1896 Coralia 1955 (1962)
Steel Great Lakes bulk freighter
Built at Cleveland OH by Globe Iron Works, Hull 64
Launched Feb 22, 1896
432’ LOA, 412’ LBP, 48’ beam, 28’ depth
1 deck, hatches @ 24’, coal-fired boilers, triple expansion engine, 1350 IHP
Enrolled at Cleveland OH April 22, 1896 (#94)
413.2 x 48.0 x 24.0, 4330.87 GT, 3351.43 NT US 127129 to:
Mutual Transportation Co., Cleveland OH, M. A. Hanna & Co., Mgr. (home port Cleveland OH)
(Fleet controlled by Elbert H. Gary’s Federal Steel Co. 1899-1901)
Entered service 1896
Fleet merged spring 1901 into Pittsburgh Steamship Co., Duluth MN, a subsidiary of United States Steel Corporation, A. B. Wolvin, Mgr. (home port to Duluth MN)
Rebuilt 1920. Forward cabins moved from abaft her second hatch to her forecastle.
Remeasured to 4349 GT, 3264 NT
Sold April 26, 1927 to G. A. Tomlinson, Duluth MN and then on May 12, 1927 to Nicholson-Universal Steamship Co., Detroit MI. Converted to auto carrier at Detroit MI by Great Lakes Engineering Works.
Requisitioned 1943 by U. S. War Shipping Administration, Washington DC. Converted back to bulk carrier at Cleveland OH by G. A. Hendrickson Co. and reentered service managed by Overlakes Freight Corporation.
Sold 1947 to Overlakes Freight Corporation, Detroit MI and chartered to Troy H. Browning Steamship Co.
Sold 1949 to T. H. Browning Steamship Co., Detroit MI and renamed T. H. Browning
Renamed L. D. Browning 1952
Sold 1955 to Beta Lake Ship Co., Buffalo NY, a subsidiary of Continental Grain Co., for grain storage in Buffalo harbor and retired from active service. Remeasured as a barge to 4442 GT, 4325 NT. Sold for scrap 1962 to Marine Salvage Ltd. Towed to Port Colborne ON May 1965 and partially scrapped, then towed to Hamilton ON and scrapped by Steel Company of Canada..
See history in Detroit Marine Historian May-June 1954 (#55)
Also in Great Lakes Ships We Remember p. 143
X617
My grandfather Ralph Chateau served as the first mate on the Coralia during the 1940’s.
I would like to know why they put the name Coralia to that ship. I am looking to muy ancestrys. My grandfather was GEORGE JOSEPH NICHOLSON and I born in Remedios, Chiriqui, Panamá City, Panamá, 1949.
Thanks
I don’t know how much you know about Great Lakes steamboat history so I’ll just say a few things to get you oriented into your question.
The Hanna family of Cleveland managed vessels under what later became the M. A. Hanna fleet. Dr. Leonard Hanna was a cofounder of the fleet and two of his sons were Leonard and Marcus, both of whom were managers in the fleet. (Marcus was also widely known as one of the leaders of the Republican Party just before the start of the 20th century — for example, he was most probably the reason William McKinley became president in the 1890s.)
One of the Hanna fleets was the Mutual Transportation Co., managed by Leonard (the younger). All four vessels in the fleet were given names beginning with C and ending with A (The others were Cambria, Corona and Corsica). It is my guess that Leonard decided to name the fourth ship of the fleet for his wife.
I believe her name was actually Coralie but they had to change it to Coralia to make it fit with their naming system.
Sterling Berry
I recently found an old photo of this ship in a box of old photos that belonged to my grandmother. I’m guessing it’s around the late 20s judging from the autos on deck. I’d been wondering what it was and where it was located since the photo had nothing written on the back. I had an uncle who traveled quite a bit so he must have taken it and left it at my grandmother’s home. Was the ship famous?
I have two black and white photos of the Coralia
from a garage sale in upstate NY.
They are in the original frames and are in good condition.
They both show the ship with her decks laden with 1920s/30s automobiles. One depicts the vehicles being off loaded at a brick building with a chimney a ramp alongside.
Any info You could give me would be helpful.