Notes From the Field 2004

Further Reading

• Cooper, David, Megan Partlow, Bradley Rodgers, Gregory Smith, and Gordon Watts, By Fire, Storm, and Ice: Underwater Investigations in the Apostle Islands, 1991. State Historical Society of Wisconsin, Madison, WI
• Creviere, Paul J., Jr. Wild Gales and Tattered Sails: The Shipwrecks of Northwestern Lake Michigan From Two Creeks, Wisconsin To Dutch Johns Point, Michigan, and All of the Bay of Green Bay. 1997. Self published, Paul J. Creviere.
• Van Harpen, Jon Paul, Jacksonport Historical and Archaeological Findings of the Door County Maritime Heritage Society for the 1990 Field Work. No. 1. 1991. Unpublished manuscript on file.

Cecelia

The Cecelia was built as a barque in 1868 in White Lake, Michigan. She was three-masted and 118 feet in length, and re-rigged as a schooner in 1879. After taking on a load of wood at Reynold’s Pier on September 9, 1885, the Cecelia anchored offshore to weather out a storm. Her anchors did not hold, and she was blown ashore just south of Reynold’s pier. Attempts to remove her were unsuccessful. The Cecelia was also owned by John Long, who now had two vessels wrecked in the same location.

Perry Hannah

The Perry Hannah was built in Newport, Michigan in 1859. She was a two-masted schooner 98 feet, 8 inches in length, and participated in the Door County lumber trade. She was rebuilt in 1862 in Chicago and lengthened to 125 feet in length. The Perry Hannah was taking on a cargo of hemlock ties at Reynolds Pier in Jacksonport when a fierce storm arose on October 16, 1880. The storm was so severe it has since become known as the great “Alpena Blow”. The Perry Hannah was driven ashore into the center of Reynold’s pier and sunk, causing significant damage to the pier. The schooner Felicitous salvaged what she could of the Perry Hannah’s cargo, and the wrecked schooner was abandoned where she lay. At the time of her loss she was owned by John Long of Chicago.

Pretoria

One of three sister vessels built by the James Davidson yard at Bay City, Michigan, the Pretoria and her two sisters were the largest wooden vessels of any type ever built on the Lakes. At 338.4 feet in length, the Pretoria was launched in 1900 and classified as a schooner-barge, to be towed by steamers. Built to participate in the iron, coal, and grain trades, she had one deck, three masts, and 11 cargo hatches.

On the morning of September 1, 1905, the Pretoria took on a load of iron ore alongside the ill-fated Sevona at the Allouez ore docks in Superior, Wisconsin, and cleared late that morning for Chicago in tow of the steamer Venezuela. Caught in a blinding gale about 30 miles northeast of Outer Island, the Pretoria’s steering gear failed in the rough seas. Signaling the Venezuela, the two immediately headed for the shelter of the Apostle Islands, but soon the Pretoria’s tow line parted. Losing sight of her tow, the Venezuela headed to Ashland Harbor to report the barge as missing.

The Pretoria, now wallowing in the heavy seas, raised her sails, which were quickly ripped apart by the gale winds. The anchors were dropped, but they dragged. Heavy seas pounded the Pretoria, forcing some of the hatch covers off, and she quickly began taking on water. The crew manned the pumps, but the large waves continuously battered the vessel. The anchors finally held about a mile and a half off Outer Island, but it was too late for the Pretoria. The deck house was washed away, and deck began lifting when the captain ordered abandon ship. Ten crewmembers rowed for shore in the lifeboat but were capsized in the heavy surf. Only five made it to shore alive.

Today the Pretoria rests about a mile off the northeast shore of Outer Island in 55 feet of water. The wreck consists of the main hull and debris that is scattered in a quarter- to half-mile area. The Pretoria went down headed into the blow that sank her, so its bow lies to the northeast. The bottom, consisting of the keelson assembly and bilge, measures 315 feet in overall length. Unlike a traditional Great Lakes schooner - and many schooner-barges - the Pretoria did not have a centerboard. In many ways its architecture resembles that of a bulk carrier steamer, rather than a schooner.

