™

W R E C K D I V IMagazine
NG
WRECK DIVING MAGAZINE

...uncover the past

In This Issue
Dean Richmond • Judge Hart • Shipwrecks of Roi-Namur • Solomon Islands Dive Fest
S.S. Castor • Thomas Wilson • USS Conestoga • Warilda

A Wreck That Will

Capture Your “Hart”
Lake Superior’s
Judge Hart

Solomon Islands
Annual Dive Fest
An Event You
Should Not Miss!

Stories of Treasure
and Fascinating Tales
The Wreck of the Greco-Roman
Dean Richmond Antiquities from
the Wreck of the
Issue 43 US$12.99
S.S. Castor
Issue 43
A Quarterly Publication
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SOLOMON ISLAND WWII WRECK & REEF TRIP
Oct 30-Nov 6, 2018

DIVE GUALACANAL IRON BOTTOM SOUND

JOIN FISH TALES PRODUCTIONS

AND
SOLOMON ISLAND DIVE EXPEDITION

$3274 LOWER DECK

$3821 UPPER DECK
$4184 MASTER

Includes: 7 nights on board,

meals daily and snacks, airport
transfers, and diving with air
fills.

Excludes: bar drinks Nitrox, spe-

cialty tank upgrade, gear, gratui-
ties, personal purchases, and
Marine fee of $25 pp per night.

Scuba Planners Dive Travel

bbuchanan@scubaplanners.com or 336-505-1127
 On the Cover: The dive to the Judge Hart is cold, dark,
and deep, but words can’t describe peering inside the intact
wheelhouse.
Photograph by Becky Schott. Article on Page 40

Contents
Departments
6 WDM Book Reviews
8 Press Release
Features
10 From the Debris Field
Page 20
For nearly a century ater sinking with all hands,
the stories of her treasure grew into fascinating
tales.
he magniicent Dean Richmond

Page 30
In 1894, 14 Greco-Roman sculptures and
antiquities were packed in two crates, and were
shipped from the Turkish port of Smyrna,
destined for the Leiden in the Netherlands. he
ship never arrived.
he S.S. Castor

Page 34
he Visitors Bureau of the Solomon Islands
is reminding divers across the world that its
tropical waters showcase a vast number of
important World War II wrecks throughout its
900+ islands
2017 Solomon Islands Dive Fest

Published by:
Wreck Diving Magazine, LLC
Heidi Porter
P.O. Box 756 Circulation Manager
Heidi@WreckDivingMag.com
Joe Porter
Taylors, SC 29687 Editor-in-Chief
(864) 244-9861 Fax (864) 268-1437 Joe@WreckDivingMag.com

WARNING! he activities described in Wreck Diving Magazine carry a signiicant risk of personal injury or death. Do
Ed Rodriguez
Not participate in these activities unless you are an expert, have obtained professional instruction and have been certiied Art Director
by a qualifying agency, are knowledgeable about the risks involved, and are willing to assume personal responsibility for all Ed@WreckDivingMag.com
risks associated with these activities. Wreck Diving Magazine MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED,
OF ANY KIND REGARDING THE CONTENTS OF THIS MAGAZINE, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY WAR-
RANTY REGARDING THE ACCURACY OR RELIABILITY OF INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN. Wreck Diving
Magazine further disclaims any responsibility for injuries or death incurred by any person engaging in these activities and/
Charles George
or using the information contained in this magazine for personal safety or for determining whether to attempt any dive, or Corporate Counsel
Charles@WreckDivingMag.com
activity described herein or travel to any destination described.
Tel (404) 441-3100
he views herein are those of the writers and advertisers; they do not necessarily relect the views of Wreck Diving Magazine
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Page 40
A wreck that will capture your “hart.”
Lake Superior’s Judge Hart

Page 46
he wreck of a lost hospital ship sunk during
World War I and the U-boat responsible for the
sinking were both victims of an ironic twist of
fate.
he wreck of the Warilda

Page 54
Once lost, now found.
he USS Conestoga

Page 62
A careless collision under calm conditions
claimed nine lives and an unusual ship in 1902.
Deathblow on Lake Superior.
he sinking of the homas Wilson

Page 72
A new update to Dan Bailey’s excellent work,
World War II Wrecks of the Kwajalein and Truk
Lagoons
he Shipwrecks of Roi-Namur

The eerily-lit pilot house of the Judge Hart, deep in Lake Superior.
Photograph by Becky Schott. Article on page 40.

wreckdivingmag.com | 5
 Wreck Diving Magazine
WRECKommendations
Every issue, WDM gives readers a preview into books or videos that may be
of interest to wreck divers. | Review by Charles George
If We Make It ‘til Daylight
he Story of Frank Mays
As told to Pat and Jim Stayer and Tim Juhl
Jim and Pat Stayer are very good friends of Wreck Div-
ing Magazine and, for more than 34 years, have been un-
derwater ilmmakers, lecturers, presenters, and educators,
producing over 70 programs and documentaries related to
diving and the undersea world. hey are also great story
tellers. For If We Make It ‘til Daylight he Story of Frank
Mays, they partnered with fellow educator and wreck diver
Tim Juhl to tell the story of a Great Lakes tragedy and per-
sonal survival.
he Great Lakes, with its violent winter storms and
treacherous waters, has long been a dangerous place for
mariners, with approximately 6,000 ships littering her
bottom and 30,000 lives lost since the 1700s, creating an
underwater playground for wreck divers and wreck hunt-
ers. In recent years, modern technology has eased some of
the danger but the Great Lakes hold many stories of cruel
storms and terrible tragedies. he story of the sinking of
the freighter SS Carl D. Bradley, a 639-foot-long, Great
Lakes freighter that broke up in a savage storm on Lake
Michigan on November 18, 1958, is one of these tragedies.
here were 35 sailors on board the Bradley the night she
went down and only two sailors survived her sinking.
If We Make It ‘til Daylight he Story of Frank Mays
is the true account of the SS Carl D. Bradley’s sinking. he
authors were able to get a irsthand account of the sinking
from survivor Frank Mays in his own words. It is a chilling
and heroic account of the events that led up to the Bradley‘s
sinking and the ordeal of survival that followed while the
lone survivors, Frank Mays and First Mate Elmer Fleming,
clung tenaciously to a life rat for iteen hours in thirty-foot
waves, freezing rain, and 50-mile-an-hour winds until they
6 | wreckdivingmag.com
were rescued by the USCG Cutter Sundew at daybreak.
In addition to Frank’s story, this book contains the irst-
hand accounts from the USCG Cutter Sundew’s Captain
Harold Muth, some of the crew, and several other people
who were involved in the rescue, and historical events that
devastated the port town of Rogers City, Michigan. Of the
33 crew members that died in the sinking, 23 were from
Rogers City. his is a well-documented book that gives in-
sight into what really happened that horrible night on Lake
Michigan.
he book also has appendices that are well worth read-
ing. Appendices A and B discuss the location and ilming of
the Bradley wreck. Appendix C contains the biographies of
the individuals who contributed to the writing of the book,
Appendix D gives a short history of the Bradley Transpor-
tation Company and the SS Carl D. Bradley, and Appendi-
ces E and F discuss the U.S. Coast Guard investigation and
indings of the Bradley’s sinking.
his book is a gripping read and a well-researched and
documented historical experience.
Paperback, 223 pages
Numerous black and white photos
Out of the Blue Productions
4658 S. Lakeshore
Lexington, MI 48450
http://www.outotheblueproductions.net
$14.95 Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Lusitania: Triumph, Tragedy, and the End of the Ed-
wardian Age
Written by Greg King and Penny Wilson
RMS Lusitania was a British ocean liner owned by the
Cunard Line and built to compete for the highly lucrative
transatlantic passenger trade. Construction began in 1904,
and she was launched on June 7, 1906 and completed the
following year. he name Lusitania evokes images of gran-
deur on the ocean, but the name Lusitania also conjures up
images of disaster, a ine ocean liner that met an early death
on May 7, 1915.
 It was spring of 1915, and World War I was in full swing defective lifeboats slamming into the ocean, and the dan-
in Europe. Germany declared the seas around the United gers the passengers in the water faced when they were
Kingdom a war zone and the Germans, using their new sucked under by the sinking ship or when they succumbed
weapon, the U-Boat, implemented a new doctrine on the to hypothermia due to the icy waters. he authors have
seas - unrestricted submarine warfare. his meant that all meticulously researched this book using the U-20’s logs,
Allied ships in the war zone could and would be attacked survivor accounts and in-depth interviews, and the inevi-
and sunk without warning. Fearing the consequences of this table Admiralty inquests that attempted to explain and to
new doctrine and, in an efort “to avoid controversy if [the] hide what had really happened. he investigations in both
Lusitania was attacked by a U-boat,” a group of German- the United Kingdom and the United States into the pre-
Americans discussed their concerns with a representative cise causes of the ship’s loss were obstructed by the needs
of the German Embassy. he Imperial German Embassy of wartime secrecy and an ugly propaganda campaign to
“decided to warn passengers before her next crossing, not ensure all blame fell upon Germany.
to sail aboard Lusitania,” by placing a “warning advertise- he book ends with historical accounts of what happened
ment” in 50 American newspapers, including newspapers to the survivors ater the sinking, how they managed their
in New York: lives, and how they met their end.
NOTICE! Lusitania: Triumph, Tragedy, and the End of the Ed-
wardian Age is a very well-written and researched book,
TRAVELERS intending to embark on the Atlantic voyage are remind- providing a comprehensive account of the great ship, her
ed that a state of war exists between Germany and her allies and passengers, and Lusitania’s inal fate. I thoroughly enjoyed
Great Britain and her allies; that the zone of war includes the waters reading it and so will you!
adjacent to the British Isles; that, in accordance with formal notice
given by the Imperial German Government, vessels flying the flag of
Great Britain, or any of her allies, are liable to destruction in those Hard cover, 416 pages, 32 archival photos.
waters and that travelers sailing in the war zone on the ships of Great
Britain or her allies do so at their own risk.
St. Martin’s Press
IMPERIAL GERMAN EMBASSY 175 5th Avenue
Washington, D.C., 22 April 1915. New York, NY 10010
$27.99 Available at Amazon, Books-A-Million, and Barnes
and Noble
On May 1, 1915, Lusitania let New York for Britain on
her inal voyage. he passengers and Cunard Line recklessly
ignored the warning, believing that Lusitania was under the
protection of the British Admiralty. On May 7, 1915, Wal-
ther Schwieger, the commanding oicer of German U-boat
U-20 “gave the order to ire one torpedo, which struck Lu-
sitania on the starboard bow, just beneath the wheelhouse.
Moments later, a second explosion erupted from within
Lusitania’s hull where the torpedo had struck, and the ship
began to founder.”
Eighteen minutes later, Lusitania’s bow struck the sea-
bed while the stern was still above the surface before inally
sliding beneath the icy waters of the Irish Sea. “Of the 1,962
passengers and crew aboard Lusitania, 1,198 lost their lives.
As in the sinking of Titanic, most of the casualties were
from drowning or hypothermia.”
Lusitania’s sinking caused a major diplomatic uproar,
changed the course of history and caused an international
outcry, especially in Britain and the United States, since 128 he Shipwreck Hunter
out of the 139 U.S. citizens aboard the ship lost their lives.
Lusitania: Triumph, Tragedy, and the End of the Ed- A Lifetime of Extraordinary Discoveries on the Ocean
wardian Age, written by world-renowned authors of his- Floor
torical works, Greg King and Penny Wilson, is painstak-
ingly researched, and documents Lusitania’s last voyage. Written by David L. Mearns
King and Wilson start with short biographies of some of
the wealthy passengers, their excesses and dramas, and Author David L. Mearns is a marine scientist and ocean-
then they delve into some interesting and arcane facts re- ographer specializing in deep water search and recovery
garding the great ship herself, like the gradual advancement operations, and the discovery of the location of historic
of the clocks to inally achieve Greenwich Mean Time at the shipwrecks. he Shipwreck Hunter - A Lifetime of Ex-
end of the voyage. traordinary Discoveries on the Ocean Floor is his mem-
he torpedo attack and atermath is described in great oir and is an outstanding book detailing some of Mearns’
detail including stories about lifebelts stolen from cabins, most fascinating and elusive shipwreck inds.

wreckdivingmag.com | 7
 David started out studying to be a marine biologist, Wreck Diving Magazine
but his life soon changed, and he moved into the world of
commercial undersea surveying when, in 1990, he worked
on the criminal investigation into the foundering of the
PRESSRelease
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 By Cris Kohl
Wreck divers are invited to submit short pieces of timely
information about a shipwreck in their general area.
Perhaps there is not enough information, or not enough
archival and/or underwater images, to submit it as a full-
length article, so this From the Debris Field… column
becomes the ideal venue for a short piece. his, however,
does not preclude it from becoming a full-length article in
the future.
We welcome short, written submissions, ideally, but
not necessarily, accompanied by a photograph or two, for
future issues of Wreck Diving Magazine.
– Please send them to joe@wreckdivingmag.com
This photograph of the AE1^HZYLWVY[LKS`[HRLUÄ]LKH`ZILMVYL[OL(\Z[YHSPHUZ\I-
his went
marine photograph of theSea
missing. (Source: AE1 wasCentre)
Power reportedly taken ive days before
the Australian submarine went missing. (Source: Sea Power Centre)
Historic Australian Submarine Located!
Australia’s irst submarine, the 181-foot-(55-metre)-long,
800-ton, British-built HMAS AE1, lost with its entire 35-
man crew on September 14, 1914, during the early days of
World War One, while on a routine patrol, has been found
in approximately 1,000 feet (300 metres) of water of the
Papua New Guinea city of Rabaul near the Duke of York
islands. New Guinea had been a German colony, and the
AE1 was sent to help capture it; ironically, the AE1 went
missing the day ater Germany surrendered New Guinea.
Australia’s Ministry of Defense breathed a sigh of relief
(this was reportedly the Australian Navy’s 13th expedition
searching for this submarine over the past few decades,
with increasing improvements in search technology being
credited with the ind) and applauded the discovery made
in December 2017, by the search vessel, Fugro Equator,
stating that the descendants of the AE1’s crew will ind
comfort in knowing that the inal resting place of their
10 | wreckdivingmag.com
More Bodies Found from the Batavia Wreck
Viewed by many as Australia’s most dramatic, most
tragic, and most historic maritime mishap, the wreck of
the Dutch ship, Batavia, while on its maiden voyage in the
year 1629, made news again recently with the discovery
and unearthing on Beacon Island of ive more skeletons of
former passengers from that fateful ship.
he story, in a nutshell, saw rival businessmen sailing
on the newly-constructed Batavia from the Netherlands
to the port of Batavia (today’s Jakarta) in the Dutch East
Indies (today’s Indonesia). he rivalry became so intense
that one business faction decided to mutiny and purposely
wreck the ship of the unsettled west coast of Australia.
he ship carried 322 people, most of them Dutch families
planning to settle in Batavia, plus a large fortune in trade
silver to purchase exotic spices for use in Holland. When
the Batavia was purposely wrecked in the eastern Indian
Ocean on a reef about 30 miles (50 kilometres) of the wild
and unsettled coast of Western Australia, 40 people died,
but the rest safely reached a barren, inhospitable island
(today’s Beacon Island). One group of men took an open
longboat on an epic, 2,000-mile (3,240-kilometre) voyage
to Batavia, returning with help months later. By that time,
the several dozen mutineers let with the survivors had
murdered many of the men, women, and children, distrib-
uting the limited ship’s supplies among themselves, and
using the remaining women as sex slaves. Ater a speedy,
on-site trial of the mutineers, the worst ofenders f
family members is now known and will be protected.
he Australian National Maritime Museum will be
studying the shipwreck data to try to ascertain why the
submarine sank. For 103 years, it has been conjectured
that something went terribly wrong in this new invention
during a practice dive, with the submarine’s steel plates
possibly having been damaged when striking a reef.
Enemy action was ruled out because the only German
vessel in the region at that time was a small survey ship.
A team of maritime surveyors, archaeologists, and
historians utilized a multi-beam echo sounder and
sidescan technology in an underwater drone “lying”
130 feet (40 metres) above the ocean loor. Sonar images
suggested that the wrecked submarine is in one piece, and
a housed video camera dropped to the wreck shows that
it is relatively intact. he AE1 was the very irst loss by the
Royal Australian Navy, and its discovery solved Australia’s
oldest naval mystery.
 This sketch of the chaos among the marooned Batavia survivors – with the wreck pictured at
the bottom of the drawing -- appeared in the year 1647, when the first account of this 1629
shipwreck and mutiny was published. (Kohl-Forsberg Archives)

The Western Australian Maritime Museum in Freemantle, near Perth, exhibits a large section of
the Batavia’s hull timbers which were painstakingly recovered and conserved in the 1970s. The
Western Australia Museum in Geraldton is the other museum that shares and displays artifacts
from the Batavia. (Photograph by Cris Kohl)

with help from a local lobster isherman who had spot-

ted one of the ship’s anchors from the surface. Despite
the removal and conservation of much of this shipwreck
in the 1970s, currently displayed in two museums on the
mainland, the majority of the Batavia’s 24 cannons and
its anchors remain in situ, making this historic wreck
a popular dive destination in only 20 to 26 feet (6 to 8
metres) of water. Only 10 of the ship’s 12 treasure chests,
each containing about 8,000 silver coins, were recovered
by salvagers in 1629; silver coins from the remaining two
chests are still being found by visiting divers today. A full-
length article about the Batavia, including updates on, and
recent photographs of, the wreck site, would be welcomed
by Wreck Diving Magazine.

