1887 Aurora 1935
Wooden Great Lakes bulk freighter
Built at Cleveland OH by Murphy & Miller
Launched Aug 23, 1887
304’ LOA, 40’ beam, 24’2” depth
2 decks, coal-fired boilers, triple expansion engine, 1600 IHP
Enrolled at Cleveland OH Sept 26, 1887 (#19)
290.0 x 41.0 x 22.4, 2282.24 GT, 1859.82 NT US 106493 to:
John Corrigan 7/8 and Xenophon C. Scott 1/8, Cleveland OH (home port Cleveland OH)
Entered service 1887
Home port to Fairport OH 1889
Ran aground Dec 10, 1898 at the foot of Bois Blanc Island, Detroit River. Towing barge Aurania, downbound from Duluth MN to Buffalo NY with cargo of grain. Caught fire Dec 12 while still aground and scuttled in 18’ of water and surrendered to the underwriters as a constructive total loss. Enrollment surrendered Dec 14, 1898.
Raised and rebuilt as a barge at Marine City MI by Alex Anderson. Engine removed, taken to
Chicago IL and installed in 1902 in barge Australia.
Reenrolled at Port Huron MI June 23, 1900 (Temp #97) to:
E. D. Carter, Erie PA (home port to Erie PA)
Remeasured to 21.5 depth and 2236 GT, 2181 NT
Permanent enrollment at Erie PA July 17, 1900 (#3)
Sold late 1901 to Henry Wineman Jr., Detroit MI
Sold May 18, 1915 to Pringle Barge Line, Cleveland OH
Sold Jan 13, 1916 to Morton Salt Co., Chicago IL
Sold 1926 to Construction Materials Co., Chicago IL
Removed from service about 1928. Laid at dock at Marine City MI for several years and finally broken up about 1935.
See history in Great Lakes Ships We Remember III p. 18
W351
New info. Exposed Shipwreck in Grand Haven, Mich., Reveals Maritime History
By Marilisa Sachteleben | Yahoo! Contributor Network – Fri, Dec 21, 2012
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For years, Michigan’s waterways have been drying up. Exposed muddy shoals and riverbeds are yielding up fascinating treasures. In Grand Haven, Michigan, the now-visible shipwreck Auroraconnects the state’s east and west side maritime history. Here’s her story.
From Cleveland to Bob-Lo Island
The Aurora began life in 1887, in Cleveland, Ohio, says Great Lakes Vessel History. She was 304 feet LOA (length overall) and 24 feet deep. Aurora’s hull was made of Kentucky oak supported by iron bands (ships with complete iron bulwarks were a relatively new invention). Aurora was the largest wooden steamer in her day. Her jobs included hauling grain, towing barges, and tugging schooners up the Detroit River. And that’s where she met her fate. Towing the Aurania, she ran aground on an island called Bois Blanc in 1898. Bois Blanc was affectionately known to locals as Bob-Lo Island. Guests to the island would travel by steamer ferry. The brand-new Bob-Lo Island amusement park had just opened the year Aurora grounded, says Boblo Steamers. The island was rich with maritime lore.
From Steamship to Barge
A few days after foundering on Bob-Lo, the Aurora caught fire and burned to the water line. The ship was beyond repair, but not a total write-off. She was converted to a barge, sold several times, and finally purchased by Morton Salt Company. She ferried cargo up the Grand River to Lake Michigan. When financial bad weather hit, Aurora was “left in shallow water on the north side ofHarbor Island [in Grand Haven] to rot,” says MLive.
From Detroit River Barge to Grand River Wreck
Aurora sat mouldering until reduced water levels began to reveal her remains. Her whereabouts up till then were unknown. Great Lakes Vessel History simply lists her as “removed from service” in 1927 and “broken up” in 1935. When the ship’s skeleton began to show itself, it wasn’t known which vessel it was. MLive says that researchers from the Tri-Cities Historical Museum andMichigan Shipwreck Research Association (MSRA) concluded that it was Aurora, based on her size.
From Wreck to Local Treasure
We poked around Harbor Island recently. I stood “inside” her hull. Remains of wooden main-beams, iron spikes, mooring cables, and metal support bands are visible. Despite cold, driving rain, other locals came out to pay homage to Aurora and her fallen comrades. Three other wrecks are showing themselves, though they’ve yet to be identified. About half of Aurora’s hull lies buried under what is now woods. MSRA and museum representatives have outlined her final resting place with flags. Archeologists are asking that visitors treat the site like a “crime scene” (says MLive). We thought of it more like a graveyard.
Here is a picture of Aurora at the Hanna docks at Ashtabula:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/115892967@N03/54066881972