To learn more about the Pretoria, go to: http://www.wisconsinshipwrecks.org/explore_pretoria_intro.cfm

Sevona

The Sevona, originally named the Emily P. Weed, was launched from the yard of the industrious F.W. Wheeler & Company of Bay City, Michigan, in 1890. The Sevona was the second steel craft constructed at that yard, and with a length of 300 feet was one of the largest lake carriers at the time. In 1897 the vessel was purchased for use in the Lake Superior ore trade and was renamed the Sevona. In 1905, the Sevona entered drydock at Buffalo, New York, where an additional 72.5 feet was added to her midsection, making the Sevona 372.5 feet in length.

On the evening of September 1, 1905, the Sevona left the Allouez ore docks of West Superior, Wisconsin, downbound for Erie, Pennsylvania with 6,000 tons of iron ore and a crew of 24. Within hours a storm began to blow, and by midnight it was a full gale. At 2:00 a.m. the Sevona was seventy miles from Superior, with heavy seas breaking over her bow and running along her deck. Captain McDonald, estimating his position to be an hour northeast of Sand Island, decided to head for the shelter of the Apostles Islands. Navigating through blinding rain, fog, mist, and rough seas, the Sevona ran hard aground shortly after 5:45 a.m. The vessel quickly broke in two, isolating the captain, two mates, two wheelsman, and two watchmen from the lifeboats near the stern. Seventeen crewmembers made it to safety aboard the lifeboats, but all seven men trapped at the bow perished.

Today the Sevona lies scattered over a large area in 18 to 20 feet of water. The two hull sections lie almost perpendicular to one another with the 226-foot 4-inch aft section oriented almost east to west and the 118-foot forward section oriented northwest to southeast. The stern lies at the western end of the wreck, and the bow lies at the southern end. Both sections include the lower hull, including the ship's lower hull plate, keel, keelson, stringers, floors, and portions of the steel tank top plate. Salvage efforts have dislodged plates, frames, beams, and other structural materials, which now surround the lower hull. Divers have reported finding silverware, tools, and other artifacts among the debris.

To learn more about the Sevona, go to: http://www.wisconsinshipwrecks.org/explore_sevona_intro.cfm

Lucerne

The Lucerne was a large, sleek schooner built in Tonawanda, New York in 1873. The Lucerne was 194.5 feet long and carried three masts with a clipper bow. Primarily a grain schooner, the Lucerne did haul other cargoes later in her career, such as coal and iron ore (which she carried at the time of her loss). At the time of her loss, the Lucerne was considered one of the staunchest vessels on the Lakes.

The Lucerne departed Ashland in fair weather the evening of November 15, 1886, on her last run of the season, bound for Cleveland. Without warning, a fierce northeaster descended on Lake Superior that lasted for two days. She was spotted off Ontonagon the evening of the sixteenth, rolling and pitching in the heavy seas as she turned to run for the shelter of Chequamegon Bay. This was the last the Lucerne was seen until the morning of the nineteenth, when the LaPointe lightkeeper discovered the Lucerne’s mast protruding from the water, with three frozen men lashed to the rigging, covered in up to six inches of ice.

Today the Lucerne lies in 20 feet of water northeast of Long Island. The top of the Lucerne's bow rises to 15 feet below the water's surface. The ship's hull is remarkably intact, with the bow and starboard midships preserved up to the deck level. Much of the hull has settled into the sand bottom, and the ship's iron cargo remains scattered around the wreck. Part of the forecastle deck is intact, including the Lucerne's windlass and capstan, beneath which lies the chain locker. The stern is intact up to the top of the sternpost and transom , but the rudder and steering gear are missing. According to eyewitnesses, the upper stern and cabin floated ashore soon after the Lucerne's demise. The vessel's spars are gone; they were probably salvaged soon after the wreck or were carried away by ice.

To learn more about the Lucerne, go to http://www.wisconsinshipwrecks.org/explore_lucerne_intro.cfm

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