Historic Shipwreck from the Arctic’s Other Side!

eContinued from page 10

were hanged on a nearby island ater having their hands
cut of. Only 68 of the 322 people who had been on board
the wrecked ship actually reached Batavia.
he Netherlands never settled any part of Australia.
Early Dutch explorers found the natives to be poor and
the land beret of any resources (natural, manufactured,
or otherwise), so they set up no trading colonies here. he
rich spice islands of Indonesia to the north, however, were
a very diferent matter. Even the British, 160 years ater
the loss of the Batavia, found Australia suitable only as a
remote penal colony for Britain’s worst ofenders.
One historian (at least ten books have been written
about the Batavia tragedy, not to mention a number of
television documentaries, radio programs, a play, and even
an opera) described the Batavia story as “a true, adults-
only version of Lord of the Flies meeting Nightmare on Elm
Street.” While only Australia’s second-oldest shipwreck
(the irst was the Tryall, a British East India Company ship
wrecked in June 1622 at a remote location of northwest-
ern Australia today called Tryal [sic] Rocks, about 15
miles, or 25 kilometres, north of Barrow Island, vague and
dangerous shallows not deinitely found and identiied by
mapmakers until the wreck of the Tryall was discovered in
its shallows in 1969! Even today’s Google maps put Tryal
Rocks in the wrong location), it is the Batavia that has re-
ceived far more research, ink, press, and attention, by far,
than any other shipwreck in Australian waters.
he Batavia wreck was located by divers on June 4, 1963,
In 1881, Arctic explorer Benjamin Leigh Smith lost his new luxury steam
yacht, the Eira, to Arctic icebergs north of Russia. (The Siberian Times)
Shipwreck from the Arctic’s Other Side!
Somewhere halfway between northern Russia and the
North Pole, of a location on the Franz Josef Land archi-
pelago called Cape Flora, lies the historic British, Arctic-
research vessel named the Eira that sank on its maiden
voyage – and researchers on board the vessel Alter Ego,
during the Russian Maritime Heritage “Open Ocean 2017”
expedition, believe they found its remains while towing
a sonar unit at a depth of 65 feet (20 metres) of water of
Northbrook Island in August 2017.
Little-known British explorer, Benjamin Leigh Smith
(1828-1913), had this elegant steam yacht built especially
for Arctic work. he Eira set out from England on June 14,
1881, with a crew of 25 and “Bob, the dog,” famous for his
later rescues of men who fell through the ice. Leigh Smith’s
main interests were exploring and mapping new Arctic
territories, and studying deep sea currents. He eventually
proved that warmer currents lowed just beneath cold
Arctic waters, and he surmised that some day they could
have an impact on the weather. Today, many people see
his discovery as one of the reasons for “climate change.”

wreckdivingmag.com | 11

Arctic explorer and mapmaker, Benjamin Leigh Smith, from
England, shown in this mid-1800s painting, has largely
been forgotten by historians. (Kohl-Forsberg Archives)
But the Eira, not long ater its arrival at Franz Josef Land,
was trapped and crushed between two icebergs. he crew
hastily constructed an Arctic house from large stones on
land, naming that dwelling “Flora Cottage,” ater one of
Leigh Smith’s cousins, nurse Florence Nightingale. hey
also prepared for a long winter, with their only entertain-
ment all winter being a mechanical music box recovered
in the last minute from the sinking Eira. When warmer
weather eventually arrived, they made makeshit sails out
of tablecloths for use on their four open boats and, ater
considerable challenge and hardship, reached the safety of
civilization.
Researchers plan to return to the site in 2018 with un-
derwater exploration equipment to verify that it is, indeed,
the wreck of Leigh Smith’s vessel, the Eira. Incidentally, the
word, Eira, in both Welsh and Finnish, means “snow.” It is
also the name of a Norse goddess.
While Franklin, Scott, Shackleton, and Amundsen are
among the well-known names in books about polar explo-
rations, and despite his having received numerous awards
and medals from the British government and prestigious
institutions, including the Royal Geographical Society,
Leigh Smith’s name has been largely forgotten. Perhaps the
discovery of the Eira will tilt the climate of recognition in
his favor.
Tragic Lake Huron Steamship: he Jane Miller
“Somewhere of the mouth of Colpoy’s Bay, near Wi-
arton, Ontario, lies the tragic wreck of a small, coastal
steamer.” With these opening words in one of our books,
Joan Forsberg and I wrote a brief history of the Jane Miller,
a 78-foot-(23.6-metre)-long, wooden propeller that was
lost with all 28 people on board during a storm on Lake
Huron’s Georgian Bay on November 26, 1881.
12 | wreckdivingmag.com
In July 2017, that shipwreck was found by a team led by
well-known Lake Superior wreck hunters, Ken Merryman
and Jerry Eliason (see WDM #31 for one of their previous
discoveries made deep in Lake Superior). Ken is a founder
of the Great Lakes Shipwreck Preservation Society, and
worked under an archaeological license issued to him by
the Province of Ontario. Such a permit, granted at no cost
to the applicant, but requiring evidence of the applicant
having experience in responsible shipwreck management
or stewardship, is a legal requirement for anyone search-
ing for any shipwreck on the Canadian side of the Great
Lakes; no such permit is required anywhere on the U.S.
side of the Great Lakes. Ken and Jerry did not release the
news of the Miller’s discovery to the public until the 136th
anniversary of the vessel’s loss, namely November 26,
2017.
he Jane Miller, built at Little Current on Manitoulin
Island by James Miller and his son, and named ater James’
wife, in 1879, only two years before its sinking (and ex-
periencing both heroic and unfortunate situations during
those two years), was seen struggling through the violent
storm by people on shore before suddenly disappearing.
With crates and boxes of cargo piled up on the deck,
the vessel was considered top-heavy, making it unstable
during bad weather. he steamer was also known to have
water in her hold, but the captain, against advice given
at his last dock stop, decided to venture out, certain that
the ship’s pumps could handle any leak. Some wreckage,
including two lifeboat oars, pieces of freight, the lagstaf,
and a few caps worn by the crew, were found on the west-
ern side of White Cloud Island, approximately six miles
(10 kilometres) to the northeast of the town of Wiarton.
No body was ever recovered, leading to the conjecture
that, during this bad storm, all 28 people on board were
inside the ship, with all of its doors and hatches secured
as tightly as possible, trying to keep warm and dry, and
that they likely drowned inside when the ship sank. he
28 people consisted of 10 named passengers, 10 unnamed
laborers on their way to a lumber camp near Tobermory
at the tip of the Bruce Peninsula, ive named crew (the
captain, mate, purser, engineer, and wheelsman) plus
another three unnamed crew. A few weeks ater the loss
in late 1881, search boats dragging grapnel hooks snagged
onto the Miller’s wreckage “in about 150 feet of water,” ac-
cording to one published account, and pieces of the ship’s
house were brought to the surface. But the wreck was too
deep to be considered for salvage, and its location was
soon forgotten.
Ken and Jerry’s team located the wreck of the Jane
Miller at a depth of about 140 feet (42.4 metres) early in
the morning on their irst day of searching, during their
second or third pass while “mowing the lawn” with their
boat and sidescan sonar on the waters of Colpoy’s Bay.
hey fortunately found the wreck on a relatively lat bot-
tom inside the irst 5% of their intended search area, and
not in one of the deeper portions nearby that features
some issures, or crevices, in its bottom topography, as
reported by commercial ishermen. Lake men had been
concerned that the Miller might have gone down into one
of these small underwater canyons, thus camoulaging its
inal resting place. But it turned out to be an easy wreck to
ind. According to an internet posting, they also located
Above: Time and Nature have worked in unison to cre-
ate many openings in the wooden wreck of the Jane
Miller. Possible human remains could be seen inside
the wreckage. (Photograph courtesy of Ken Merryman)
the ship’s smoke stack and whistle lying about 300 feet (90
metres) of the wreck.
Surprised that the Jane Miller had not been found a
long time ago, one of the team leaders reportedly stated,
“Sometimes people just don’t look or aren’t interested.”
he discovery team made only one 25-minute dive to
the upright wreck, and hopes to do more in the summer
of 2018. hey also expect that archaeologists will have a
Top Right: While a historic marker overlooks Colpoy’s
Bay where the Jane Miller disappeared in 1881, Joan
Forsberg gazes over the waters while imagining the
steamer’s final moments. (Photograph by Cris Kohl)
The small coastal steamer, Jane Miller, was only two
years old when she sank. This is one of only two known
photographs taken of her during the vessel’s short his-
tory. (Kohl-Forsberg Archives)
Top Right: The wreck of the Jane Miller sits upright Above Right: Zebra and quagga mussel encrustations
and is quite intact, with its mast rising to within 75 are heavy on this small shipwreck, as evidenced by
feet of the surface. (Art by Maritime Historian Robert this image of the Miller’s stern end.
McGreevy. Used with permission) (Photograph courtesy of Ken Merryman)
chance to study the shipwreck before it is opened up
to the diving public. A major concern is the possible
disturbance of the human remains that exist inside the
wreck. No one knows for sure how this situation – an
archaeological shipwreck site that also happens to be
a grave site – will be handled in the case of the Jane
Miller.
Bottom Right: The Miller’s bow railing remains sur-
prisingly in place, as is her mast and three of her life-
boat davits. (Photograph courtesy of Ken Merryman)
 Great Lakes SHIPWRECKS
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 he Dean Richmond
By Erik Petkovic
T he Dean Richmond was a spectacular sight when she
h
was built. She was hailed by the press as a magniicent ves-
sel. he press was infatuated with the steamer. However,
she was fraught with bad luck and had a long history of
mishaps prior to her foundering. For nearly a century ater
sinking with all hands, the stories of her treasure grew and
grew into fascinating tales. She was once one of the most
hunted shipwrecks in the Great Lakes “A New and Splendid
Steamer”
he Dean Richmond was built in Cleveland, Ohio, by
Quayle & Martin in 1864 for the Winslow Brothers who in-
tended to operate her on the line between Bufalo and Chi-
cago. he Richmond measured 238 feet (72.2 meters) long,
with a hold of thirteen and a half feet (4.1 meters), and a
beam of thirty-ive feet (10.7 meters). he 1,083-gross-ton,
dual-screw propeller was built to haul both large freight
and passengers.
he Cleveland Morning Leader newspaper wrote that the
vessel was “one of the inest propellers on the Lakes.” With
all the pomp and circumstance the wooden, arch-type
freighter received from the press prior to her launching, the
ship could not even leave port on time for her irst voyage.
he 02 May 1864 edition of he Cleveland Herald reported:
“he new and splendid steamer Dean Richmond...leaves for
her irst trip this evening at 6:00.” he following day it was
reported, “he Dean Richmond did not get out last evening,
as intended, but if the wind goes down [she] will leave this
evening for Chicago with a large freight and a fair passen-
ger list.”
20 | wreckdivingmag.com
A diver shines a light on the port propeller. The
Dean Richmond rests completely upside down
on the bottom of Lake Erie. Her rudder is hard
to starboard.
Courtesy Becky Schott
Was this a foreshadowing of things to come? he Dean
Richmond would go on to have more than her fair share
of accidents, collisions, groundings, and even a ire which
completely destroyed her, all before her fateful voyage.
Troublesome Beginnings
At the end of June 1865, as the American Civil War
was winding down, and only two months ater Abraham
Lincoln was assassinated, the Dean Richmond was involved
in a “disastrous collision” on Lake Erie. he Richmond ran
into and sank the propeller Illinois of Point Pelee, Ontario,
Canada, in Western Lake Erie. Although the Illinois sank
quickly, all crew and passengers were able to escape. Her
load of 3,250 barrels of lour, one hundred barrels of wheat,
and ity bales of rags was a total loss.
he next four years were littered with incidents. First,
in September 1866, the Richmond collided with and sank
the schooner A. Baensch of Waukegan, Illinois, in Lake
Michigan. In November 1867, the Richmond “broke some
of her machinery” while on the St. Clair River. On 30 July
1868, she had her irst grounding near the Traverse City
Light. Ater being “lightened of ” by the General H. E.
Paine and the Ella Burrows, she was able to make it of
the beach. In August 1869, while in Bufalo, the Richmond
“swung her stern around...just as a vessel was passing.” he
vessel’s boom pierced the Richmond’s cabin. Two months
later, the Richmond barely escaped her second grounding.
he Detroit Free Press wrote “it required the strongest kind

of steaming to work her clear of the coast.”
Fire and Ice
Ater surviving incidents in each of the irst ive years
ater her launching, the 1870 shipping season was a good
one for the owners of the Dean Richmond, as there were no
incidents. Her luck would not last long, as she would burn
in 1871.
he Richmond was on her fourteenth trip of 1871, bound
down from Duluth, Minnesota, to Bufalo with forty-two
people aboard (including crew and passengers) and 32,000
bushels of wheat. he Richmond was normally steaming
on the route from Chicago to Bufalo, however, her owners
sent her up into Lake Superior for a special trip. In order to
navigate between Lake Superior and Lake Huron, she had
to deal with the twisted St. Marys River. Due to poor vis-
ibility and given the fact that the crew was not familiar with
this speciic route, it was decided they would drop anchor
in Munoscong Lake. She was at anchor when a ire broke
out on the boiler deck at 0530 hours. Almost immediately
ater the ire was discovered, the entire promenade deck of
the vessel was engulfed in lames.
Only three lifeboats were on board the ire-stricken ves-
sel. here were multiple reports that the captain “imme-
diately got into the nearest boat and rowed away.” He let
everyone to fend for themselves on his ship. An honorable
captain, indeed. Meanwhile, the pumps were activated in
order to attempt to use the hoses to put out the ire. Unfor-
tunately, the pumps and hoses “through long neglect were
rendered useless.”
he two remaining lifeboats were lowered into the water.
hey were illed to capacity almost instantaneously. he
rest took to the water and attempted to latch onto anything
loating in the vicinity. Life jackets, wood, and anything
that would loat were tossed overboard. he chamber-
maid, Lucy Mona, was loating on one of these pieces of
Left: The No.2 lifeboat from the Dean
Richmond was found the morning of
15 October 1893 along the shoreline
of Dunkirk, New York. It was here
where a farmer located the first
pieces of wreckage to come ashore
along with the body of the second
cook.
Erik Petkovic Collection
Top Right: The headline of the
lead story of the morning edition of
the Indiana State Sentinel from 18
October 1893.
Erik Petkovic Collection
Right: The story of the Richmond’s
foundering spread quickly throughout
the United States as evidenced by
this lead story from Utah’s Salt Lake
Herald from 16 October 1893.
Erik Petkovic Collection
wood. Unfortunately, so many men jumped onto the piece
of wood she was clinging to that she was thrown of and
drowned. Fourteen additional people were rescued by
those already in the lifeboats. Forty-one passengers made
their way to the nearest land and were later picked up by
two passing vessels.
he new owners of the Dean Richmond purchased the
vessel for the sum of $65,000 the previous year. hey were
not going to allow their investment to go up in lames (pun
intended). hey wanted to raise the ship and refurbish her.
However, they decided not to pursue such an undertaking.
he Bufalo Commercial Advertiser, dated 15 November
1871, reported the “wreck as being too far used up to war-
rant any expense towards her rescue.” he report contin-
ued, “hus passes away one of the inest and largest of our
lake steamers, ater being only seven years in commission.”
Sometime ater the ire, the hull was towed to Bufalo
where the vessel was completely rebuilt for $75,000. he
next several years were illed with more accidents and
groundings and at least two complete rebuilds. She would
emerge in the early 1880s with new stacks, new arches, new
boilers, a new compound engine and new staterooms.
If 1871 was the year of ire for the Dean Richmond, then
1885 and 1888 were the years of ice for her. In April 1885,
while moored in the Bufalo Creek, an ice loe was hurried
along by a strong current, and moved the Richmond an
incredible one hundred feet. hree chains and three piles
were broken while the ice moved the large vessel. Miracu-
lously, the Richmond’s stern caught against a lower portion
of a dock, which kept her from driting even farther down-
stream and causing even more damage.
In 1888, the Richmond was imprisoned in ice ap-
proximately six miles outside of Grand Haven, Michigan.
Grand Haven is directly east on the opposite shore of
Lake Michigan from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She had been
stuck for six days in the ice before the steamer Wisconsin
was able to make her way towards the Dean Richmond.
wreckdivingmag.com | 21
 A diver shines a light on some debris along the hull. Despite the zebra
mussel invasion in Lake Erie, some of the wood remains free of the
mussels while other pieces are completely encrusted.
Courtesy Becky Schott
22 | wreckdivingmag.com
he ice ield was so thick that the Wisconsin could only
come within two miles of the Richmond. Parties from both
vessels trekked through the ice and met each other in the
middle of frozen Lake Michigan, approximately one mile
from each vessel! he crew of the Wisconsin was notiied
by the crew from the Richmond that the Richmond sufered
a broken port propeller and was therefore unable to make it
into port. he captain of the Wisconsin inished unloading
his cargo and then dug out the Richmond and towed her
into port.

Friday the 13th

On Friday, 13 October 1893, the Richmond departed

Toledo, Ohio, en route to Bufalo. She was carrying a load
of bagged lour, lead, and zinc ingots. Ater the Richmond
entered Lake Erie, she encountered very bad weather. A
violent storm ensued. Local newspapers reported it to be
the worst storm of 1893 up to that point in the year. he
storm produced winds in excess of sixty miles an hour.
Since there were no survivors, what is known is that the
Richmond was very, very battered. Ater spending Friday in
this storm, the Richmond was seen mid-morning of 14 Oc-
tober by the steamer Helena, the captain of which reported
the Richmond was missing both of her masts and one stack.
he captain stated the Richmond was having diiculty ma-
neuvering. Later that same day, the Richmond was seen by
the W.H. Stevens and the schooner Neosho, whose captain
stated he passed the Richmond on Saturday evening ap-
proximately forty miles outside of Bufalo. She was without
both stacks at that time.
A ship without her stacks in such a violent storm would
allow massive quantities of water below decks and would
not be able to keep up her steam. She was so close to Buf-
falo, yet so far away. It is astounding she was able to make
it as far as she did. According to the captain of the Neosho,
it was quite apparent the Richmond’s steering was out of
commission by the way she was moving in the heavy seas.
his was conirmed by the Erie Lighthouse keeper who was
able to see the Richmond struggle while peering through
his looking glasses. A damaged rudder along with missing
smokestacks in a storm of this magnitude is a recipe for
disaster.
Wreckage Ashore
he irst indication the Dean Richmond foundered was
when a local farmer went to the Dunkirk, New York, beach
in the morning hours of 15 October. he farmer, Frank
Boling, was walking along the beach when he discovered
pieces of wreckage and lots of merchandise on the beach.
he farmer saw a life preserver stuck in the wreckage. He
attempted to tug on the life preserver to see if it had the
vessel’s name on it. When he could not pull it out of the
wreckage, he started to move what he could in order to ex-
cavate the life preserver. Much to the horror of the farmer,
he discovered the body of a dead sailor in the life preserver.
he body was recovered by the coroner and taken to the
morgue where it was examined and searched. Inside the
A diver carefully swims through the interior of the wreck. This wreck offers
plenty to see on the inside, but should only be penetrated by those with vast
experience in overhead environments. Courtesy Vlada Dekina
One can swim almost the entire length of the ship from stem to stern inside
the dark interior of the wreck. If you look carefully, you can see a row
of ship’s knees on the left side of the photograph - evidence of an early
shipbuilding and construction technique on the Great Lakes. Courtesy Vlada
Dekina
pocket of the dead sailor was a letter written by “Mollie”
for “A.B. Dodge, care steamer Dean Richmond.” he note
contained Mollie’s response to a request she attend a dance
with him the coming Saturday. She said yes. he farmer
had discovered the body of the second cook, Andrew
Dodge. It was not determined how he died, whether from
exposure or from the giant gash in his skull.
he farmer dug deeper into the wreckage and located
another body - that of Walter Goodyear, the Richmond’s
First Mate. He was wearing a watch that stopped at 1230.
his marked the time the Richmond went down, or at the
very least, the time he entered the water.
A systematic search of the shores ensued. Sadly, accord-
ing to a local news report, “he sharks made their appear-
ance early in the day and began looting the debris. Men
came in wagons and carted away the lour and boxes. hey
paid no attention to searching the wreckage for bodies,
only caring for what they could steal.”
he following day, a yawl boat from the sunken steamer
washed ashore, upside down. he name of the steamer was
clearly visible on the transom. he captain’s wooden chair,

wreckdivingmag.com | 23
 with his name emblazoned across the back, also washed
ashore. It was now oicial. What the local residents had
feared and assumed was now a reality.
A Survivor?
he headlines read: “E X T R A, A Survivor,” “Only One
Man Escaped From he Dean Richmond” and “A Fight
For Life, A Survivor’s Story of the Loss of the Dean Rich-
mond.”
According to a gentleman who identiied himself as
“C.L. Clark,” he was the only man to survive the founder-
ing. According to the Bufalo Evening News on 16 Octo-
ber 1893, he was found “wandering on the beach near Van
Buren Point in a half demented condition.” He claimed to
be looking for his dog. “Clark” stated he had been washed
of the Richmond in the terrible storm. He told this fantas-
tical story that captivated the area. He stated he shipped
in from Toledo shortly before the Richmond departed
for Bufalo. He stated there were nineteen crewmembers
aboard, in addition to the captain and his wife and three
children.
“Clark” continued his tall tale by stating, “we...sailed
along all right until we got into the gale on Saturday. It
struck us hard from the very start, but if we had had good
luck, we would have weathered the storm and been safe
in port at this minute. We tried to get into Erie harbor
but could not on account of the choppy sea, and Captain
Stoddard decided to make a run to Bufalo, if he could. We
were badly wrenched by the heavy sea which struck us, it
seemed, from every side.”
He told the reporters the captain was making every deci-
sion based on his family. “Clark” stated the captain locked
his wife and children into a cabin and tried to make for
shore in order to beach the ship. “Clark” stated he attempt-
ed to get a yawl boat ready in order to load the captain’s
family. “Clark” was painting himself as a hero. He also
stated he had a dog he “thought a great deal of.” He stated
he loaded the dog into the yawl boat and secured the dog
to the gunwale by tying it to a jack knife he buried in the
wood. “Clark” stated he went back to rescue the captain
but was swept away.
he con artist stated he drited away from the Richmond
and eventually lost consciousness. He stated he did not
know anything that had happened until he awoke on the
beach. He stated he eventually found his dog - dead in the
overturned yawl boat somewhere on the beach. Unfor-
tunately, people believed what he had to say. hey were
so desperate to believe that they fell for it hook, line, and
sinker.
However, “C.L. Clark’s” iteen minutes of fame did not
last too long. he following day his story was discredited
by the owners of the Richmond who stated no such person
was on their manifest. “C.L. Clark” quickly disappeared
and was not seen around those parts again. he owners
were also quick to discredit the story about the captain’s
wife and children aboard the vessel when it foundered. A
disgusting tale.
24 | wreckdivingmag.com
All Hands Lost
Initially, thirteen bodies from the Richmond were recov-
ered ater they washed ashore. However, only ten were
able to be identiied because the bodies had been pounded
against the rocks.
At the morgue one of the bodies was recognized as that
of Captain George “Heavy Weather” Stoddard. His wrist-
watch was stopped at 1230, just as the First Mate’s watch
had stopped.
One month later, on 15 November 1893, the fourteenth
body washed ashore near Dunkirk. he local news report
stated: “On the let arm is tattooed an anchor in red and
blue and on the right arm was a ship. Outside of these
marks there was nothing on the person by which he could
be identiied. he body is badly decomposed and had the
appearance of being in the water for a long time.”
he local coroner reported most of the victims of the
Richmond died from exposure and not from drowning.
Based on his medical examinations, he found there was no
water in most of the victims’ lungs. here were even two
reports of E. Wheeler, the ship’s lookout, who escaped the
sinking vessel, swam to shore, made it inland, removed
his life jacket and died on the spot from exhaustion. Four
bodies were never found. All eighteen hands were lost.
Great
Lakes Treasure Hunt
Due to her valuable cargo of zinc ingots, searches for the
Richmond started the following summer. In August and
September 1894, one of the irst documented searches en-
sued. he tug Henry W. Johnson, operating out of Detroit,
and other unidentiied vessels operated by the Murphy
Salvage Group, were hired by the insurance underwriters
to locate the wreck. hey dragged thirty-six square miles
of Lake Erie’s bottom, but could not locate the Richmond.
It was reported this search cost upwards of $69,000! Her
underwriters were desperate to locate the wreck. his
desperation would drive the rumors that her underwrit-
ers must have been looking for her for good reason. And
some would speculate that reason was gold.
he following year in May 1895, a shipwreck was discov-
ered ive miles of shore and nine miles east of Dunkirk,
New York, in sixty-ive feet of water. It is interesting to
note the local coroner was conducting the investigation.
he local newspaper reported the coroner was “conident”
it was the Dean Richmond. Debunked. his wouldn’t be
the irst time a wreck was discovered, only to ind out that
it was not the Richmond.
In 1897, it was reported the steamer USS Michigan
located the wreck of the Dean Richmond of Dunkirk. A
mast was protruding from the water, approximately ten
and one-third miles of Dunkirk, and many believed it to
be that of the Richmond. (Remember, the Richmond lost
both masts prior to her sinking, as was reported by the last
ship to see her). However, Ensign H.H. Caldwell, naviga-
tor for the USS Michigan, stated, “he report that the Dean
My favorite view on the wreck, during a deep and lengthy pene-
tration, is peering out into the green Lake Erie water from inside
her dark confines. This photograph captures that perfectly.
Courtesy Vlada Dekina

There are lots of artifacts to see while penetrating the wreck.

