1883                                      United Empire                               1924

Wooden Great Lakes passenger and package freight vessel

Built at Sarnia ON by Parry & Dyble
Launched Nov 1, 1882

260’ LOA, 245’ LBP, 36’ beam, 23’ depth
1 deck, coal-fired boilers, fore and aft compound engine, 1200 IHP

Enrolled at
252.8 x 36.0 x 15.0, 1961 GT, 1296 NT     Can 80776     to:
North West Transportation Co., Sarnia ON (home port Sarnia ON)

Entered service 1883

Fleet merged 1899 into Northern Navigation Co. of Ontario, Collingwood ON

Renamed Saronic 1905

Fleet renamed Northern Navigation Co. 1911

Fleet sold early 1913 to Richelieu & Ontario Navigation Co., Montreal QC  Richelieu & Ontario fleet merged late 1913 into Canada Steamship Lines, Montreal QC.  (Vessels remained under the ownership of Northern Navigation Co. until 1922 and were operated as Northern Navigation Division while in the Canada Steamship Lines fleet.)

Severely damaged Dec 15, 1915 by fire while in winter layup at Point Edward ON.  Fleetmate str. Majestic had caught fire (and was destroyed) and the fire spread to Saronic.  Rebuilt at Sarnia ON as a bulk freighter and returned to service (transferred to the Canada Steamship Lines fleet).

Grounded Aug 20, 1916 on Cockburn Island, northern Lake Huron, caught fire and burned.  Enroute from Fort William ON to Port McNicoll ON with cargo of wheat.  Abandoned to the underwriters as a constructive total loss.

Hull sold to Winand Schlosser, Milwaukee WI and rebuilt 1917 as a barge at Milwaukee by the Milwaukee Dry Dock Co. and renamed W. L. Kennedy.
Enrolled U.S. at 251.5 x 36.0 x 14.5, 1014 GT, 1014 NT     US 215206  

Sold 1918 to James R. Andrews Transportation Co., Escanaba MI

Abandoned 1924 at Amherstburg ON

 

W309     

 

 

 

 

 

See history in Scanner Feb 1987 (#152)

                Also in Detroit Marine Historian May-June 1952 (#35)

                Also in Great Lakes Ships We Remember p. 384