found clinging to a ladder and was later picked up by the ''Kershaw''. The passing steamer ''Charles Hebard'' picked up two of ''Ironton'' crew but five of the schooner's crew perished including Captain Peter Girard.

Discovery

On May 23, 2017, researchers from the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary discovered two shipwrecks deep within the waters of Lake Huron, off the coast of

. The researchers carried out several investigations between June and August; these investigations confirmed the identities of the steel-hulled steamer ''Choctaw'' and ''Ohio''. ''Choctaw'' was lost on July 11, 1915 when she collided with the

package freighter Lake freighters, or lakers, are bulk carrier vessels that operate on the Great Lakes of North America. These vessels are traditionally called boats, although classified as ships. Since the late 19th century, lakers have carried bulk cargoes of m ...

''Wahcondah''. Since the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary did not announce the discovery of ''Choctaw'' and ''Ohio'' until September 1, 2017, avocational shipwreck hunters continued to search for ''Choctaw'' through the summer. While searching for ''Choctaw'', independent researchers Dan Fountain and Kurt Fosburg found ''Ohio'' on July 15, 2017, using a modified fishfinder. On July 30 Fountain returned to the site with veteran shipwreck hunters Ken Merryman and Jerry Eliason to image the wreck with Eliason’s homemade hi-definition drop video system, positively identifying the wreck as ''Ohio.''

''Ohio'' today

The wreck of ''Ohio'' lies completely preserved in nearly 300 feet of cold fresh water. She sits upright with a list to starboard with her foremast still standing. Her wooden pilothouse with its double helm wheel is completely intact. Near the stern, the mizzen mast is still standing with its topmast broken off. The researchers who discovered her plan to nominate her for a listing in the

History

Final voyage and sinking

Discovery

''Ohio'' today

References

Further reading