Notice that the zebra mussels have yet to fully infiltrate the
interior of the wreck.
Courtesy Vlada Dekina

wreckdivingmag.com | 25

Richmond, of Dunkirk is untrue. We found and located
a spar which has been reported to be in that vicinity for
several years.”
On 28 September 1900, another report surfaced of the
wreck of the Dean Richmond having been found. he
“long-sought” wreck was supposedly located about ive
hundred feet of Battery Point, just east of Dunkirk. his
would also turn out not to be the wreck of the Dean Rich-
mond.
In 1910, John D. Stanton, a diver from Cleveland, pub-
licly stated he was going to locate the Richmond and raise
her cargo. He wanted the lead and zinc. He never located
the wreck.
While many attempted to locate the wreck, publicly and
privately, the mystique of the wrecked steamer grew more
and more over the years. Gold, copper, hard currency,
treasure, bullion, safe, and valuables were words used to
describe what may lie beneath the surface. Just as the lore
of the ship grew, so did the imaginations of those who
26 | wreckdivingmag.com
A rare photograph of the Erie Lighthouse
from 1868. This is most likely the first
time this photograph has ever been
published. The lighthouse keeper was
probably the last person to see the Dean
Richmond before she foundered. The
keeper saw the Richmond struggling in the
heavy seas.
Courtesy National Archives
looked for her.
In 1961, sixty-eight years ater
the Dean Richmond disappeared,
an article appeared in the No-
vember edition of Inland Water-
ways and Seaway Journal which
captured the essence of this. he
article began, “It is true, that
many millions of dollars worth
of valuables lie beneath the waves
of tropic waters, or are buried
on lonely islands in the “horse”
latitudes. Several of my friends
who are treasure hunters, have
made many recoveries in the West
Indies. But their thoughts of mak-
ing further recoveries are shiting
to another area. An area, that can
be considered virgin territory.
Namely, the Great Lakes!”
 he article continued with
some outlandish statements:
«Many claim she took to the
bottom with her $141,000 in gold
bullion. I have very good reason
to believe that she does have some
«hard» money in her safe. Her
cargo nominates her as the most
valuable known wreck in Lake
Erie. Her inder will be richer to
the tune of close to a half million
dollars, and perhaps more!”
Again, this article appeared
almost seventy years ater the Dean Richmond slipped
below the surface. In addition to gold and copper, the
article speculated that there was “a report that several
crates of “special machinery” were put aboard the “Dean”
just before she sailed from Toledo.” Of course, there was
no information as to the source of this “report.” It seems
time had not dampened the imaginations and thoughts of
grandeur for some who wished to ind a treasure ship.
Dynamite
Four years later, in 1965, salvors announced they had
inally discovered the long-sought wreck of the Dean
Richmond. hey located the wreck approximately three
miles of Van Buren Point, New York. he wooden hull
was blasted open in order to salvage the “treasure” which
had been so elusive for seventy-two years. he only
problem was that they dynamited the wrong wreck! hey
had actually discovered the wreck of the Passaic (an arch
Top to Bottom: The curved
fantail of the Dean Richmond is
embedded in Lake Erie. She was
a dual-propeller vessel. However,
as can be seen in the photo, the
starboard propeller was removed
by salvagers in the 1980s.
Courtesy Becky Schott

The starboard bow of the wrecked

steamer. The graceful curve of
her hull is accentuated against the
green water.
Courtesy Becky Schott

There are a few places for a diver

to penetrate the wreck. You can
see the multiple layers of wood
in this photograph of her ghostly
remains. Courtesy Becky Schott

”
Four years
later, in 1965,
salvors an-
nounced they
had inally
discovered the
long-sought
wreck of the
Dean Rich-
mond.

wreckdivingmag.com | 27
 A remnant of the Dean Rich-
mond’s mast standing upright
on the wreck’s starboard side.
This mast has been standing
tall for 123 years in the green
Lake Erie water! Debris can be
seen between the hull and the
mast which lie about 25 feet
(7.6m) apart.
Courtesy Becky Schott

”
In early 1973,
Garry Kozak,
commercial
diver and
now legend-
ary side-scan
sonar operator
and shipwreck
hunter, began
researching
the Dean Rich-
mond.

28 | wreckdivingmag.com
wooden steamer that sank 01 November 1891) and blew it
to hell.
he Wreck Hunter
In early 1973, Garry Kozak, commercial diver and now
legendary side-scan sonar operator and shipwreck hunter,
began researching the Dean Richmond. Based on his
historical research, Garry was ready to search for the long-
lost wreck in May 1973. He was outitted with the very
best equipment, including a Klein Model 400 Side-Scan
Sonar system and a new, thirty-two-foot boat. He antici-
pated the search taking two to three months.
Nine years later he had yet to ind the Dean Richmond.
As Garry later wrote, “Twenty-eight shipwrecks had
been located, but the Richmond remained a ghost ship.”
He had spent a small fortune searching more than 550
square miles of Lake Erie. Ten years ater the beginning of
his search, on 15 July 1983, he was searching a new area
approximately twelve miles outside of Erie, Pennsylvania
(much farther west than most wreck hunters believed she
would be found) when he located a target “200 meters of
the starboard side.” He located a ship’s hull, upside down
in 110 feet of water (33.5 meters). he wreck measured
238 feet long (72.2 meters) and thirty-ive feet (10.7 me-
ters) wide - the exact measurements of the Richmond. he
side-scan image also revealed two propellers and propeller
shats. he Richmond had “two-screws.” Could he have
found one of the most hunted shipwrecks in the Great
Lakes?
An exploratory dive was made. Nothing deinitive was
found. However, prior to ascending, on the port side of
the wreck, they saw the zinc and lead ingots they had been
looking for. Garry Kozak had just discovered one of the
most elusive wrecks in Lake Erie. By the time his search
was complete, Garry had been responsible for locating
over thirty shipwrecks.
Garry dispelled the rumors of a long-lost treasure and
quashed the tales that the inder would be “richer to the
tune of close to a half million dollars” during his subse-
quent salvage operation. here never was any treasure to
behold. here was never any gold, never any bullion, and
never any copper. hose were all tales from the pen.
he Wreck
he Dean Richmond rests on the bottom of Lake Erie in
110 feet (33.5 meters) of water. Even though the wreck is
completely upside down, she is very photogenic and ofers
more than most wrecks that are “turtle.” Although it was
proven long ago that there was no treasure to behold, the
wreck of the Dean Richmond itself is a treasure in Eastern
Lake Erie and is nothing less than spectacular.
Visibility on the wreck is usually great for Lake Erie and
can reach upwards of a remarkable sixty feet. However,
the visibility can range anywhere from twenty to sixty
feet. his is cold water diving no matter what part of the
year you are diving. he bottom temperature does not rise
much above the mid-40s even in the dead heat of summer.
he wreck is typically visited between May and September.
Descending the anchor line, the irst thing a diver will
notice is the large rudder and rudder post. he rudder is
turned hard to starboard. Adjacent is a giant, four-bladed
propeller on the port side. he steamer was a twin-screw
vessel, however, the starboard propeller was removed dur-
ing the salvage operation in the early 1980s. he propeller
shat is equally impressive. his area of the stern is excel-
lent for photography. he curved fantail is embedded into
the bottom of the lake.
Continuing forward along the starboard side of the
wreck, at approximately amidships, a diver can see a rem-
nant of the mast sticking out from the bottom. he mast
stands upright approximately twenty-ive feet away from
the wreck. here is debris spread between the mast and
the hull. he view of the mast is simply stunning, consid-
ering the mast has been standing for 123 years!
Along the starboard side are various openings that allow
penetration into the wreck. here are some loading doors
near the bottom of the lake and there are other areas open
on the starboard side where boards are missing from the
hull. Obviously, extreme caution must be taken if one
chooses to enter the wreck from any of these openings.
Some are partially or fully blocked by debris.
Continuing forward to the pointed bow (which points
to the northeast), one can swim away from the wreck and
explore a sizable debris ield just north of the wreck. It
includes large pieces of the ship along with an abundance
of zinc ingots. his is something that should not be missed
when diving the wreck, although this is an area that oten
gets overlooked by divers.
 Swimming across the bow to the port side of the wreck,
one will see evidence of the salvage operations on the
vessel. Several sections were blasted open to allow access
to the interior of the wreck. A section of the port side has
collapsed which will also allow access to the inside. Ater
the collapsed section on the port side, the hull is intact all
the way to the propeller.
his wreck allows for penetration inside, accessed
through various parts of the hull, as described above.
However, as in all penetration dives, one must use extreme
caution and be well trained in overhead environments.
One can swim almost the entire length of the wreck, from
stem to stern, inside the steamer. One can traverse the
dark interior while looking out at the green-tinted water
through the various openings in the hull. here is a tre-
mendous amount of shipbuilding architecture to see. he
ship’s knees are not to be missed. here are also various
artifacts along the way. he interior can silt up quickly, so
one must be vigilant.
About the Author: Erik Petkovic has been div-
ing wrecks in the Great Lakes and along the U.S.
East Coast since 1996. Erik is an expert shipwreck
researcher and has been published in many interna-
tional dive magazines. Erik is the author of the criti-
cally acclaimed and highly regarded Shipwrecks of
Lake Erie Volume One. A highly sought-after speaker,
Erik is available for presentations and seminars. More
can be found about Erik at www.ErikPetkovic.com.
wreckdivingmag.com | 29
 Treasure in the English Channel!
Text and Photographs by Stefan Panis

Below: Old drawing of the S.S. Castor

Inset: Old picture of the S.S. Castor

30 | wreckdivingmag.com
D During the years that I have been doing research in
the archives, I have stumbled several times on some very
interesting stories and wrecks by coincidence.
One of them was the Dutch steamer, S.S. Castor. Since I
found out about her story, the wreck was high on my wish
list of “TO DO” wrecks!
In 2015, I had invited Selçuk Kolay from Turkey to speak
at the International Tekdive show I had organized. He had
heard about the story, and through his contacts, I got some
valuable information for my investigation!
While out this summer in the English Channel, we were
forced to dive the Dungeness area, which is somewhat
protected from bad weather, so the choice to dive the S.S.
Castor was made very fast! I was inally about to dive this
wreck site!
he loss of the S.S. Castor
he S.S. Castor was constructed in 1870 by Glasgow
Ship Builders for the Koninklijke Nederlandse Stoomboot
Maatschappij (K.N.S.M.) in the Netherlands. She was a
screw-driven vessel with a two-cylinder compound en-
gine, measuring 253 feet long, and displacing 1500 tons.
In 1873, the S.S. Castor was chartered by the Holland
Amerika Line to take passengers across the North Atlantic
to a new life in America. he S.S. Castor made 12 round-
trip voyages to New York, the last one in 1883.
Ater 1883, the S.S. Castor returned to operate on the
routes in the Mediterranean, taking general cargo to Am-
sterdam, oten from Turkey.
he Dutch consul Van Lennep, was not only consul, but
also traded in antiquities, dispatching many items to sev-
eral European museums, using the K.N.S.M. services.
One of his clients was the Rijksmuseum in Leiden in the
Netherlands. Van Lennep helped to build the museum’s
collection of Greco-Roman items.
In 1894, 14 Greco-Roman sculptures and antiquities
were packed in two crates, and were shipped from the
Turkish port, Smyrna, aboard the S.S. Castor.
Unfortunately, they never made it to the Netherlands.
When Captain J.R. Visser passed Dungeness on 28 July
1894 in dense fog, he collided with the German barque,
Ernst. he Castor was struck amidships and sank. All 25
crew and passengers were saved, and brought to shore.
No attempts were made at salvage, and the Castor re-
mained, along with her cargo, on the seabed for the next
80 years……
Top Two: Marble head, dated
circa 140-150 A.D.
Left: Teapot, bearing the
K.N.S.M. logo, recovered by
buddy Paul Wilkin
wreckdivingmag.com | 31
 Discovery of the wreck
On one of my irst trips to Dover, my friend, Eddy
Huzzey, brought me in contact with Colin White, one of
the discoverers of the wreck site.
In 1985, they went out to dive an unknown steamship.
he divers brought up some of the marble cargo. Eventu-
ally, these antiquities were brought to the Canterbury
Archaeological Trust for identiication, and declared to
the Receiver of Wrecks. Research inally led to the story of
Van Lennep and the S.S. Castor.
On later dives, the divers recovered some china plates,
bearing the K.N.S.M. monogram, proving the identity of
the ship.
During research of the correspondence of Van Lennep,
which was preserved in the Leiden Museum, one of the
letters included a detailed listing of the antiquities.
he two crates recovered from the wreck were appar-
ently the less important items. Another crate, containing a
complete statue, was described by Van Lepped as “stun-
ning!” his case still awaits discovery…..

Left Top to Bottom Photos: Marble

funerary monuments with Greek
inscriptions, Early Roman, 1st
century A.D.

Right Top to Bottom: One of the

ship’s many sinks.

Wooden decking deteriorating fast.

On later
dives, the div-
ers recovered
some china
plates, bearing
the K.N.S.M.
monogram,
proving the
identity of the
ship.

32 | wreckdivingmag.com
An exciting dive!
Whilst steaming out to the dive site, my thoughts went
out to Van Lennep, and the two remaining cases. he pos-
sibility that the shipment for the Leiden Museum might
not be the only one, and that there could be more down
there, made me anxious and nervous for the dive.
When I landed on the wreck, I could see Tony Goodfel-
low through the rotting decking inside a hold. It seemed
we had hooked into the stern section of the wreck, which
was still standing about 18 feet above the sea loor. As the
hull was deteriorating, I could easily penetrate the stern,
and Tony showed me boxes with bottles which were lying
around.
he wreck site was covered with a light silt and, if I
stopped, visibility was immediately reduced to zero! I
backed out, and continued my dive towards the bow.
Around midships, I noticed the twin-cylinder com-
pound engine, surrounded in ish, which made it a beauti-
ful sight! A little onwards, I saw the remains of the bridge,
and a set of boulders in front of it made a nice frame to
take a shot.
Paul Wilkin, who was rummaging around in this area,
signaled me. He showed me a beautiful silver teapot,
which he found in one of the ship’s sinks. Later cleaning
and conservation revealed that it bore the ship’s crest.
I moved on, and came to the holds just before the bow,
where the crates with the antiquities must have been! I
couldn’t help but look carefully for indications of wood or
marble, but unfortunately, I found nothing signiicant….
Just before the bow was a spare anchor, a beautiful mod-
el, and another one next to the wreck on the silty bottom.
On the bow some superstructure was still standing,
and made it possible to have a look inside. Ater having
another silt-out, I decided it was time to head back. Swim-
ming on the other side of the deck, I found that the davits
were still there; I remembered them from the old pictures
I had seen of the ship. hen I came across a row of dead-
eyes, making it a spooky sight!
While surfacing, I was smiling ater an exciting dive,
feeling privileged to have dived such a fantastic site illed
with history and suspense!
Epilogue
Later research revealed that all the antiquities found by
the early divers were returned to Turkey due to an agree-
ment between the UK and Turkish governments.
hey are still on display in the Anatolian Civilizations
Museum in Ankara.
So far, no news on the remaining treasure….
About the Author: Stefan Panis started diving in 1992, and
since then, he has moved on to nitrox and trimix. He started
diving with a rebreather in 2009, and began doing underwa-
ter photography in 2013. Meanwhile, he developed a great
interest in wrecks and researching their history in the archives.
He spent many dives on wrecks in the North Sea, the English
Channel, and abroad in Sardinia, France, Portugal, and Cuba, to
name a few places. He has been involved in several successful
expeditions searching for new wrecks.
In 2014, he also obtained his full cave CCR certificate, and he
also loves to dive and document the many old mine sites in
Belgium!
wreckdivingmag.com | 33
 Solomon Islands Dive “Fest”
Text and Photographs By David Prichard and Lily Mak

The beached wreck of the Kinugawa Maru partially sits above the waves and makes an easy shore dive northeast of Honiara on Guadalcanal
Island. The ship was part of 11 Japanese transports in November of 1942 attempting to resupply troops on the island but were discovered by
aircraft from Henderson Field and were destroyed before they could leave the beach.

T here are many destinations around the world that both

h
recreational and technical divers routinely visit to dive a
treasure-trove of shipwrecks, such as Truk Lagoon, North
Carolina, Scapa Flow, the Red Sea, and more. Now the
Visitors Bureau of the Solomon Islands is reminding div-
ers across the world that its tropical waters showcase a vast
number of important World War II wrecks throughout
its 900+ islands and nine provinces as it hosted its second
Dive Fest in the last quarter of 2017, highlighting the 75th
anniversary of the Battle for Guadalcanal.
From the battles of Guadalcanal to Bougainville, the
Allied forces in 1942 started pushing back the Japanese
invasion of the South Paciic with ferocious air, land and
sea battles – island by island in the Solomons until they
pushed the Japanese forces out of the region.
One of the key turning points in the Paciic War of
WWII was when American and Allied forces invaded the
island of Guadalcanal as the Japanese were building an
air base to launch attacks and an invasion into Australia.
hat blunted the Japanese advancement plans and spurred
numerous campaigns to retake Guadalcanal and continue
their territory expansion.
Just north of Guadalcanal at the end of the channel
known as “he Slot” is Savo Sound, nicknamed “Iron
Bottom Sound,” for more than 50 ships sunk in the sound
during the Guadalcanal campaign along with hundreds
of aircrat. Along “he Slot” are even more wrecks as the
Japanese tried to resupply their forces in an efort to retake
Guadalcanal. Among these is the PT-109, the American
Navy patrol torpedo boat commanded by a future Presi-
dent, John F. Kennedy, who had to swim from island to
island before being rescued and now has an island named
ater him there with plenty of WWII relics on the beach.

34 | wreckdivingmag.com
 An anti-aircraft gun remains poised to defend
Henderson Field (now Honiara International Airport)
A Diving Playground on Guadalcanal from an air attack.

