Ivanhoe
| Ship Name: | Ivanhoe |
|---|---|
| Also Known As: | None |
| Type of Ship: | Schooner, Wooden |
| Ship Size: | 110' x 26' x 9' |
| Ship Owner: | Tod, Rhodes & Co. |
| Gross Tonnage: | 238 |
| Net Tonnage: | NA |
| Typical Cargo: | Bulk Ore, Coal |
| Year Built: | 1848 - Irving, New York |
| Official Wreck Number: | None |
|---|---|
| Wreck Location: | Lat/Long coordinates not available. Approximately 3.7 miles north of Avon Lake, Ohio. |
| Type of Ship at Loss: | Schooner, Wooden |
| Cargo on Ship at Loss: | Coal |
| Captain of Ship at Loss: | Dennis Galilgan |
The following account of the Ivanhoe today was provided through the courtesy of Mr. Jack Papes (http://www.n2junkie.com) wreck diver, photographer, and MAST member:
"Currently, in the summer of 2007, this site is being surveyed by the Maritime Archeological Survey Team, MAST. The bow is collapsed and buried beneath the bottom. Highlights here include the samson post, a very large pawl bit, which extends 10 ft [3m] above the bottom, and the windlass. Currently a mooring is secured at mid ship. Huge timbers frame the centerboard. Deck beams are at 50 ft. The planking is mostly missing. Port and starboard railings are intact. Coal is abundant everywhere.
Aft the centerboard box, a large section of the ship is collapsed and buried, leaving a 20 ft (6 m) gap of seemingly shipwreck-less bottom. The transom and upright rudder post remain intact here. The rudder is steered to starboard and buried. Although the site appears to have been relieved of its artifacts by preceding generations, enough structure remains to make this a very interesting site. It is my experience that the visibility here ranges between 2 ft (1m) and 8 ft (3m)."
October 4, 1855, approximately 3.5 miles north of Avon Lake, Ohio, in a collision with the schooner ARAB. All eleven crew members were saved.
The following article appeared in the Buffalo Daily Republic, Friday, October 5, 1855:
Cleveland, Oct. 5. -- (via Telegraph by House Line) The schooner Ivanhoe with 300 tons of coal, bound from Cleveland to Mackinaw, was run into and sunk last night by an unknown vessel.
The yawl with eight men, one boy and two women were picked up by the propeller Ohio and brought here this morning.
The Cleveland Plain Dealer printed the following news story on October 5, 1855:
The schooner ARAB, Capt. Grover, arrived this morning and reports having been run into by a vessel (probably the Ivanhoe) soon after leaving Huron. Capt. Grover states that he was bound down, with an eight know breeze, having his starboard tacks aboard and showing a white light. Saw a schooner three points off his starboard bow; that the unknown vessel, instead of holding her course, kept away and struck him near the foremast on the starboard side, staving in his bulwarks and knocking a small hole in the Arab's hull, near the deck. The vessels then parted, but not until the unknown schooner had again struck the Arab on her quarter. The night was dark and it was blowing quite fresh. Capt. Grover says he could not render any assistance, but saw the other vessel's lights for some time after the collision. This occurred on Thursday night of this week.
COLLISION AND LOSS OF VESSEL AND CARGO. -- The propeller Ohio, Capt. Kennedy, arrived this morning with the captain and crew of the schooner Ivanhoe, of Buffalo. They were discovered in the yawl boat of the schooner about four miles west of Black River and five miles from the shore. The schooner left here last evening with a cargo of 278 tons of coal shipped by Tod, Rhodes & Co., to Mackinac. The captain, Dennis Galilgan, reports that he was run down by a schooner, name unknown, about midnight, and that the crew and one female took to the yawl, apprehending the sinking of the Ivanhoe. She sunk soon after. We cannot learn whether she was insured or not. Whether the cargo was insured or not, is a question of fact in dispute between the owners and underwriters, as we are informed. Cleveland Plain Dealer, Saturday, October 6, 1855
Divers who first discovered the shipwreck nicknamed her "The Jug Wreck" due to a large crock-type jar found at the site.
Historical Files and Photo Collections: Great Lakes Historical Society (GLHS), Peachman Lake Erie Shipwreck Research Center (PLESRC)
Jack Papes, http://www.n2ju-nkie.com/ivanhoe.htm
The Great Lakes Diving Guide, Cris Kohl 2001, Seawolf Communications, Inc. West Chicago, Illinois, www.seawolfcommunications.com
MARITIME HISTORY OF THE GREAT LAKES - a "digital library" - http://www.hhpl.on.ca/GreatLakes/HomePort.asp or http://www.hhpl.on.ca/GreatLakes/
Photo Gallery
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This web site was prepared by the Ohio Sea Grant College Program using Federal funds under award NA16NOS4190094 from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce through the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Office of Coastal Management. The statements, findings, conclusions, and recommendations are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce, Ohio Department of Natural Resources, or the Office of Coastal Management.