Divers from Australia and New Zealand have already

been treating the Solomon Islands as their local of-island
diving destination in the same way that Americans treat
the nearby Caribbean islands. As the airbase on Guadal-
canal was within bomber striking range of Australia, it is
just a short hop back for divers to the Solomon Islands.
International lights arrive into Honiara International
Airport, which is the historical site of Henderson Airield
– the focal point of the battle for Guadalcanal.
While Australian dive trips to Honiara start in Brisbane
via Solomon Airlines (and the same for New Zealanders
from Auckland), American divers will typically depart Los
Angeles (LAX) for Fiji on Fiji Airways and then transfer
to Solomon Airlines in Fiji to arrive in Honiara. he two
airlines recently signed a code-share agreement allowing
passengers to book their bags from LA to Honiara (and
back again) without having to pick them up in Fiji. an international light destination as a second-leg to a Ho-
Once in Honiara, divers can start their diving adventure niara light (eliminating the need to transfer to Solomon
on Guadalcanal through either land-based dive centers Airlines domestic airport).
or be on-boarded onto a pair of live-aboard dive boats, Air and naval bases were on both Gizo and Munda
the M/V Taka or M/V Bilikiki. Divers can also transfer islands so they had to be taken by force by the Allies and
next door to the Honiara Domestic Airport and ly to the were scenes of intense combat. Shipwrecks lie deep for
Western Province to the dive island and dive centers of technical divers as well as shallow (some are even shore
Gizo or Munda. Work is underway to soon have Munda as dives) for recreational divers. Damaged aircrat that

Many of the Americans who volunteered to fight in WWII were often The ribs of the Kashi Maru’s smokestack now support an ecosystem of
older teenagers and on Munda Island one lost his National Marble corals and fish. The Japanese freighter was hit by a 500-pound bomb
Tournament medals that are on display with many dog tags at the dropped by a B-25 Mitchell bomber while it was unloading a cargo of
Peter Joseph Museum. trucks and fuel to nearby troops based on New Georgia Island.

wreckdivingmag.com | 35
 couldn’t return to base oten “ditched” (landed on water by
a shoreline) next to an island so that the pilot could swim
to shore in hopes of rescue.
Many of the ships and most of the aircrat that are
known to have sunk in the Solomon Islands have yet to be
discovered and await the arrival of adventurous divers!
Besides the wrecks underwater, the pristine reefs show-
case over 500 species of hard and sot coral and over 1,000
species of ish and marine creatures to entertain divers
between wreck explorations. he average water tempera-
ture in this tropical zone is 84 degrees Fahrenheit with air
temperatures in the same range.

WWII History Bufs

he main dive center in Munda is Dive Munda located

at the Agnes Gateway Hotel. here you can ask to be taken
out to the Peter Joseph Museum, which is on a nearby
farm where owner Alphy Barney Paulsen has been collect-
ing WWII artifacts in his barn for many years. he name
of the museum comes from the irst dog tag he recovered
with the name of Peter Joseph Palatini.
he barn is illed with weapons, helmets, aircrat parts,
and various artifacts he recovered of the island using met-
al detectors – including dog tags. His discoveries showcase
the items and weapons that soldiers oten carried with
them into battle. One notable item he discovered from
his metal detecting searches was a medal from a young
American (many were older teenagers that served in the
war) for his championship in the game of marbles.
While on the island of Guadalcanal, visitors can go to
the indoor Solomon Islands National Museum in Honiara
for WWII artifacts, or take a ride out to the outdoor Vilu
War Museum north of town to walk in the ields of col-
lected aircrat, artillery, and other war relics laid out along
paths in a ield. his last museum has no signs of the
coastal road and a local guide takes you down a dirt road
to the entrance of the outdoor museum.

Solomon Islands Culture

he residents of the Solomon Islands mainly migrated

to the islands from Melanesia (Papua New Guinea to Fiji),
Micronesia, and Polynesia. he islands were named by
Spanish explorer Álvaro de Mendaña de Neira in 1568 in
an expedition from Peru when he found gold in the Man-
taniko River and assumed that King Solomon had mined
this area to supply gold for his temple in Jerusalem.
One Western Province region in the Munda area was
known for its head-hunting tribes that collected the heads Center: Several WWII-era anti-aircraft and artillery pieces are on
of its enemies to strengthen the “power” of their chiefs. display on the white sandy beach of Kennedy Island near Gizo at a
One such depository of these heads is on an island north popular surface-interval spot. Future U.S. President John F. Kennedy
of Munda called Skull Island (oicially named Kundu was rescued on this island after his PT-109 torpedo boat he was com-
Hite). Buried under a mound of lava rock, these skulls manding was rammed and sunk. A good swimmer, Kennedy swam
from island to island to avoid being captured before getting picked up
supposedly provide power to multiple sets of upper stone
on this small island.
structures that support visible skulls of past chiefs of the
local Rendova tribe. Bottom: One of the wrecked Allied fighter aircraft on display at the
One of the senior boat captains of Dive Munda, Osborn Vilu War Museum northwest of Honiara on Guadalcanal is a Lockheed
Sunga Boso, leads the tour of his ancestors’ religious site P-38 Lightning that had to ditch into the waters north of Guadalcanal
in 1943. The aircraft was recovered in 1972 in 40 feet of water and
then donated to the museum.
36 | wreckdivingmag.com
Clockwise: A wide variety of WWII artifacts can be found at the Peter
Joseph Museum on Munda Island in the Western Province of the
Solomon Islands.
Among the number of WWII artifacts that Alphy Barney Paulsen recov-
ered on Munda Island for the Peter Joseph Museum were weapons
such as the Browning Automatic Rifle (right) along with other infantry
weapons left behind after fierce fighting to take the island.
Osborn Sunga Boso of Dive Munda explains to visitors about the his-
tory of Skull Island (officially named Kundu Hite) and the ceremony of
burying the heads of their enemies inside a mound of lava rock. Boso
is the great grandson of the last tribal chief whose skull was placed
on the mound.
The skulls of Rendova chiefs sit in a stone altar on top of a lava rock
mound filled with the skulls of vanquished enemies on Kundu Hite Is-
land that is more commonly referred to as “Skull Island” near Munda.
The chiefs were thought to be able to absorb the energy from their
foes during the afterlife with this structure.
wreckdivingmag.com | 37
 and explains the various ceremonies of his tribe. He will
point out one particular exposed chietain skull in a stone
shrine – his great-great grandfather. Another nearby
shrine includes three stone monoliths that helped tribal
priests determine when conditions were best for ishing
when they started vibrating during prayer.
Another sacred object on Skull Island is a water-illed
basin, which is the tribe’s self-defense system. Legend has
it that as long as the waters in the basin are calm, then
the seas are calm and conditions are good for traveling
between the islands or for ishing. If enemies are thought
to be attacking the tribe soon, then priests would stir up
the waters of the basin causing large waves in the nearby
waters that would capsize the invading enemies’ canoes. A
combination of Catholic missionaries and British police/
naval forces ended the head-hunting practice at the turn of
the 20th century.
Visitors can also get a sense of what it was like in the
life of ancient Solomon Islanders by visiting the cultural
center northeast of town where locals dress in traditional
garb and show how inhabitants traditionally cooked, made
shelters and ire, stored food and water, and many more
traditional ways the Solomon Islanders interacted with
each other and visitors.
With such a varied cultural history, visitors may wonder
what kind of music the Solomon Islanders like to listen
to. It turns out it is American Country music that caught
on during WWII and has been followed since then by the
islanders. Pack some popular country music CDs to play
or give away and you will be well-received on the islands.

An elder at a Solomon Island cultural center northeast of Honiara on

Guadalcanal Island shows how you can quickly make a section of thatched
roof or siding (like behind him) by folding a special tree leaf over a stick and
then “stitching” the folded leaves together in two areas with a thin strip of
wooden “needle” that is simply broken off before starting the next leaf.

A diver checks out the rudder of the Kashi Maru, a Japanese freighter caught
by USAF bombers on July 2, 1943, while unloading a cargo of trucks and fuel
to nearby troops based on New Georgia Island. The rudder was only at a depth
of 57 feet, making this wreck a good shore dive.

About the Authors: David Prichard and Lily Mak take every op-
portunity to travel the world in search of interesting photo, video,
and text subjects as co-founders of Enchanted Sea Images, Inc.
When not sharing their enthusiasm for the underwater world as
guest lecturers at scuba events and as instructors, David and
Lily provide text and photos about their exploration experiences
in a number of magazines. Their training and experience with
the Southwest Underwater Archaeology Society has given them
an insight in discovering, documenting and researching histori-
cal wrecks.

38 | wreckdivingmag.com
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In partnership with
 Superior’s Hart Text and Photographs by Becky Kagan Schott

Normally sitting in complete darkness, the interior of the wheelhouse is illuminated by divers’ lights so you can see an intact wheel, telegraph,
binnacle, frames on the walls, a radio detection unit, and pair of binoculars on the table.

40 | wreckdivingmag.com
T Take a look and “judge” for yourself. his wreck will cap-
T
Ta
ture your “hart.” Ok, ok, forgive all of the puns, but they
are completely true! he wreck of the Judge Hart truly cap-
tured my heart for many reasons. I’ve never seen a more
spectacular wheelhouse anywhere in the Great Lakes! his
wheelhouse is intact, with green and red paint still on it,
and inside is a perfect wheel, and telegraph and binnacle
still plugged in. here is a radio direction inder (RDF)
with dials and numbers that can be read, along with a
pair of binoculars sitting on the chart table. Oh, and did I
mention the frames on the walls with one still encasing the
RDF signal numbers? It’s a sight to behold, and the mo-
ment my light cut through the darkness and illuminated
the interior of that wheelhouse, I couldn’t take a photo. I
froze, mesmerized, as I peered through a window soaking
it all in, and that’s just the start to the Judge Hart.
he Judge Hart was a canaller (a ship speciically built
with a length short enough to enable it to it into the locks
of the Welland Canal which joined Lake Ontario and Lake
Erie, bypassing Niagara Falls) that ventured up into the
most northern part of Lake Superior with a cargo of grain
in November 1942. It fell victim to the Gales of Novem-
ber as it was caught in a violent storm and sought shelter
in Jackish Bay near Marathon, Ontario, Canada. he
weather worsened and ice began to build up on the ship,
which made depth-sounding diicult, causing it to hit a
submerged reef. he crew made it of and the ship was
pulled from Fitzsimmons Rocks, but her pumps failed,
forcing them to abandon the ship. Because of the ice that
covered it as it slowly sank into 210 feet of cold Lake Su-
perior water, the Judge Hart is perfectly upright and intact.
It wasn’t until 1990 when the location of the wreck was
discovered.
Because the Hart is in a remote area, the only way to get
there was to rely on Capt. Paul Turpin and his well-itted,
24-foot Zodiac set up for 4-6 CCR divers. We launched
from Schreiber, Ontario, and rode out to the site about one
hour away. Even though it was early September, it was re-
ally chilly so we all had our touques and gloves on for the
ride! When you arrive at the line, there isn’t much around
except a few islands in the distance. For good visibility,
the weather has to be calm with no recent rain so that the
river nearby doesn’t dump out silt-illed water into the
lake.
Paul helped clip our bailout bottles on, and in two teams
of three, we gracefully slid over the side into the water. Ok,
that’s a lie. I don’t think there really is a graceful way to
exit a Zodiac wearing full gear, but go with me on this!
While we were there, the bow line was the only line up,
so we used it. Landing just at of the wheelhouse on the
cargo deck, we swam up the starboard side and saw the
red search light and later saw the green running light on
the port side. When the ship went down, the bow must
have scraped along the bottom because a lot of clay sits on
the partially-buried bow. he name can still be seen on
the side as well. Heading upwards, I wanted a wide shot of
the wheelhouse area. Since the depth of the wreck is only
210 feet, we had a decent amount of bottom time, around
35 minutes, to be able to capture images and explore. I
snapped away and tweaked the lighting to inally capture
the artistic shot I saw in my mind, but even more beauti-
ful. he red paint and intact windows let me in awe, and

wreckdivingmag.com | 41
 seeing the wheelhouse illuminated made it appear to be
sailing in darkness. I could almost see the captain standing
there sailing the ship.
Behind the wheelhouse was another binnacle and, just
above that, was the bell that proudly displayed the name,
Judge Hart. On another dive, we came down the bow line
but went at towards the stern, taking several minutes to
cover the ship’s length of 253 feet. he stern was slightly
shallower than the bow which was a pleasant surprise.
Along the starboard side, most of the doors were closed
so, at the stern, we dropped down to the rudder that still
has markings on it. I was photographing Ryan Staley for
a few minutes and then I heard Jitka Hanakova, my other
buddy, in her helium voice saying, “Beeeeckkkkyyyy,”
and I looked up to see the name Judge Hart written there
on the stern. We giggled and I got some wider shots with
the name illuminated in the darkness. It is dark - spooky
dark down there! Working our way along the port side,
we came to the galley which was at least as impressive as
some others I’ve seen. Ater that, we went to check out the
engine room, which I thought would be doable, but my
dive buddy, Ryan, pointed to where it was and I grinned.
It would have been a little too ambitious for this dive,
so I passed. he engine room will have to wait for next
trip! Time was getting short and we started to swim back
towards the bow, passing two auxiliary anchors on the
stern and more machinery. Ater once last glimpse inside
the wheelhouse and a few more images with some creative
lighting, it was time to say goodbye.
he Judge Hart remains intact and in excellent condi-
tion, but few divers visit it each year because of the remote
location and conditions that vary. If you are interested
in giving the Hart a try, be prepared for expedition-like
diving, remote with little or no help nearby. his is no
easy dive from a Zodiac ater a long ride out, and it’s dark,
deep, and cold, with some extra lines in the water. In ad-

Above: A wide perspective of the Judge Hart wheelhouse with paint

still on the wooden panels.
Top Right: The bell hangs just behind the wheelhouse.
Bottom Right: The galley is located on the stern on the port side.

42 | wreckdivingmag.com
Above: Divers checking out the
stern with the ship’s name still
visible, along with the rudder
and propeller.

Left: The dive is cold, dark, and

deep, but words can’t describe
peering inside the intact wheel-
house.

”
he Judge
Hart remains
intact and in
excellent con-
dition, but few
divers visit it
each year...
wreckdivingmag.com | 43
44 | wreckdivingmag.com
dition, all of our gases, a compressor, bailouts,
and rebreathers needed to be brought in with
us for the week of diving. he week before we
arrived, we learned the sobering news that an
experienced diver had lost his life, so there was
much to consider. here are a lot of amazing
wrecks in the Great Lakes and Lake Superior
has some tougher conditions, so make sure
before you go that you’re prepared and have
built up experience. Put the Judge Hart on your
bucket list as a dive to aspire to do someday. It
took me seven years to inally make it there and
it was so much sweeter because I was complete-
ly prepared for it and so were all of the divers in
our group.
Ater our decompression, we clipped bottles
to the equipment lines, and Paul helped us back
onto the Zodiac as we all smiled and rambled
on about the dive. We went to dinner that night
in Rossport, Ontario, and enjoyed the best part
of a dive trip - the stories and friendships that
grow from it. Aterwards, we were walking back
to the hotel when we looked up and the sky
looked funny. Ryan said he thought it could be
the start of the Northern Lights. I quickly ran
to get my tripod that I’d been carrying around
for three weeks and had not used once. It was
worth it though, because on that cool, crisp
night, I saw the Northern Lights for the irst
time. We went out to Paul’s boat, Discovery, and
laughed with excitement as the vibrant greens
and purples danced in the sky. We couldn’t have
asked for a better way to end a spectacular trip.
Rossport captured my heart as did the Judge
Hart of Lake Superior.

About the Author: Becky Schott is a 5-time,

Emmy Award-winning underwater cinematogra-
pher, photographer, and technical diving instruc-
tor whose work can be seen on major networks
including National Geographic, Discovery, and
Travel Channel. She is co-owner of Liquid Pro- Opposite Page – Top: Ryan Staley and Jitka Hanakova taking a look at one of two
ductions, specializing in bringing back video from auxiliary anchors on the stern.
challenging underwater environments. Her projects
Opposite Page – Bottom: Port side running light.
have taken her all over the globe from exploring
virgin shipwrecks in the Great Lakes, rappelling Opposite Page – Inset: The haunting image of the Judge Hart wheelhouse sitting
into caves, filming under ice in the Arctic, and even intact in over 210 feet of water in northern Lake Superior.
diving cage-less with Great White sharks. Her ex-
perience working in remote locations around the Above: The last group of the 2017 season (September) to visit the Judge Hart: Brett
world and facing the challenges of filming in ex- Halderson, Becky Kagan Schott, Todd Shaw, Jitka Hanakova, Wolfgang Kanig, Ryan
treme environments has earned her a reputation Staley, and Capt. Paul Turpin.
of producing quality images in some of the most
demanding underwater environments. www.Liq- Center: Captain Paul Turpin assisting divers back onto the Zodiac after a dive on the
uidProductions.com / www.MegDiver.com Judge Hart. Currently, he’s the only one taking divers out to the wreck, which is more
than an hour ride out, so pack your touque!

wreckdivingmag.com | 45
 he Irony of Fate
Text and Photographs by Leigh Bishop
LLying almost 40 miles due south of Brighton, deep in the
English Channel, is a large steamer known as the Warilda.
British divers from South London had searched for the
wreck for many years during the 1980s. At that time, the
SS Warilda was regarded as “the wreck to ind” for the
eastern part of the English Channel. During the very
early 1990s, deep air divers from the English south coast
district of Arun had began to dive another large wreck ive
or so miles farther south of the Warilda’s true location.
he divers were convinced they had indeed found the lost
wreck in question.
It wasn’t until some time later that deep wreckers known
as the Hounslow Divers also began to explore the new
wreck and found themselves on the bow section where
they could clearly see the letters spelling out the wreck’s
name, Lanfranc. At 6,287 tons, the newly-discovered
Lanfranc was itself a huge wreck and, in turn, would later
46 | wreckdivingmag.com
Chris Hutchison discovers a tip basin that
was once used inside a private cabin.
become a classic wreck dive equal to the Warilda. But the
wreck wasn’t the sought-ater Warilda they had all hunted
for.
In August of 1992, Littlehampton skipper Ivan Warren
was given a new set of numbers ater the Hounslow ‘SPG’
{special projects group} divers had removed snagged rope
from a local isherman’s prop. he new wreck, which was
not listed by the Hydrographic Department, was large and
had been secretly ished for some time. At last, the divers
had found the wreck that had been lost 74 years earlier.
Positive identiication was made during one of the very
early dives when diver Martin Reed came across a large,
brass footplate that once welcomed passengers aboard the
big ship, and clearly displayed within the brass was the
name “Warilda.” On a dive not long aterward, Diver John
Hughes located and recovered the prized main fo’c’sle bell
also bearing the name Warilda.
 he huge wreck of a lost hospital ship sunk during World War One and the U-boat responsible for the
sinking were both victims of an ironic twist of fate. Leigh Bishop investigated these unlucky ships and presents
his indings.

A rare archival image of the Warilda

under steam prior to the war.

Top Right
and Bottom:
The helm
telemotor
steering posi-
Diver Jamie Powel made this illustra- tion recovered
tion of the wreck as it was in 2001. by the late
Kingston diver
Alan Dunster.

Starish Enterprise.” During the

It was a time when new wrecks and their exploration
were kept as a well-guarded secret and the Hounslow
‘SPG’ divers, led at the time by Alan Atkinson, had the
Warilda to themselves. here was no AIS vessel tracking
technology to give away the secret position of Warren’s
dive charter, Michelle Mary, as he hooked into the
wreck. As time went by, one of the divers unfortunately
succumbed to a case of the bends and Warren was forced
to disclose their secret location across the maritime
airwaves so the rescue helicopter could ind them for the
emergency medical evacuation. Within weeks, I dove
the wreck with the British deep wreck diving team, “he
summer months that came and went,
we headed across to France and
enjoyed a dive on the Warilda during
the outbound journey and a dive on the Lanfranc on the
inbound. During the summer of 1996, I dove the wreck
with the late Kingston deep air diver, Alan Dunster. With a
sense of urgency, Dunster scoured the wreck as I followed
him until he located what he was searching for - the ship’s
Telemotor - the huge hydraulic steering mechanism. It was
a time when liting artifacts from wrecks was accepted,
and I watched as Dunster secured his prized artifact to
the biggest liting bag I had ever seen in my life. I recall
swimming underneath and peering up inside, thinking it
to be not far of the size of one of Richard Branson’s hot air
balloons!

wreckdivingmag.com | 47
 Diver Chris Hutchison lends
scale to a set of large moor-
ing bollards.

A telegraph
was located on
Dunster had carried a spare cylinder but, even with
the wreck soon that, used so much air illing the bag he had none let to
after the wreck’s breathe from his back set and rocketed to the surface with
discovery. the bag from a depth of 50m/170t, missing over an hour
of required decompression. Expecting Dunster to have
been lown of by helicopter when I later surfaced, I was
labbergasted to see him sitting on an upturned bucket,
eating his sandwiches and admiring his prized artifact! He
had sufered no efects of the bends and I couldn’t help but
think how diferent the Warilda story would have been
had Warren’s diver been in the same position. On another
occasion, my friend, Jamie, was not so fortunate and he,
like Warren’s diver, was airlited from the Warilda with
a case of decompression sickness. Jamie was even more
A rebreather unlucky when he was lown directly to the closest chamber
diver inspects a facility in France where, once treated, had to ind his own
porthole secured way back to England, not unlike an illegal immigrant,
fast to the hull. wearing just his DUI undersuit with no passport!
During World War One, large, ocean-going vessels were
irst used as hospital ships on a massive scale. Lusitania’s
sister, Aquitania, and even Titanic’s sister ship, Britannic,
were famous examples of passenger liners converted to
use as loating medical treatment facilities. During the
Gallipoli Campaign, hospital ships successfully evacuated
over 100,000 wounded personnel to the safe shores of
Egypt. By the end of the Great War, the British Royal Navy
had seventy-seven hospital ships in service although many
had fallen into the hands of the German Imperial Navy.
One such vessel was the Warilda and, while not a true

48 | wreckdivingmag.com
 Above: Inside the
bow section, working
machinery can still be
seen.

Left: A diver inspects

a porthole fallen to the
seabed.

Dunster had carried a spare cylinder but, even with that, used
so much air illing the bag he had none let to breathe from his
back set and rocketed to the surface with the bag from a depth of
50m/170t, missing over an hour of required decompression.
wreckdivingmag.com | 49
 leviathan of a ship like the massive Britannic, she was
still worthy of requisition by the Commonwealth and,
during August of 1915, was itted out as a transport ship.
Taking on the preix HMAT (His Majesty’s Australian
troopship), Warilda made two trips to Egypt and one to
England, carrying more than 7,000 troops. Following her
conversion to a hospital ship in July of 1916, Warilda was
stationed in the Mediterranean for a short period before
being put to work transporting wounded soldiers across
the English Channel from the battlegrounds of France
to the safe haven of England. In two years, she made
over 180 trips from Le Havre to Southampton, carrying
approximately 80,000 patients.
Despite the fact she was a hospital ship, Warilda was
still targeted by the German U-boats and, in February of
1918, was lucky to survive her irst enemy attack ater the
torpedo failed to explode on impact.
During her pre-war days, the Warilda had been
an elegant Australian steamship of 7,713 tons. Like
many ships of the time, she was built in the Northern
Hemisphere at Glasgow during 1907 by the Scottish
builders W. Beardmore & Co., Ltd. She was owned and
operated by the Adelaide Steamship company and her four
boilers powered a huge 8-cylinder, quadruple expansion
engine capable of more than 760 horse power.
Escorted by two British destroyers, Warilda departed
Le Havre on August 2, 1918, with over 800 wounded
passengers aboard, bound for Southampton. It was
overcast that evening and, across a slight sea with a breeze
from the west, an enemy U-boat was spotted at 1:35 a.m.,
quickly followed by the track of a torpedo 200 yards of the
port bow. he lookout instantly called to the helmsman
who put the helm over hard in an attempt to ram the
preying U-boat.
Oberleutnant H. Kukenthal and the crew of U-boat UC-
49, a type UC II minelaying submarine, were too fast for
the huge vessel and had manoeuvred into such position
where they were able to ire a torpedo directly into the
starboard at side in the vicinity of the bulkhead between
the engine room and number four hold.
In the confusion that followed, several people lost their
lives whilst attempting to lower lifeboats into the water
and, tragically, more than 100 were instantly killed within
what was known as “I ward” which had been located
where the torpedo had struck in number four hold.
Ironically, I ward was at the lowest part of the vessel and
accommodated the walking wounded with the thought
that these men would be able to escape unaided during the
event of an incident.
Lance Corporal J. Schoield, ward master of F ward
(immediately above I ward) said that water immediately
came through the watertight door into F ward because the
doors were warped by the concussion and were no longer
itting tightly.
Top & Bottom Photos: Diver John Hughes located and recovered the
prized main fo’c’sle bell also bearing the name Warilda.

50 | wreckdivingmag.com
 Corporal Brown, ward master in C ward, (two decks
above I), tried to get down the ladder to help but the water
rose very quickly above the level of I ward.
Private George James Tevelein (2403, 38th Battalion) was
on board the Warilda that night. He later wrote:

“We were all shocked by our boat being lifted out of the
water, and then seeming to roll over on her side, with all
the men tossed out of their bunks. his was accompanied
by the roar of a torpedo… It was not necessary to ask
what was the matter, as the smell of the explosive soon
permeated through the ship.” He described the horror of
the occupants of I ward: “Suddenly came terrible screams
and shouting from under the deck, which, fortunately did
Top: Diver Mike
not last long, caused by, as we found after, 153 [actually
Letheron with the
101] poor beggars who were trapped in the lower deck telegraph, and Bob
and were drowned like rats in a trap.” Hughes with a porthole,
early 1990s.
Most of the wards with the cots were quickly cleared,
and the patients taken to the promenade deck with their Center: Diver Mike
blankets within ive minutes. he operation was helped by Letheron with the
the fact that those unable to walk or with leg wounds were telegraph recovered
placed higher in the ship and that, although the electrical from the wreck and
power had failed, the oil lights in the wards and staircases restored..
which were kept burning during crossings remained lit.
Chief Engineer L. Young was sitting in his room close Bottom: Beautifully
to the engine room entrance. Ater the explosion, the restored helm telemoter
ship shook and many of the lights went out although steering position.
Young, using an electric torch, went to the engine room
only to witness clouds of steam and water surging up.
He then rushed to the stokehold to examine the engine
room bulkhead where he discovered steam escaping from
fractured pipes which prevented him from shutting the
main stops on the boilers. Below, he found that all of the

”
ires were still lit, with 100 lbs. of pressure on the gauges
(the pressure at the time of the explosion would usually
be 240 lbs.). All the watertight doors were closed, but Ater the explosion, the ship
J ward (at) was looding from the forward end, and a
second examination of J ward later showed that the water shook and many of the lights
had risen, so he concluded that the right at bulkhead was
giving way. went out...
Although the engines were still running, water
eventually made its way up to the cylinder heads and, as
the ship began to settle below water level, it wasn’t long
before she came to an abrupt standstill. Young knew that if
the bulkhead went, the ship would go very quickly.
One of the escorting destroyers, HMS P39, by now
had come alongside to take on survivors whilst others
managed to release the majority of the lifeboats. A bos’n’s
chair had even been rigged up across to the destroyer to
aid patients who were unable to walk to safety.
Private Alfred Edward Taylor (1253, 29th Battalion) was
also on board the Warilda when it sank. He had an even
luckier escape. He wrote to his mother from the Alexandra

wreckdivingmag.com | 51
 Top: Brass plates that gave notice to passengers aboard the
ship.

Inset: Diver Jamie Powell with a brass notice to passengers

he recovered from the wreck.

Bottom Left: A porcelain plate recovered from the wreck

displaying the shipping line’s company emblem.

Bottom Right: An ornate plate is welded into the wreck by

concretion.

52 | wreckdivingmag.com
Hospital at Cosham, telling her:
“I was to have gone as a walking case but the Sister
and Doctor kept asking me if I could make the trip. I
naturally said yes but this wouldn’t satisfy them so they
dumped me on a stretcher and the way events turned out
later on this saved my life.”
Once all survivors had been accounted for, the captain
of the escorting P39 made an attempt to tow the stricken
vessel. However, the huge ship was unable to take the
pressure created by the tow upon her, which in turn
weakened the bulkheads, sinking her a little ater 4:00 a.m.
Today the wreck of the Warilda is considered by many
an outstanding dive and the visiting diver will not be
disappointed ater a dive on the wreck.
Located in an area that is oten blessed with excellent
visibility, she rests on a seabed of ine sand and pebble
at 53m/175t at its deepest point. he diver will ind her
mostly listed to port, although the stern section of the
site is now heavily listed to port some 60º. On the decks
the remnants of iron superstructure framework can
be seen, which at one time would have held the stern
superstructure and the stern wheelhouse and the docking
telegraphs.
he wreckage around the stern appears large and,
although listing, will be found fairly intact and requires
little efort for the diver to view the spacious, interior
decks below. Access to this area is also made from a break
in the hull of the wreck, a break which has now collapsed
downwards. Also at the stern and on the seabed is a 4-inch
gun with several of its shells scattered in and around. As
one swims from the stern, the wreck appears to be twisted
although it has settled more towards an upright position
the farther the diver swims. From the break in the hull
it is possible to swim inside and this area also appears
spacious, allowing access down as far as the keel.
Looking inside the wreck, one can see remnants of
hospital beds as well as other artifacts. During one dive,
I located a compartment almost full of spare porthole
glass. Above the decks, the bridge section is obvious
and, although most of the deck ittings and bridge have
now fallen to the seabed level, much is still apparent,
including the ship’s navigation machinery which has on
occasion been seen pinned under various sections of
superstructure.
Within the area of amidships, the diver can also still see
various plaques with engraved writing as well as ornate
bench ends that once graced the decks during Warilda’s
pre-war heyday. Swimming along the port side from the
stern to the bow at seabed level, the diver is able to pick
out many of these ine examples within the debris ield
that now litters the seabed.
he bow section stands high and proud from the seabed
although here all the decking has rotted away, giving the
diver both access and penetrating light to view the area
inside. Swimming around to the portside, one can still see
Warilda’s huge anchor housed in position.
Many reports praised the discipline on board the
Warilda the night she sank. Private Tevelein wrote that:
“although we were not supposed to be any good at discipline,
it seemed as if it came automatically.” Captain James
Sim himself was commended in the London Gazette in
recognition of his conduct that night.
On 30 August, Captain Sim received the following
message:
“Paris newspapers of the 11th instant publish the
following message from Le Havre, dated 10th instant –
News has reached Havre that the German submarine
which sank the Ambulance Ship Warilda was
herself sunk by a number of British destroyers. he
submarine lost a lot of her crew, and the remainder,
including the German commander, were captured
and taken to England. Propaganda may have been
used but the truth was UC-49 had in fact been sunk.
Ironically and as perverse as war is UC-49 lasted less
than a week ater she had attacked Warilda. Depth
charged by Royal Navy vessels she herself succumbed
an ultimate fate to the seabed of the English Channel.
here were no survivors.”
he wreck believed to be UC-49 lies in a depth of water
equal to the Warilda - 53m/175t - just of the old naval
port of Dartmouth in Devon. he wreck stands around
3m /10t of of the seabed with the bow of the boat which
would have contained the bow mine-chutes missing. he
conning tower, of which the outer casing has rotted, is
located about one-third of the length back, but which still
houses a single periscope. he wreck from there to the
stern is reasonably intact, with a narrow upper deck and
a closed rear hatch, suggesting no escape attempts were
made. At the stern, there is a single torpedo tube, and to
the sides above the silt are the net-guards for the stern
hydroplanes. he wreck is well sunk into the silt and the
propellers and rudders of the stern section are now buried.
he divers donated the recovered artifacts to various
museums during the late 1990s. Today, several dive
charters take divers to the wreck of the Warilda and
many still enjoy a trip to France for a summer weekend to
incorporate a dive on the Warilda and one to the Lanfranc
on the return crossing to England.
”
Looking inside the wreck,
one can see remnants of
hospital beds as well as
other artifacts.
About the Author: Leigh Bishop, a world-renowned, deep
shipwreck photographer and technical diver, has been on
expeditions to many famous shipwrecks and has explored
over 400 virgin shipwrecks in the last 20 years. He works
for the fire & rescue service and lives in England.
wreckdivingmag.com | 53
 Text by James Delgado
USS CONESTOGA:
ONCE LOST, NOW FOUND

54 | wreckdivingmag.com
O On March 25, 1921, the leet tug USS Conestoga
steamed out past the Golden Gate on the irst, long leg of
pencil, others typed, reveals anxious families who faced
pain and loss without deinitive answers.
an extended voyage to Pearl Harbor, and from there to
American Samoa. he eighteen-year-old veteran tugboat,
fresh from repairs at Mare Island Naval Shipyard on San
Francisco Bay, carried with it ity-six men. Ater pass-
ing the Golden Gate and then, twenty-six miles out, the
lashing beacon of the lighthouse on Southeast Farallon
Island, Conestoga entered the vast openness of the Paciic
and disappeared. he disappearance of the tug and its
crew was not immediately noticed. Conestoga was due at
Pearl Harbor on or around April 5. When anxious family
members began writing the Navy, inquiring why they
had not heard from husbands, fathers, sons, brothers and
uncles, Navy oicials belatedly realized that the tug had
never reached Hawaii.
By mid-May, the Navy commenced a vast search that
reached out some ive hundred miles from Hawaii, but
with no success. he Navy searched there because a gar-
bled radio message, thought to be from the tug, noted it
had lost its tow and was headed into port. hen, following
the report that the steamship Senator had found a lifeboat
driting of Mexico’s Baja California coast with a large
brass letter “C,” the Navy launched a second search with
ships and airplanes there, thousands of miles from Hawaii.
Again, no trace of Conestoga or its crew was found by the
searchers. On June 30, 1921, the Navy announced that
Conestoga was lost at sea and the crew declared dead as of
April 30.
he disappearance of Conestoga, one of only four Navy
ships lost without a trace in peacetime in the 20th century,
remained one of the great mysteries of the sea, and until
well ater World War II, old hands in the Navy discussed
the tug and its possible fate, most of them believing rough
seas had sunk Conestoga, or that its tow, a Navy barge, had
dragged it down. Other, more vicious theories and rumors
suggested that the commanding oicer, a former enlisted
man, was not a competent seaman, or that its communist-
sympathizing crew had hijacked Conestoga and taken it to
the Soviet Paciic port of Vladivostok. Neither, as would
later be seen, were true.
he records of the Navy include voluminous iles of let-
ters sent to the Secretary of the Navy and naval oicials, all
now cataloged and preserved in the National Archives. In
those iles are many letters from the families of Conestoga’s
crew. Reading the letters, some hand-written in pen and
My son, George Kaler is a C.P.O. in the Engi-
neer’s division on the ship and I should be very
glad to get authentic information concerning the
ship for I have worried.
- Mrs. George Kaler, Washington DC
I am very anxious to get what information you
have in regard to the lost Tug Boat, U.S.S. Cones-
toga, on which my son, Russell Rainer Crabtree,
was a member of the crew…You can readily real-
ize my anxiety in this matter.
- O. V. Crabtree, Alabama
I have noted with much anxiety the accounts
appearing in the newspapers from time to time
regarding the U.S. naval tug “CONESTOGA”
which these reports state is long overdue…As I
have a brother Wendell W. Plummer serving on
this tug, I greatly appreciate any oicial informa-
tion you have regarding its whereabouts.
- W.C. Plummer, New York, New York
I have not heard from my son since March…he
wrote March 17th and I got his letter on the 19th
that letter was written at Mare Island. Having
heard it diferent times but not oicially that the
Conestoga was lost please let me know all about
it as I am his Mother and would like to know
details.
- Mrs. H.H. Reinbold
here was a clipping in one paper where the
ship was foundered with the loss of thirty oicers
and men, and my bro John Wesley Powell (Chief
Petty oicer) was on it. Please let me know at
once if its safe or what has happened to it…anx-
iously awaiting your reply.
- Bessie Powell, Marmaduke, NC

Opposite PageTop Photo: USS Conestoga gunnery department

posing with the tugboat’s main battery, a 3-inch, 50-caliber naval gun,
photograph taken at San Diego, California, 1921.

Lower Photo: Tthe current position of the gun inside the shipwreck
near the forecastle after the gun’s support platform had fallen from
its original position in front of the pilot house through the main deck.
The gun was a key diagnostic artifact or “smoking gun” that served to
identify the wreck as the USS Conestoga. Credit: Historic photograph,
U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command NH 71510. Underwater
photograph, NOAA ONMS/Teledyne SeaBotix

Right: Deck and Longitudinal View of Conestoga, as reproduced in

Marine Engineering 1904 Vol. 9, page 36.
Credit: Robert Schwemmer Maritime Library
wreckdivingmag.com | 55
 Below: Stern view of the shipwreck USS Conestoga colonized with white plumose sea
anemones contrasting the water column. Credit: NOAA ONMS/Teledyne SeaBotix

Right: In September 2009, a NOAA/Fugro multibeam sonar survey of the area around
Farallon Islands documented a probable shipwreck with an estimated length of 52m
(170ft) at a depth of 56.5m (185ft). Credit: NOAA/Fugro

Modern painting of the shipwreck site of the USS

Conestoga (AT 54) based on the site interpretation by
NOAA ONMS maritime archaeologist. The shipwreck
is located off Southeast Farallon Island and lies in the
federally protected waters of Greater Farallones National
Marine Sanctuary.
Credit: Artist Danijel Frka © Russ Matthews Col.

Right: Modern painting of Conestoga as a civilian tugboat towing

schooner barges of coal for the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad
Company. Credit: Artist Danijel Frka © Russ Matthews Col.

Opposite Page Top: USS R-14 (SS 91) under full sail in May 1921. While
searching for the missing USS Conestoga (AT 54) southeast of Hawaii, the
R-14 lost her powerplant. As repairs were unsuccessful, her crew rigged
a jury sail, made of canvas battery deck covers, to the periscope and
sailed her to Hilo. She arrived there on 15 May 1921, after five days under
sail. Credit: U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command NH 52858

Opposite Page Center: San Francisco Chronicle front page newspaper

dated May 1, 1921, “Pacific Fleet Tug and Its Crew of Thirty Missing.”
Credit: San Francisco Chronicle

56 | wreckdivingmag.com

he Navy’s declaration that the ship was lost and their
family members were dead hit hard, and some never
believed it, hoping that one day, they’d walk through
the door and be home. Parents of one of the crew never
placed a marker or memorial to him, sure that he was not
dead, and to this day, only their marker stands in the fam-
ily plot.
Others expressed their disbelief, and inally their anger
at the Navy. One father bitterly wrote in July 1921 that
“Your letter of July 2nd in regard to the loss of my son Wil-
liam J. Donovan, Shipitter on USS Conestoga was received
and I regret very much that you have given up hopes of
the crew of this tug…has any trace of wreckage, lifeboat,
rats or preservers been found and is there not a pos-
sibility of the crew having escaped in life boats and have
been picked up…how is it possible for the Conestoga and
barge both to be lost without leaving some kind of trace of
wreckage or life boats or preservers?” Others asked why
the tug had sailed alone, not in a convoy. Others, includ-
ing one father who had visited Conestoga on several occa-
sions, and was not impressed with the age or condition of
the boat, sharply criticized oicials for sending it out on a
long, open ocean voyage.
Some never let go of their anger, others carried their
pain silently, but for many families, and without closure,
the wound never healed. he pain transcended genera-
tions, the disappearance of Conestoga a sad family tale well
known to children, grandchildren, and in time, great-
grandchildren as the years became decades and stretched
toward a century. I have personally heard heartbreaking
stories of the impact on these families, and of the unre-
solved loss of men now known only through faded photo-
graphs and stories passed through the generations. I know
these stories, and the families, because I was part of a team
that solved the mystery when we found the battered wreck
of USS Conestoga in 190 feet of water in 2014.
Unlike many shipwreck discoveries, inding Conestoga
did not happen because we were looking for it. Neither
was the discovery an accident. In my former role as direc-
tor of maritime heritage in NOAA’s Oice of National
Marine Sanctuaries, the ind came as part of a three-year
mission to document wrecks within the waters of Greater
Farallones National Marine Sanctuary of the northern
California coast. he sanctuary encompasses the wa-
ters of the Golden Gate, once America’s greatest Paciic
port. Close to two centuries of maritime traic have let
hundreds of wrecks, some battered on coastal rocks or
swallowed by beach sand, others resting deeper in dark,
cold, Great White Shark-infested waters.
While a number of us have dived in those waters (it is
where I learned to dive courtesy of the U.S. Sixth Army),
including pioneering wreck divers like Dave Buller and
Bob and Bruce Lanham, they are not easy for divers or
boaters, and as we surveyed, we detoured to assist with a
fatal boating accident just of the Farallon Islands. Our
project examined wrecks that showed up on sonar surveys
done either for or by NOAA’s Oice of Coast Survey as
part of navigational charting, all of them analyzed by
sonar expert and volunteer Gary Fabian, a valued mem-
ber of the team along with Bruce Lanham, who shared
his notes and dive locations. Robert Schwemmer, the
maritime heritage coordinator for the West Coast Region
of the Oice of National Marine Sanctuaries, organized
the project and co-directed it with me, and we were joined
by a NOAA team, volunteers and partners from the State
of California, the National Park Service, and the Bureau of
Ocean Energy Management as we spent several days each
year out on the water beyond the Golden Gate.
A wreck not located by sonar until 2009, lying just three
miles of South East Farallon Island, and lagged as a
prime target to investigate, was our irst set of dives with
a small remotely operated vehicle. Sitting upright on a
sandy seabed, covered with anemones and teeming with
marine life that included an octopus living inside the port
hawse pipe, the wreck’s bow was sharp, and as I watched it,
I knew we were diving on a tug boat. As the survey of that
day and another explored the wreck, we found a 170-foot-
long, steel tug with its deck houses collapsed, but with all
wreckdivingmag.com | 57
 equipment in place, some of it fallen into the hold. he
engine with its gauges, ladders, portholes, dishes, a spare
propeller, winches and windlass, and the massive “tow-
ing engine” on the at deck, with wire rope still spooled in
it, all suggested to us that this may well have been a ship
no one escaped from. he “Mystery Tug” was of an age;
it resembled the historic 1907-built tugboat Hercules at
San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park, and as
a one-time ranger and historian there in the late 1970s, I
knew Hercules’ form and machinery, and what I saw on
the bottom was a close match.
But for all that, we did not have an identity for the tug.
hat came thanks to a “smoking gun” and Bob Schwem-
mer getting time to start searching the Internet. Michael
Carver, the Deputy Superintendent of Cordell Bank
National Marine Sanctuary, was part of the team on the
NOAA research vessel Fulmar. He had a spare GoPro and
an underwater housing that we strapped to the bottom of
the ROV so we could have a downward view, post-dive.
We did not have time to do that ater the mission, because
Bob and I had to pack to ly to Norfolk, Virginia, for meet-
ings. Ater we got in and settled, I got a call from Bob,
who asked me to come to his room. He had downloaded
the GoPro footage, and as he did, he searched the Net
for “tugboats + disappeared + Golden Gate.” One name
popped up, Conestoga. Bob then downloaded the tug’s
plans, published in Marine Engineering in 1904 ater its
construction by the Maryland Steel Company in Balti-
more. Feature by feature matched. hen he looked at the Above: : The steam steering gear lies inside the shipwreck USS
GoPro footage, and inally saw what we had all missed Conestoga, having fallen through the main deck from its original
while at sea. Lying inside the wreck, close to the bow, was position located below the pilot house. According to the Marine
a single, U.S. Navy 5-inch/50 Caliber gun. Engineering publication dated August 1904, the civilian tugboat
Bob then constructed a detailed site map in which was equipped with a “Williamson steam-steering engine 4 1⁄2
close to a hundred construction features on the tug’s by 4 1⁄2-inch double cylinders.” The steering gearing served
plans matched with what we had seen on the wreck, and as “power steering” to assist the rotation of the large steering
quadrant and rudder in the stern of the tugboat.
Credit: Historic illustration, Robert Schwemmer Maritime Library.
Underwater photograph, NOAA ONMS/Teledyne SeaBotix

Left: The 1000-horse power, triple-expansion steam engine

inside the hull of the shipwreck USS Conestoga. This diagnostic
artifact helped date the shipwreck along with its coal-fired, twin
Scotch boilers. Forward of the steam engine is a partial bulkhead;
on the forward side of the bulkhead remnants of coal in the
coal bunker contributed to the verification this was the wreck of
the Conestoga. Inside the engine room space are steam pipes,
portholes from the upper deckhouse and a marine head.
Credit: NOAA ONMS/Teledyne SeaBotix

Opposite Page Top Right: Port bow of the wreck, showing the
rub rail mounts, a hawse hole, and marine growth.
Credit: NOAA ONMS

58 | wreckdivingmag.com

we wrote a detailed report. I took that to my superiors,
and with my boss, fellow diver and shipwreck enthusiast
Dan Basta, we went to the Pentagon to meet with the
Navy. What followed was a return mission, with Navy
participation, and with one representative member of a
Conestoga family, Peter Frankin Hess. Peter lives in the
San Francisco Bay Area. he government, including the
Navy, does not have an oice to deal with next-of-kin,
including inding them, for losses prior to World War II. I
said NOAA would tackle that. With the help of genealo-
gist Lisa Stansbury and Pam Orlando of NOAA, we found
twenty-six of the ity-six families. I then personally called
them, or if no number was available, let emails or private
messages on Ancestry.com. I was the irst government
oicial to reach out to them since the 1920s, and now, we
had some answers for them.
here were a few hang-ups, and some suspicion; I was,
ater all, calling from Washington D.C. and noting that
I was contacting them on behalf of the United States
Government. I asked for their patience, and for their
conidentiality until we reached as many families as we
could; Pam also made many calls ater my initial discus-
sion as we planned for the return mission to complete the
documentation of the wreck, and make a careful survey
to see what more we could learn. We started that mission
with a prayer, scattering rose petals on the sea, and with
moving remarks from Rear Admiral Markham Rich and
Peter Hess. With Navy archaeologist Alexis Catsambis
joining us, we then made a thorough inal study of Cones-
toga by ROV and sonar. Among the inds, as we entered
the open forward compartments, was the tug’s forward
mast lantern, which had fallen into the hold as the mast
succumbed to the sea. We also found, largely obscured by
anemones, some of the letters that spelled Conestoga on
the tug’s stern.
With that, we turned to other wrecks, and made plans
for an announcement of the discovery and a meeting
with as many families who could join us at the National
Navy Memorial in Washington, D.C. With the Navy, we
told of the ind, of the men and their families, introduced
them, and rang the bell ity-six times as each name was
read. We had many family members with us, spanning the
generations, and the stories and photographs they shared
made the crew of Conestoga all the more closer and clearer
to us. For me, Bob Schwemmer and many others, our
focus in history and archaeology is people, and it is stories
like those of this tug that inspire us to do the work we do.
United by common loss, the families shared stories among
themselves, and in one case, on that day at the memorial,
two branches of the family of Edward Wilson, Mess At-
tendant First Class, were reunited ater losing touch many
years ago.
Why did Conestoga sink, and why did the Navy not
know where it had been lost? With the beneit of ind-
ing the tug and knowing where it went down, we have
been able to go through bits of evidence that only now it
together to tell a story. Conestoga sailed into the teeth of
a building storm that was not evident at the Golden Gate,
but by the time the tug passed the Farallones, the seas
were heavy. Sometime that irst day – or night – the tow
line snapped, and the barge Conestoga was towing was
lost. he garbled radio message about losing the tow and
heading to port was sent then, we believe. he Navy did
not get that message, which was picked up by another ship
and then relayed to a shore station, reaching naval eyes
just before the irst search for the missing tug.
Ater sending the message, Conestoga turned back for
San Francisco. It may have been damaged from losing
the tow, but it also was notoriously known in the Navy
as a “wet” boat, shipping water and leaking. A nearly
two-decades-old, hard-worked riveted steel hull for a tug
originally built to haul coal barges for a railroad and then
pressed into transatlantic service for the Navy in World
War I, and a pounding sea, I believe, meant Conestoga
was taking water. he only option was to turn back and
ight to get to safe harbor as the water rose in the engine
room. he captain, Ernest Larkin Jones, his oicers, and
his crew did their best, staying at their posts in an increas-
ingly desperate situation. As they neared the Farallones,
the lighthouse was a beacon in more ways than one; on the
island also stood a small Navy Radio Station. he land-
wreckdivingmag.com | 59
 ing was it only for small boats, but at that stage, I think
Conestoga was about to lose the ight as the water lapped
up against the boilers.
hey turned Conestoga toward the island and ran for it.
Just three miles away, they lost the battle. A sea swamped
them or the water extinguished the ires, the engine died,
the pumps stopped, and the tug sank by the stern. he
force of the sinking tore free a whaleboat lashed to the
davits by the wheelhouse; that boat, with an estimated
two-month growth of barnacles, was found in mid-May
of Baja California by SS Senator. It had drited on the
sea, driven by wind and current on a route plotted out by
NOAA ocean scientist Glen Watabayashi. By that time,
the Navy had also received a letter from Blanch Hamil-
ton, a local woman who had found a life-preserver on the
beach near Asilomar, on the shores of Monterey Bay. It
had Conestoga’s name on it. It was in good condition, but
it was “water-soaked, being so heavy I could not lit it.”
We now know that It had washed ashore not long ater the
wreck, but the Navy, not knowing that then, dismissed the
clue, as it was assumed that the preserver was lost when
Conestoga had passed by. No one guessed that the ship had
sunk just ater leaving port.
What happens next is that, in keeping with the wishes
of the Navy and the families, no efort will be made to
see if any of the crew’s remains are inside the wreck. It is
a wreck lying in a National Marine Sanctuary. It is now
the habitat for marine life who make it their home. For
the Conestoga families, that is a itting place to rest for the
men of USS Conestoga, once lost, and now found.
60 | wreckdivingmag.com
Above Left to Right: Harvey Herbert Reinbold, Boatswain.
Credit: Violet Plummer
Edward Wilson, Mess Attendant First Class. Credit: Deborah Ebster
Wendell Plummer, Seaman Second Class. Credit: Plummer family
Charles Joseph Balint, Seaman. Credit: Balint Family.
John Wesley Powell, Chief Carpenter’s Mate. Credit: Powell family
Bottom Left: 2015 Expedition team on board the NOAA research
vessel Fulmar during a visit by U.S. Navy leadership, Vice Admiral
Nora Tyson, Third Fleet, and Rear Admiral Markham Rich, Southwest
Region. Credit: Paul Chetirkin, NOAA ONMS
Bottom Right: Teledyne SeaBotix’s operator Cyril Poissonnet
launches an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) off the stern of
the research vessel Fulmar during the October 2015 expedition to the
USS Conestoga shipwreck. Teledyne SeaBotix also provided a small
remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to record some of the interior spaces
of the shipwreck.
Credit: Denise Jaffke, NOAA ONMS
Bottom Right Inset: During the September 2014 maritime heritage
expedition aboard the NOAA research vessel Fulmar, a Phantom HD2
remotely operated vehicle (ROV) was used during the first exploration
of the “mystery tug” later identified as the USS Conestoga. Credit:
Robert V. Schwemmer, NOAA ONMSNOAA ONMS
 Clockwise: Final voyage of the USS Conestoga. Credit: NOAA

Jim Delgado, Bob Schwemmer, and Lisa Stansbury, the genealo-

About the Author: James Delgado first visited Bikini gist who worked to find members of the Conestoga crew’s
with the National Park Service in 1989-1990 for the families, at the Washington, D.C., event. (NOAA)
first detailed dives on the wrecks in the lagoon as
The descendants of Ernest Larkin Jones, commanding officer of
well as Prinz Eugen at Kwajalein. Jim returned
USS Conestoga, at the ceremony announcing the discovery of
to Bikini in 1999 and was one of the hosts for Al
the wreck and the commemoration of their loss. (NOAA)
Giddings’ Shark Week special, which Discovery
broadcast live from Bikini. Jim was the primary Two members of the Wilson family. (NOAA)
author of the NPS report on the wrecks, as well as
two other books, Ghost Fleet: The Sunken Ships The youngest members of the family of Ernest Larkin Jones at-
of Bikini and Kwajalein Atolls (1996) and Nuclear tended the ceremony. (NOAA)
Dawn (2009). Most recently, Jim was chief scientist
Robert Schwemmer meets with the family of Eddie Wilson.
for the E/V Nautilus deep sea dives to the wreck of
(NOAA)
USS Independence in 2016. In addition to his work
on the atomic fleet, he has dived on and worked on
more than a hundred wrecks around the world and is
the author of more than 30 books.

wreckdivingmag.com | 61
 Deathblow on A careless collision under calm conditions claimed
nine lives and an unusual ship in 1902.
Lake Superior! Text and Photographs by Cris Kohl

Above: Although formally registered in the
port of Buffalo, New York, on Lake Erie, the
Thomas Wilson spent much time at Duluth,
Minnesota, on Lake Superior, close to where
the ship was launched.
(Kohl-Forsberg Archives)
62 | wreckdivingmag.com
Inset: Captain Alexander McDougall named
one of his whaleback steamships after his
longtime friend and strong supporter, Captain
Thomas Wilson.
(Kohl-Forsberg Archives)

Right Top Corner: The rounded steel sheets
of a whaleback’s hull easily rolled or pushed
lake ice out of the way.
(Kohl-Forsberg Archives)
CCaptain Alexander McDougall (1845-1923), between
1888 and 1898, a time when steel gradually replaced wood
as the material of choice for shipbuilding on the Great
Lakes, constructed 40 steel vessels of a rather unique and
revolutionary design. Proudly called “whalebacks” by their
designer, these ships resembled rounded, smooth-decked,
semi-submerged, giant cigars or submarines bearing bows
that looked like pigs’ snouts, enticing the less respectful
to refer to these vessels as “pigboats,” a nickname which,
unfortunately, drew quick acceptance in common usage.
McDougall’s most productive year was 1892, when his
American Steel Barge Company of Superior, Wisconsin,
the “twin city” across the bay from Duluth, Minnesota, at
the extreme western end of Lake Superior, launched ten
whalebacks, including four that shared the exact same hull
dimensions: 308 feet (93.3 metres) in length, 38 feet (11.5
metres) in beam, and 24 feet (7.3 metres) in drat. hese
four sister ships, three steamers and a barge, were the
homas Wilson, launched on April 30, 1892; the Samuel
Mather, launched on May 2, 1892, renamed the Clifton in
1923, and lost in a Lake Huron storm in 1924 (see WDM
#42, From the Debris Field…. about its recent discovery);
the James B. Colgate, launched on September 21, 1892, and
foundered in Lake Erie’s Black Friday Storm of 1916 (see
WDM #40, From the Debris Field…. for its tale); and the
engineless barge named the Sagamore, launched on July
23, 1892, and lost in Lake Superior ater a collision with
another ship in 1901 (see WDM #14 for that complete
story.)
he homas Wilson, the largest whaleback in the world
at the time of launching, became, tragically, the very irst
steamship of its type to sink with loss of life.
Captain homas Wilson, master of the steamer Meteor
in 1867, had hired the younger Alexander McDougall as
Mate, operating the ship between Cleveland and ports on
Lake Superior. McDougall fell in love with the largest and
wildest of the Great Lakes, and moved to the pioneer town
wreckdivingmag.com | 63
 of Duluth from Collingwood, Ontario, in the early 1870s.
In 1880, Captain Wilson persuaded McDougall to
oversee the construction of two of the largest wooden
ships built to date on the Great Lakes: the 235-foot
[71.2-metre] steamer, Hiawatha, and its 200-foot
[60-metre] tow barge, the Minnehaha. With this huge
project, McDougall gained considerable experience in ship
construction and in the management of shipyard labor,
and, while working as the captain of the Hiawatha which
towed the Minnehaha, he thought out his plan to design a
steel ship that could “carry the greatest cargo on the least
water” – the whaleback.
Not until 1888 was McDougall able to build his irst
whaleback ship, secured by his own patent and inanced
with his own savings. Barge 101 was immediately
successful (despite derision deriving mostly from its
nickname). McDougall was well on his way to building
more vessels of this unusual type, with inancial backing
coming his way from several sources, including Captain
homas Wilson who, by now, was owner of the Wilson
Steamship Line. Whaleback barges and steamers quickly
became attention-grabbing visitors in many harbors of the
inland seas. Today, only one remains above water, as the
museum ship Meteor (no relation to Captain Wilson’s early
charge) in West Superior, Wisconsin.
Early in 1892, McDougall’s workers put the inishing
touches on their newest project, hull number 119, a
steel-hulled steamer named the homas Wilson ater
McDougall’s old friend and supporter. A pair of huge,
Scotch boilers provided steam for the 1,200-horsepower,
triple expansion engine. In between the single, vertical
turret on the bow and the three tubular at turrets holding
up the cabins and the pilot house were a dozen cargo
hatches with their heavy, steel covers. he ship was solidly
crated of steel, with wood joinery trimming the interiors.
Newspapers in Chicago and Detroit described the launch
of this ine vessel:
DULUTH’S BIGGEST STEAMER.
Duluth, Minn., April 30. – he
steel steamship, Thomas Wilson, was
launched this aternoon at the Superior
Yard of the Steel Barge Company in the
presence of a large crowd [estimated
to be 3,000 people]. he Wilson is the
largest vessel ever completed by the
company…. [She] will carry about
4,000 tons. She loads her irst cargo
of wheat for Bufalo next week, and
there is much curiosity among lake
vesselmen to see what she can carry on
the small draught now allowed through
the Sault canal.
[Chicago Inter Ocean, May 1, 1892]
64 | wreckdivingmag.com
Left: Captain Alexander
McDougall invented the
whaleback design of ships,
and built more than three
dozen of them at the west-
ern end of Lake Superior in
the late 1800s.
(Kohl-Forsberg Archives)
he new ship carried and delivered her irst cargo with
lying colors:
he new whaleback steamer Thomas
Wilson was at Hodges’ yesterday, her
airpump requiring some attention. She
has a cargo of 86,000 bushels of wheat,
the largest load through the Soo canal
this season, and she could have carried
5,000 more without lightering. [Detroit
Free Press, May 17, 1892]
he homas Wilson settled into the regularity of hauling
grain to Bufalo and returning to Duluth with a cargo of
coal. But the Wilson experienced her irst accident early in
the shipping season of 1893 when four whalebacks -- two
steamers towing two barges -- came into contact:
he Thomas Wilson Punches an
$8,000
Hole in the Barge 115.
Two Harbors, Special, May 11.
– he Barge No. 115, wheat laden,
bound down in tow of the steamer J. B.
Colgate, was brought in here by the tug
Stone, having been in collision with the
steamer Thomas Wilson, three miles
of this port. She has a bad hole in her
side above the water line. he probable
damage to the boat and her cargo
is $8,000. She will have to return to
Duluth for repairs, and will probably
reach there tomorrow morning.
[Duluth New Tribune, May 12, 1893]
 The high-profile
George G. Hadley
sliced deeply
into the heavily-
laden whaleback,
Thomas Wilson.
Obviously, from
the results, a
pointy bow, even
when it was
made of wood,
could penetrate
a rounded, steel
hull. (Detail of a
painting by Kurt
Carlson, courtesy
of the Canal Park
Museum, Duluth,
MN. The painting
now resides at the
Great Lakes Ship-
wreck Museum at
Whitefish Point)

The George
Hadley clearly
he Wilson, towing whaleback barge No. 101 at the time also suffered
of the collision, was not badly damaged, but did require consequences
a few days’ stay in dry dock for repairs. Whaleback barge from the collision
115 was also repaired and returned to service, but six with the Thomas
years later, on December 18, 1899, it was permanently Wilson. The Hadley
wrecked on Pic Island in northern Lake Superior, was soon raised,
becoming the last Great Lakes shipwreck of the 1800s and repaired, and
returned to service
providing fodder for one of the most dramatic tales of
under a new
survival ever experienced in the inland seas.
name. (Kohl-Fors-
In early October 1901, the Wilson nearly ended her berg Archives)
career on Lake Michigan. Headlines screamed news of the
ship’s demise with words such as, “he Whaleback homas
Wilson Is a Total Wreck,” giving details in the article:

Word was received at 10 o’clock that

…he whaleback steamer Thomas
Wilson went on the reef at Baileys
Harbor [Wisconsin] about 9 o’clock
last night during a heavy storm and
dense fog, and will prove a total loss.
he Wilson was light and bound to
Escanaba [Michigan] for an [iron] ore
cargo. Losing her bearings, she struck
the reef while going at a pretty high rate
of speed and was driven on the reef.
he crew of twenty were [sic] taken of
by the Baileys Harbor life saving crew.
She sprang a leak during the night and
this morning was half full of water
and faring badly in the seas running.
the steamer had become a total loss.
his means that she has broken in two.
he Thomas Wilson was built at West
Superior [Wisconsin] in 1892, had a
gross measurement of 1,713 tons and
was valued at $125,000 in the Inland
Lloyd’s register. he loss is a fatal
one to the steel trust, which carries
no insurance on its vessels. [Duluth
Evening Herald, October 9, 1901]
he next day, newspaper headlines were equally

wreckdivingmag.com | 65
 pessimistic, e.g. “Reports Not So Favorable From the
Stranded Wilson.” However, a miracle occurred ive days
later, when headlines totally reversed their gloom: “he
homas Wilson Released Not Very Badly Damaged.” he
wrecking tug, Favorite, towed the intact Wilson of the
reef and into a dry dock for repairs. he whaleback had
obviously not broken in two, and minor repairs were
quickly made.
With cooperative weather, the year 1902 witnessed a
very early start to the shipping season on Lake Superior,
and indications pointed to total tonnage shipped being
25% ahead of the 1901 season. Greater tonnage being
carried by more ships meant more maritime traic, and
this served as a warning sign for possible collisions.
On June 7, 1902, the homas Wilson loaded a cargo
of iron ore in Duluth harbor, an activity that took more
than the entire night to complete, postponing the ship’s
departure until nearly 10:30 the following morning.
Seeing perfect spring weather for sailing on Lake Superior,
Captain M. A. Cameron decided to get underway quickly
and have his crew fasten the ship’s hatch covers when the
vessel cruised across smooth, open water.
Just outside Duluth harbor, the wooden-hulled freighter,
George Hadley, approaching with a full cargo of coal,
was met by the tugboat Annie L. Smith, with the news
that the Duluth coal docks were full, and that the Hadley
should discharge her cargo at the Superior, Wisconsin,
dock. Without a moment’s hesitation, 73-year-old Captain Top to Bottom: The Duluth Evening Herald, because it was not an
Michael Fitzgerald ordered his ship to make a 90-degree early edition newspaper, was able to report the tragic results of that
morning’s collision on the same day that it occurred. (Kohl-Forsberg
turn to port and head to Superior, failing to sound the
Archives)
required whistle signal indicating a course change, and
also failing to notice the Wilson bearing down upon his The initial salvage efforts to recover the Thomas Wilson wreck and its
vessel. Cameron, on a collision course with the Hadley and cargo did not end in the year 1902, nor even in 1903, but continued
worried that a turn to port would ground his ship in the well into 1904. These February 1904 headlines indicated the hardhat
shallows, ordered the Wilson to turn sharply to starboard diving activity taking place on this shipwreck.
and hoped to outrun the Hadley. But the timing was of. (Kohl-Forsberg Archives)
he bow of the wooden Hadley, with a resounding blow, The wreck of the whaleback, Thomas Wilson, displays its port side
surprisingly penetrated deep into the Wilson’s steel hull collision damage, as well as fractures in the steel hull and superstruc-
on her port side just forward of the at turret. he impact ture created by modern freighters dropping their anchors onto the
rolled the Wilson to starboard, allowing lake water to wreck while awaiting entry into Duluth harbor.
enter the hull through the uncovered hatches. When the (Courtesy of the artist, Stephen B. Daniel)
Hadley recoiled from the crash, put its engine in reverse,
and backed away from the Wilson’s hull, a torrent of water Opposite Page - Top to Bottom: The whaleback, Thomas Wilson,
rushed into the gash in the Wilson’s port side, dooming could be visually identified by sailors based upon the type of anchor it
the stricken vessel. All of the Wilson’s crew, except for carried on its port bow: a triangular-shaped, McDougall patent anchor
from 1891. (Kohl-Forsberg Archives)
two sailors who reportedly tried to retrieve some of their
clothing, were able to reach the deck where, seeing the This unusual anchor, an 1891 McDougall patent invention, was
futility of staying with their sinking ship, they jumped into produced at the American Steel Barge Company that built whalebacks
in Superior, Wisconsin. This particular one, on exhibit outside the
Canal Park Museum in Duluth, was recovered from the Thomas Wilson
wreck in 1977 by divers Elmer Engman, Robert and Randy Bradford,
Al Kennedy, and Judy Ferrell.

This conventional anchor (a

3,000-pound Trotman folding
stock anchor) serving as the
Thomas Wilson’s starboard bow
anchor, was recovered in 1973
from the wreck by divers Elmer
Engman, Dave Anderson, Dan
Goman, and Paul von Goertz.

66 | wreckdivingmag.com
the freezing water and swam towards the nearby Hadley.
Meanwhile, the Hadley’s crew tossed anything that would
loat into the water towards the Wilson survivors. But
the Wilson sank bow-irst within three minutes, with her
still-turning propeller ending up high in the air above
Lake Superior’s waters. he suction created by her sinking
pulled down many of her crew members struggling on the
surface, nine of whom rose no more.
Eleven survivors reached the Hadley, which, despite
having a stoved-in bow, remained at the scene to pick
them up. But her damage was too severe, and she also
failed to reach harbor, sinking to her deck level in 24 feet
(7.3 metres) of water just outside Duluth harbor.
Many people on shore, less than a mile (1.6 kilometres)
away, had witnessed the collision, and numerous tugboats,
as well as the local life saving team, sped to the site of
the two sinkings to quickly transport the sailors safely
to shore. he Wilson survivors were taken to Duluth’s St.
Louis Hotel, while the Hadley crew was conveyed to the
Tremont Hotel.
he nine victims of the collision were the Head Cook
(Aaron Tripp), the Second Cook (Guy Frink, who had just
shipped on board the Wilson at Toledo on the previous
trip), two oilers (James McDougall from West Superior,
Wisconsin, and James M. Fraser from Manitoulin Island,
Ontario), the wheelsman (Joseph McGraw, from Sault
Ste. Marie, Michigan), a lookout (John Campbell from
Greenleaf, Michigan), two deck hands (John Carey
from St. Catharines, Ontario, and homas Jones, home
unknown), and a ireman (William Roebuck, from Port
Lambton, Ontario).
Captain Cameron of the Wilson gave this account of his
survival:

…Ater the crash occurred, I hailed

the Hadley and told them to stand
by. hen I ran at and tried to get the
life rat loose. he boys were jumping
overboard [all] about me…. Before
we could do anything, she sank. I was
standing right at the stern, the last part
of the boat to go under. here was a
tremendous rush of steam and air and
water, and I seemed to be in the very
midst of it.

hen I went down. I don’t know how

far underwater I went, but I remember
thinking that I never would reach the
top again. I was striking out with my
hands to try to get to the surface, and
as I was coming up, my hand struck
someone else down there. He was
coming up and apparently just ahead
of me. Of course, I could not see who
it was, I felt him for a moment, then we
parted. When I got to the surface, I did
not see anyone near me. [Duluth New
Tribune, June 10, 1902]

wreckdivingmag.com | 67
 Plans for salvaging both ships began immediately, with
the Duluth Evening Herald, on June 7, 1902, the day of the
collision, forecasting that

…he Hadley is in good shape,

apparently, as her only damage is in her
stem. She is in shallow water and can be
raised without any great difficulty.

he wrecking job on the Wilson will

be much more difficult. Her depth and
the fact that she is loaded with a heavy
cargo of iron ore will make it harder,
and if the rent in her side is as great as
most of the witnesses of the accident
believe, this, too, will retard the work.

Work on the wrecking of the Wilson

will not begin until Monday, and work
on the Hadley will begin tomorrow.

he day ater the collision, June 8, 1902, the newly-

launched, steel freighter, William F. Fitch, struck the wreck
of the homas Wilson, carrying away the wreck’s wooden
spar that had stood ten feet (three metres) out of the water,
conveniently marking the wreck’s location. he Fitch
was not damaged. At this point, the Wilson’s smokestack
remained upright, rising to within ten feet (three metres)
of the surface – clearly a hazard to approaching vessels.
One Detroit newspaper reported that the Wilson went
down “in 60 feet” (18 metres) of water and that she was
worth “about $100,000.” Both numbers were slightly
of. Other accounts placed the Wilson at a depth of 72
feet (21.8 metres), which is where it remains to this day.
Some reports inlated the value of the wrecked Wilson to Above: Joan Forsberg shoots video of an opening to the Wilson’s
$200,000, an unlikely number considering that her value, engine room that she is about to enter.
according to the Inland Lloyd’s just eight months earlier,
Opposite Page - Top to Bottom: The huge, round opening at the top
was $125,000. One Chicago newspaper reported that the
of the boiler room turret clearly indicates where the smokestack once
Wilson “was valued at $115,000” (very likely, since the stood in place. This is another access point for entry into the engine
value of a ship would logically go down by a comparatively room.
small amount from one year to the next), and that “It had
on board 3,500 tons of iron ore, valued at $14,000. Neither Steel ladders welded onto the Wilson’s deck beams remain perfectly
ship nor cargo is insured.” in place, indicating the strength and durability in utilizing steel con-
A court of inquiry found that both ships failed to struction methods. These lead to the Wilson’s coal bunker.
observe passing rules and were equally at fault for not
doing so. he Hadley’s Captain Fitzgerald had his license
revoked permanently, and Captain Cameron’s was
suspended for 60 days. Four new rules also went into
efect in Duluth Harbor:

1. Ships cannot leave the harbor with open hatches. he day ater the collision,
2. A ship may not pull out from another ship
following a collision.
June 8, 1902, the newly-
3. A pilot may not carry out any order given by the
launched, steel freighter,
captain when another vessel is sighted without William F. Fitch, struck the
irst calling the captain’s attention to the other
vessel. wreck of the homas Wilson, ...
68 | wreckdivingmag.com
 4. All ships must be equipped
with signal devices to all
parts of the vessel to warn of
danger.

How does an important person,

ater whom a ship has been named,
react to the news that his namesake
vessel has been wrecked? In the case
of the whaleback named homas
Wilson, we will never know, because
the man named homas Wilson died
two years earlier in March 1900, at
the age of 62, while visiting distant
Jerusalem “on a trip for the beneit
of his health.” It took a month for
Wilson’s body to be returned to
Cleveland for the funeral, “one of the
largest ever held in Cleveland” with
“a very large number of vesselmen
from all over the lakes” in attendance.
Captain Alexander McDougall was
one of the honorary pallbearers.
he salvage of the George Hadley
was accomplished in just 16 days
from the time of its sinking. But there
were those who would have let the
unlucky ship in place under water.
One Chicago newspaper argued that
“a Hoodoo Follow[ed this] Boat Until
the Collision at Duluth”:

It was named ater its

irst owner, George G.
Hadley of Detroit, and
he took a party of friends
on the maiden trip up
Lake Superior. he
steamer started in right
away by losing its rudder,
and drited about the
lake until picked up and
towed into port.

he rest of the boat’s

career was a good deal
of the same thing. If
there was a chance for
the Hadley to meet
misfortune, it did so.
he compass went wrong
and a stranding resulted
if the weather was thick,
and the boat showed a
wonderful faculty for
inding the shoal spots
in the rivers…. [Chicago
Daily Tribune, June 9,
1902]

In order to divest himself of the bad

wreckdivingmag.com | 69
 Center: This 1892 toilet inside one of the Wilson’s turret structures Top Photo: A geared winch inside the bow turret raised the ship’s
probably has not been flushed for decades! anchors.

Bottom Left: Keeping careful eyes upon a burbot comfortably Bottom Right: Inside the hull, rusted steel pipes and valves, under-
perched on the Wilson’s bow fairleads, Joan Forsberg makes slow, water now for more than 115 years, form parts of the Wilson’s steam
careful moves so as not to scare the resident away. engine system.

70 | wreckdivingmag.com
luck that followed his steamer, Mr. Hadley sold the vessel
to William P. Rend of Chicago, who wanted the boat to
carry coal to various ports. Ater the collision with the
Wilson, Mr. Rend had the Hadley raised, repaired, and
returned to service, but not before he changed the ship’s
name – to the William P. Rend! As can be expected when
one changes the name of a ship, misfortunes followed, as
storms kept driving the vessel ashore and poor navigation
ran the ship aground regularly, but it could always be
recovered and repaired. Finally, on October 2, 1917, the
William P. Rend was totally wrecked when stranded near
Alpena, Michigan, on Lake Huron, where it remains a
shallow water dive site to this day. Coincidentally, Mr.
William P. Rend died two years before the inal loss of
his namesake ship – exactly like the namesake of the
whaleback, homas Wilson!
Attempts to raise the homas Wilson started as soon
as the Hadley was raised, but the outlook for success
appeared dim, and soon the Pittsburg Steamship
Company, which owned the Wilson, abandoned both
the cargo and the vessel. On August 1, 1902, the wreck
of the homas Wilson was advertised for sale, with bids
beginning on August 15th. On August 20, 1902, the bid
of nearly $10,000 placed by Duluth’s Wieland brothers
was accepted. hey planned to recover the iron ore
cargo and then raise the ship itself, but the technology
of the times was lacking, despite the optimism created
in September 1902, when hardhat divers employed
underwater lights and underwater telephones, both new
inventions. Proposed examinations of the wreck in early
1903 by hardhat divers under the ice continued to boost
optimism. When famed wreck salvager W. H. Reid of
Sarnia, Ontario, visited Duluth in February 1903, it was
assumed that he was there for work on the homas Wilson.
However, spring and summer passed with no salvage work
being done. In November 1903, a tug had reportedly been
chartered for the project, and “wrecking apparatus” was
being prepared. On February 10, 1904, with 20 inches
(50 centimetres) of ice over the wreck of the Wilson, a
loud headline in the Duluth Evening Herald announced
that the “Wieland Brothers Finally Take Up Work on
Sunken Vessel.” A large shed was constructed on the ice,
a hole was cut into the ice for access to the water, and
local hardhat diver, John Wanless, attracting considerable
publicity, made a preliminary examination of the wreck.
He reported that the Wilson had broken in two a short
distance from the bow, completely befuddling the readers
of well-documented, eyewitness reports that the collision
point was closer to the stern. Perhaps the ship broke when
the bow hit the bottom irst, went one argument. he
Wieland brothers countered any doubters with large sums
of money that would be made when the ship was brought
up piecemeal: the 1,100 tons of steel boiler plate would
sell for $11 a ton, totaling about $12,000; the steam engine,
even in its present condition, could fetch $15,000 when
raised; the two boilers would bring about $7,000 when
recovered. For two months, landlubbers watched for signs
of any progress in shipwreck salvage, but by late April
1904, the melting ice placed the large shed positioned over
the Wilson in so obvious danger of disappearing into the
lake that a local newspaper headlined that story, “Its End
Is Near.”
But the story of the homas Wilson shipwreck was far
from over. In July 1906, the wreck again made its presence
known when an anchor, dropped by the 366-foot-(111-
metre)-long, steel steamer, Antrim, became snagged in
the wreckage, requiring diver W. E. Hoy to drop down
12 fathoms to free the anchor. In August 1939, the aging
Wieland brothers again made plans to recover the iron
ore cargo, seal the broken wreck, and raise it, but again,
nothing came of their plans.
he 1950s marked the beginnings of the scuba diving era
in the Great Lakes, with shipwrecks quickly becoming the
favorite goal of subaquatic explorers. In 1962, early divers
again planned to ind the wreck of the Wilson and raise
it, a project which they found was more easily planned
than accomplished. By 1970, scuba divers were venturing
into the shipwreck for the irst time, making detailed
examinations inside and out of the homas Wilson. From
archival photos of the Wilson, divers could determine
that the ship carried two very diferent bow anchors,
one a standard kedge anchor on the starboard side, and
a McDougall-patent, triangular anchor on the port side.
hese two anchors, raised in 1973 and 1978 respectively,
now stand as separate exhibits on the grounds of the
maritime museum next to Duluth’s famous ship canal.
One of the divers involved in the discovery and raising
of these two anchors was maritime historian Elmer
Engman, who, in the mid-1970s, wrote two of the irst
books ever published about scuba diving on Great Lakes
shipwrecks: In the Belly of a Whale (the story of the
wrecked whaleback homas Wilson) and Shipwreck Guide
to the Western Half of Lake Superior. Elmer still dives on
Great Lakes shipwrecks to this day, and was our genial and
knowledgeable guide as we explored the Wilson.
he homas Wilson is one of only four whaleback
steamers wrecked in the Great Lakes, making it unique
on that count alone. It also serves as a memorial to
nine sailors who lost their lives in the service of their
profession. While the wreck has sustained some damage
due to freighters accidentally dropping their anchors on it
while waiting to enter Duluth harbor, it remains a unique,
unforgettable experience for divers when they get a chance
to explore “in the belly of a whale.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Cris Kohl, maritime historian and
archivist, underwater archaeologist, and prize-winning
underwater photographer, has explored shipwrecks
in the Great Lakes for 44 years. Since 1985, he has
authored or co-authored sixteen books about the Great
Lakes’ uniquely preserved freshwater wrecks and the
dramatic stories behind them. A Past President of the
Underwater Archaeological Society of Chicago (2004), the
2008 recipient of the “Our World – Underwater” Lifetime
Achievement Award, and the 2013 recipient of the Save
Ontario Shipwrecks Marine Heritage Award, he lives with
his wife, writer, diver, and historian Joan Forsberg, in
Chicago and Windsor (Ontario). They have co-produced
17 documentaries about Great Lakes shipwrecks, plus a
variety of shipwreck maps and postcards. Their most recent
book is the co-authored Canada’s 150 Most Famous
Great Lakes Shipwrecks.SeawolfCommunications.com
wreckdivingmag.com | 71
 he Shipwrecks of Roi-Namur
Text by Dan E. Bailey – Photographs by Dan E. Bailey Unless Otherwise Noted

In the years following the publication of three editions of

my book, World War II Wrecks of the Kwajalein and Truk
Lagoons, new information has become available that either
adds to or revamps previous observations and knowledge.
his article should provide a current update.

The strategy of working to the west towards

the Japanese Empire through the Central Paciic
placed three important naval bases with sig-
niicant shipping traic in the target crosshairs
of U.S. carrier planes. First of all was Kwajalein
with its 6th Base Force and 24th Air Flotilla
to be followed by bases at Truk and Palau. he
initial carrier strikes at Kwajalein were con-
ducted on February 1, 1942; the next ofensive
was a fast carrier strike on December 4, 1943,
and the wrecks that resulted in the Roi-Namur
anchorage and vicinity from that operation are
the ones discussed here. Two carrier sub-groups
from Task Force 50, TG 50.1 under Rear Ad-
miral Pownall and TG 50.3 under Rear Admi-
ral Montgomery, were tasked with crippling
Japanese resistance to the upcoming invasion
of Kwajalein by destroying enemy warships
and merchant auxiliary shipping, eliminating
enemy air opposition, and collecting photo-
graphic coverage of installations and beaches.
Carriers Yorktown (Air Group 5) and Enterprise
(Air Group 6) were assigned the southern atoll,
Kwajalein Island area. Air Groups from carri-
ers Essex and Lexington (Air Groups 9 and 16
respectively) were assigned shipping and aircrat
targets in the northern atoll Roi-Namur Island
area. Lexington planes participating included 26
F6Fs, 18 TBFs, and 28 SBDs. A total of 22 F6Fs,
24 SBDs, 19 TBFs, and the Air Group Com-
mander in a TBF were launched from the Essex.
Yorktown F6Fs were assigned high-altitude
cover for the planes attacking Roi-Namur. he
Japanese were alerted to the approaching attack
groups only minutes before arriving over Roi-
Namur. When the initial straing attacks on the
airield began, Japanese ighters and bombers Island of Roi-Namur is at left. Smaller reef islands extend to
were scrambling to take of. he attackers noted that the the south (above). Photograph Courtesy of the US Army
ield at Roi was “literally packed with medium bombers.”
Inoperative radios prevented the high-cover Yorktown
ighters from assisting the Lexington planes which were
engaging numerous Japanese planes. Ater destroying
close to 20 enemy planes, the Lexington F6Fs where forced
to lee because of the overwhelming numbers of enemy

Porcelain cigarette ash tray recovered from the Eiko Maru. Note the
Mitsui Bussan Kaisha flag symbol.
planes attacking them. When the SBD and TBF groups
approached the anchorage, they reported two ships at an-
chor south of Roi, a “Notori-Class light cruiser” (actually
the Nagara-Class light cruiser Isuzu) and an “8-10,000-
ton AK” or merchantman (the 6,816-ton Kembu Maru).
Another ten, smallish, “inter-island steamers and lighters”
were also present in the anchorage. A second “Notori-
Class light cruiser” (the Nagara itself) was seen underway
between 5-12 miles south of Roi heading in the direction
of the North or Mellu passages attempting to exit the
lagoon. he torpedo and bomber planes were able to sink
the Kembu Maru and Takunan Maru No. 7 and damage
the two light cruisers despite signiicant anti-aircrat ire
from the island and combatant ships. Japanese planes only
made half-hearted attempts at retaliation attacks
against these planes; the majority of the time, the
Japanese pulled away and broke of their attacks
without closing to efective kill ranges. he lack
of communication prevented efective coor-
dination of the ighter groups in attacking the
planes present at Roi. As a result, some 40 to 60
Betty bombers and numerous ighters were let
undamaged on the airield.

he Eiko Maru No. 2

In 1969, I took on a work assignment as a radar

systems engineer on the Altair radar on Roi-
Namur (two islands joined by a man-made
causeway on the northern end of the Kwajalein
Atoll). he radar was primarily tasked with
tracking and accumulating data on the warheads
entering the atmosphere in ICBM launches
from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.
It didn’t take very long for me to take a scuba
course. I had always been interested in reading
about World War II and here I was stationed
on an island that had been part of a Japanese

Wreck Location Map, North End of

Kwajalein Atoll.

wreckdivingmag.com | 73
 Foreship section of Eiko Maru No. 2. The anchor winch,
bow gun on a bandstand platform with ready ammunition,
and first hold are visible.
– Brandi Mueller Collection
naval base. here were Japanese shipwrecks in both the
Roi-Namur and Kwajalein island anchorages. When I
became a member of the Roi-Namur Dolphin scuba club,
the only shipwreck known in the local anchorage area
was the “First Ship.” Ater numerous dives on this wreck, I
searched along the side of the hull near the bow and came
upon some hard-to-see lettering “Eiko Maru.” Research
materials showed that the Eiko Maru No. 2 was heavily
damaged and let loating low in the water in the Kwajalein
anchorage to the south by Task Force 50 carrier aircrat in
raids on December 4, 1943. he Japanese ship Akibasan
Maru was assigned to tow the ship with engine room
damage to Japan. Eforts to do so were in vain and the ship
was towed only as far as the Roi-Namur anchorage at the
northern part of the atoll.
he Eiko Maru had been requisitioned from the com-
mercial leet in December 1941 as a Navy transport. Since
an O.S.K. (Osaka Shosen Kaisha) ship with the same name
had already been transferred to the Japanese Navy, the
ship was re-named “Eiko Maru No. 2.” No efort was made
to change the name lettering on the ship’s hull. his is a
simple explanation of why “Eiko Maru” is the lettering
seen on the hull and not “Dai-Ni Eiko Maru” (Japanese
translation for Eiko Maru No. 2). he ship’s initial role dur-
ing the war was shipping bauxite from Palau to Saeki and
Niihama. On October 9, 1943, she joined up with a convoy
including her sister ship Tyoko Maru and the destroyer
escort Yuzuki departing from Yokosuka via Truk and
Ponape to Kwajalein, arriving October 30th. She unloaded
war materials and troops there.
74 | wreckdivingmag.com
Prior to the planned amphibious assault of Roi-Namur
on January 29, 1944, the battleship North Carolina was
alerted to the presence of the Eiko Maru No. 2 in the
anchorage while assigned to bombard shore installations
on both Roi and Namur Islands. Taken under ire by North
Carolina’s main battery, the ship was hit on both the bow
and stern areas and heavy ires broke out. Even though on
ire, the ship was reported to be still iring AA machine
guns at the battleship’s spotter plane. his action prompted
orders for the battleship’s secondary battery to target the
ship again. Soon, the vessel was enveloped by explosions
and ires along the length of the ship. he following day,
the ship was reported sunk with her masts protruding
above the water surface. Two weeks later, Navy divers
searching the wreck recovered signiicant intelligence ma-
terial including a large number of Japanese charts of the
Paciic area. Japanese sources list a total of 46 crewmen
having been lost in action; some were present when the
ship was sunk while the majority appears to have been lost
defending either Kwajalein Island or Roi-Namur during
the invasion by US forces.
Located only minutes away from the Roi-Namur marina,
the Eiko Maru No. 2 is a classic wreck dive as it rests up-
right in only 110 feet of water. Although almost the entire
ship was swept by ire prior to sinking, the superstructure
is intact, making great opportunities to explore spaces
within the forecastle, the bridge and deck level rooms
below, the extended cabin spaces above the engine room,
and the two-level poop. Care must be taken not to stir up
the deep sediment in all areas which can cause visibility
 Eiko Maru No. 2 Information Summary
Previous Name: Eiko Maru (changed Nov. 20, 1941)
Type: Cargo
Military Designation: Auxiliary Transport
Registry: Kure Naval District
International Radio Call Sign: JSIO
Coniguration Sequence: M-K-F-M
Gross Tonnage: 3,535 tons
Dimensions (length/beam/drat): 340/48/26.2 feet
Machinery: Steam engines, single screw
Radius: Unknown
Complement: 46
Built: 1940 by Tama Sanbashi Co., Ltd.
Commercial Owner: Mitsui Bussan Kaisha
Taiyo Kogyo K. K., Kobe (previous)
A US carrier plane circles off to the side of the Kembu Maru (center)
with fires raging aboard aft ship prior to a horrific explosion that finally
sank the ship. The Takunan Maru No. 7 (left of Kembu Maru) exhibits
smoke rising from amidships. The identity of the third vessel (lower left)
is unknown (possibly Takunan Maru No. 6?). The third vessel apparently
escaped destruction. Photograph Courtesy of the National Archives
to be easily lost. Penetrations into the engine room upper
level catwalk landing are relatively easy, but the very dark
lower level has very little space to maneuver. Heavy dam-
age to the engines and machinery within this bottom level
is likely the result of hits made by the North Carolina guns
which blasted a large hole in the hull on the port side. A
classic, platform-mounted bow gun with ready ammuni-
tion alongside is a special feature. Stack markings and
china found aboard exhibit the ship’s commercial owner
symbol for Mitsui Bussan Kaisha. It’s very interesting to
see the effects of bomb damage, naval artillery hits, and
strafing bullet holes throughout the shipwreck. Coral
and sponge marine growth cover much of the wreck;
many types of fishes can be seen including grey reef
”
Prior to the planned amphibi-
ous assault of Roi-Namur on
January 29, 1944, the battleship
North Carolina was alerted to
the presence of the Eiko Maru
No. 2 in the anchorage while
assigned to bombard shore
installations on both Roi and
Namur Islands.
sharks at times.
Remarks: A plaque found attached to the base of the
rudder stand showed it was made by the Uraga Dock
Company. It is likely that all navigational gear installed
was supplied by that company.
he Kembu Maru
With the discovery of Roi-Namur’s “Second Ship” in
the late 1960s by a private boat with a depth inder, divers
knew little about the wreck other than that a tremendous
explosion had occurred aboard that had led to the sinking
of the ship. he most notable intact visual feature of the
wreck is the large bow gun mounted on a platform. Ready
ammunition is stowed under the gun. Little was found
within the larger central space of the forecastle except for
a few ropes and cables. A space to port was used to store
lanterns. Small arms ammunition and some hand gre-
nades were stowed in a small compartment of to the side.
Between the holds on the port side deck, there is a stowed
paravane for sweeping mines and cutting their mooring
cables. Forward holds contain only a few, 50-gallon-sized
fuel drums, some cases of foodstufs, and some lumber.
he force of the explosion, originating in one or both of
the at holds, caused the metal frame ribs, side hull plates,
and decking to be peeled back and wrapped around the
bridge. Intense ires aboard prior to the ship’s sinking
had let all remaining structures scorched and blackened
with a layer of charcoal-infused silt and muck inside and
covering the wreck. In the center of the heavily-damaged
wreckdivingmag.com | 75
 ship’s lying bridge, it was possible to
identify a telegraph, rudder stand, and
wheel along with other equipment, all
of which are covered by the encrusted
sediment. It was here at the forward part
of the bridge that I spotted the ship’s bell
in the midst of heavy debris. I recovered
this bell with high hopes that the name of
the ship would be emblazoned on it. Ater cleaning it up, I
found that the heavy bronze bell had been partially melted
from the heat and ires aboard before the ship sank. It ap-
peared no name had been placed on it. At of the midship
superstructure, there is a small hold with more 50-gallon-
sized fuel drums. Two huge boilers from the engine room
can be seen within the thick debris on the seabed. Beyond
this, there is only a scattered amount of heavy debris and
rubble. At least part of the cargo in the at holds had been
aviation gas . . . whenever the silt was stirred up and came
in contact with a diver’s bare skin, the caustic aviation gas
within would cause burns. It became standard procedure
to take a hurried shower with lots of soap following every
dive on the wreck.
his wreck was considered a mystery by members of the
Roi-Namur Dolphins scuba club wreck divers. Several of
us were determined to identify the shipwreck and ind out
the details of its being captured by the Japanese. Search-
ing through the bridge superstructure, I located several,
partially-intact documents which I took ashore to dry out.
Among the burnt and singed documents were instruc-
tional manuals with kanji character titles. Translation of
the fragmented document titles inally gave up the ship’s
name, “Kembu Maru.”
An interesting code book was found in the radio room.
his contained a listing of a 4-digit code used to coordi-
nate the routes, timetables, and the origin/destination of
ship convoys. Included in the document fragments within
were lists of identiier codes and locations of islands and
other areas under speciic naval district jurisdictions. he
naval districts listed included B (Mako or Making in the
Pescadore Islands), C (China), K (Kure), S (Sasebo), and T
(Tinkai or Chinkai).
A close inspection of the bow gun revealed a mounted
gunsight telescope that exhibited the following inscription:
G. S. Telescope X8
NEGRETTI & ZAMBRA
LONDON, 1917
No. 56
Another item found in the forecastle, a bronze/glass
Telemotor/helm apparatus of the Kembu Maru, covered
with hardened sediment, has toppled over and lies on the
flooring deck of the flying bridge. Recovery of the object,
weighing over 300 lbs, was accomplished by divers using
three, large lift bags.

lantern, had a “SEAHORSE” Great Britain trademark. It
became apparent the Japanese had either stocked the ship
with gear obtained from Great Britain or the ship was
originally British-owned when captured. We now had the
name of the ship and other clues regarding its identity; the
race was then on to ind out the date, location, and cir-
cumstances of the ship’s capture by the Japanese. It would
take many years to inally discover this information.
Noted author and expert on Japanese ships, Hisashi
Noma, in his book, Japanese Merchant Ships At War,
believes the Kembu Maru found at Roi-Namur was a cap-
tured ship previously known as the 4,519-ton “Van Cloon.”
On February 6, 1942, the Van Cloon let Surabaya travel-
ing to Columbo through the Sundra Strait. he following
day, the ship encountered the Japanese submarine I-55 in
the Java Sea. he submarine instructed the ship by radio to
evacuate the crew and passengers into life boats and then
proceeded to shell the ship, leaving it in a half-sunk and
beached condition. Within months, the Japanese would
salvage the ship. Ater repairing and re-furbishing the
vessel, the Mitsui K. K. line was assigned manager of the
ship as a Japanese Navy Transport. It was commissioned
as the “Kembu Maru.” Its assigned duties were then to
transport supplies and personnel from Japan in a triangu-
lar route to Kwajalein and Truk and to make shuttle runs
between Japan and Truk. his vessel was not the one sunk
at Roi-Namur; it now appears to have been sunk January
12, 1945, north of Quinhon, Vietnam, by Task Force 38
aircrat.
Most recent information supplied by Japanese sources
indicates the Kembu Maru found at Roi-Namur was the
ship laid down in Hong Kong in May 1941 as a 6,816-ton
cargo ship by the Taikoo Dockyard & Engineering Co. Ltd.
as part of the British Ministry of War Transport program.
When ready to be launched the following December, she
was to be named “Empire Blossom.” However, directives
were received ordering the ship’s engines and boilers to be
sent on to Singapore before being installed. his transfer
was done aboard the Holt Line’s SS Ulysses. When the
Japanese forces took over Hong Kong, the ship was seized
Opposite Page Top Left: Heavy, bronze ship’s bell recovered
from naval transport Kembu Maru exhibits melting and striations
along the lower remaining waist due to high temperatures
resulting from extensive fires aboard. The flared rim fracture was
due to melting or a result of the tremendous explosion which
followed. Dan Bailey Collection
Left: Heavy-duty winch and bow gun on its platform are shown
on forecastle of Kembu Maru. Brandi Miuller Collection
Above: Huge explosion originating in aft holds of Kembu Maru.
Photograph Courtesy of the National Archives
and inal construction of the vessel was taken over by Mit-
sui Engineering K. K. Apparently, spare parts and supplies
within the shipyard were borrowed, including rudder-
stock items from the ex-British steamer Federlock (previ-
ously named “Federal” and later becoming “Fukuyama
Maru”) built in 1918. When re-itting and construction
were completed in February 1943, the ship, also under the
name Kembu Maru, sailed to the Empire where she was
registered by the Navy Department as an auxiliary trans-
port attached to the Maizuru Naval District. Divers have
managed to recover data plates from the shipwreck. he
irst reads “his telemotor controls steam steering gear No.
3990, Made by John Hastie & Co. Ltd., Chilblain Engine
Works Greenock.” A second plate reads “Steering Telemo-
tor Patent No. 109500, 1917, Serial No. STA355, MacTag-
gart Scott & Co. Ltd. Edinburgh Engineers.” An enterpris-
ing, diver/author Mark Miller (In the Arms of the Sea)
researched information from the plaques recovered from
the telemotor/helm and, through great detective work, was
able to trace it back to the Federal/Federlock which he then
claimed was the previous ship’s original identity. It now
appears the telemotor/helm (with attached data plates)
was one of the items the Japanese borrowed from within
the Hong Kong shipyard supplies described previously.
he Fukuyama Maru (ex-Federal and Federlock) was sunk
by US Navy carrier-based aircrat on January 9, 1945,
south of Formosa (22º-37’N, 120º-15’E).
wreckdivingmag.com | 77

On November 13, 1943, the Kembu Maru arrived at
the Kwajalein Island anchorage and remained there until
December 2nd when she traversed to the north end of the
atoll to arrive at Roi-Namur. In the raids of December 4,
1943, eight Lexington SBDs attacked the anchored ship
scoring bomb hits just at of the bow gun, along the port
side opposite the no. 2 hold, on the starboard side of the
bridge, and one directly in the center of the hold at of the
stack. he ship became enveloped in lames with black
smoke billowing several thousand feet upward. TBFs
next targeted the ship, coming in low between 300-350
feet, and dropped their torpedoes and reported scoring
two hits on the starboard side, one forward and one at of
amidships. Lastly, the ship was attacked by an Essex SBD
(bombs missed). he ires aboard inally touched of the
aviation fuel stored aboard and the ship blew up in a tre-
mendous explosion sending smoke some 10,000 feet into
the air. Japanese archives indicate that 19 crewmen were
lost in action.
Kembu Maru Information Summary
Previous Name: Empire Blossom (original)
Kenbu Maru (other)
Type: Cargo
Military Designation: Auxiliary Transport
Registry: Maizuru Naval District
International Radio Call Sign: Unknown
Configuration Sequence: M-F-M
Gross Tonnage: 6,816 tons
Dimensions (length/beam/draft): 450.2/56.75/? feet
Machinery: 1T3Cy (one 3-cylinder triple expansion engine),
single screw
Radius: Unknown
Complement: Unknown
Built: Taikoo Dockyard & Eng. Co. (original construction)
Mitsui Eng. & Shipbuilding, Hong Kong
(secondary construction)
Owner: British Ministry of War (original)
Remarks: Captured ship
he Takunan Maru No. 7
Two smaller vessels are prominent in action photos
taken on December 5, 1943, in the vicinity of the larger
Kembu Maru which drew the most attention from the at-
tacking planes. hinking that one or both vessels may have
been sunk in the attacks, Roi-Namur Dolphin members
decided we would do our best to ind them. Prior to my
leaving Kwajalein in 1977, we had no equipment (depth
inder or other) available to search for any possible new
shipwrecks. Several times, we conducted diver searches
out from the Kembu Maru in diferent directions with a
support boat following the air bubbles to collect the divers
when their air got low. We had no luck in inding any new
wrecks.
It wasn’t until many years later, in 1991, that the wreck
of the submarine chaser Takunan Maru No. 7 was found
using action-photo, relative ship positions as shown some
78 | wreckdivingmag.com
350 yards from the Kembu Maru. he wreck is lying
upright with a 15-degree list to port on a 125-foot bot-
tom. Proliic, dull-colored marine growth now covers
almost everything on the wreck. Divers report that the
bow gun has been dislodged from its platform and lies on
the seabed. Compartments below, within the forecastle,
served as crew’s quarters and many personal items have
been found scattered about. he wheelhouse at the top
of the bridge was constructed of wood; it has collapsed
and lies on the seabed along the port side. Lower level
compartments include more crew’s quarters and a galley.
Many artifacts have been discovered throughout, includ-
ing one or two builder’s plaques. he small house at of the
engine room was used as a radio room and other spaces
within were used for storage. Depth-charge release boxes,
with the charges inside, were mounted on each side of the
stern railings; these have fallen to the seabed below. here
is signiicant damage to the hull and superstructure along
the starboard side of the vessel. Due to the close proxim-
ity of the ship to the Kembu Maru, it is quite possible the
huge explosion aboard that ship caused the damage which
led to the sinking of the Takunan Maru No. 7. Japanese
sources report that ive crewmen were killed in action.
At the outbreak of the war with Japan, the Takunan
Maru No. 7 and Takunan Maru No. 6 were assigned to
Submarine Chaser Division 62 along with net-tender
Katsura Maru as part of the 4th Mandate Fleet, 6th Base
Force, at Kwajalein.
Divers at Roi-Namur have dubbed the wreck “hird
Ship.” Known for great visibility, proliic marine and ish
life, artifacts, and accessibility, the wreck of the Takunan
Maru No. 7 is considered to be one of the very best at Kwa-
jalein.
Takunan Maru No. 7 Information Summary
Type: Steam Whaler
Military Designation: Auxiliary Submarine Chaser
(Converted 1941)
Port of Registry: Tokyo
International Radio Call Sign: JWKL
Configuration Sequence: M-F-M
Gross Tonnage: 343 tons
Dimensions (length/beam/draft): 134.5/26.9/14.1 feet
Machinery: 1T3Cy (one 3cyl triple expansion engine)
Radius: Unknown
Complement: Unknown
Built: 1937 by Osaka Iron Works Ltd., Osaka
Commercial Owner: Nippon Suisan K. K., Tokyo
Remarks: Cruiser Stern
he Mikuni Maru No. 5
In the December 4, 1943, carrier attacks on the Kwaja-
lein Atoll, USS Lexington planes (SBDs) strafed a “75-foot-
long vessel in the mouth of Mellu Pass” using both .50 and
.30 caliber guns, scoring many hits. It was last seen smok-
 ing as the planes retired; the extent of damage to the vessel
could not be ascertained. his vessel, described as a “small
guard boat” or a “patrol boat” has only recently been iden-
tiied by Japanese sources as the Mikuni Maru No. 5.
In the lagoon just inside Mellu Pass (about three miles
southwest of Roi-Namur) is a coral/sand cay named
“Sand Island.” I was diving the periphery of the island
looking for black coral bushes one day when I discovered
the wreck site. he Mikuni Maru No. 5 can be found at a
depth of 90 feet, approximately 200 yards southwest of the
island along the descending sloping edge. Very little of the
vessel’s wooden hull and superstructure remain, leaving
only the engines, fuel tanks, and assorted equipment and
debris lying on the sandy seabed. Several depth charges
can be found lying in the midst of the wreckage. Divers
have found navigational instruments, many bottles, and
other small artifacts within the wreckage. here are two,
six-foot-long anchors alongside the wreck site.

Mikuni Maru No. 5 Information Summary

Type: Fishing Boat

Military Designation: Guard Boat
Gross Tonnage: 80 tons
Dimensions: Unknown
International Radio Call Sign: JINN
Official Ship No.: 46949
Builder: Yaizu, Shizuoka
Owner: H. S. Yaizu Shinyo
Launched: 1/01/1941
Requisitioned: 7/05/1942
Navy List Removal: 3/31/1944

Diver poses alongside bow section of Takunan Maru No. 7. The hub
mount for the missing gun is seen at the center of the gun platform.
Brandi Mueller Collection

”
Roi-Namur divers have
recovered the builder’s plaque
from the Takunan Maru No. 7. It
is a unique and rare artifact. I was diving the periphery of
Bill Remick Collection
the island looking for black
coral bushes one day when I
discovered the wreck site.

About the Author: Dan E. Bailey is a well known au-

thor of Central Pacific wreck diving books. Books written
include WW II Wrecks of the Kwajalein and Truk La-
goons, WW II Wrecks of Palau, and his latest flagship
book WW II Wrecks of the Truk Lagoon.

wreckdivingmag.com | 79
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