Like her sisters, the Wales and the Ontario, the Chippewa spent many years in the timber trade working for Muskoka Mills at the mouth of the Musquash River. She was launched at the Mill in 1874 and spent
three decades in the company's lumber trade. Around 1905 her years of hard work came to an end and she was put to rest at the mouth of the river. Her hull reamins intact today and lies off the west bank of the river.
A wreck of an unidentified ship is located near Fraser Bank, between Beausoleil Island and Giant's Tomb. The remains of the wreckage indicate that the ship was a three-masted sailing vessel approximately 130 ft long. She was named after the rock upon
which she foundered, Indian Belle Rock.
The Lottie Wolf was a three-masted schooner launched in 1866 at Green Bay Wisconsin. On October 16, 1891 she was on her way to Midland with a cargo of corn when she struck a rock off Hope Island. Her captain tried to run her into the sand on the nearby shore but she began to fill with water. The Lottie Wolf couldn't be saved. The crew abandoned ship and watched as the storm broke her up. The rock upon which she foundered is called the Lottie Wolf Rock.
The wooden steamer Luckport was launched as the St. Magnus at Hamilton in 1880. In 1898 she was shortened and renamed the Magnolia. In 1919 she was rebuilt and renamed again then becoming the Luckport. In December 1934 she caught fire and sank just west of Sawlog Point. Her charred hull is all that remains.
The steel steamer, Mapledawn, was originally launched as the Manola at Cleavland, Ohio in 1890. In 1920 she was rebuilt and renamed Mapledawn. On November 30, 1924 the 350 foot Mapledawn ran aground on the beach at Quai des Roches on the west side of Christian Island. She was on her way to Midland with a cargo of grain. Some of her cargo and machinery was recovered but she was a total loss.
On November 20, 1867, on her way to Collingwood, the Marquette was caught in a snowstorm like no other she had encountered during her service on the Lakes. The captain of this 139 foot schooner had no choice but to beach her at Hope Island. The ice cold water started to flood the Marquette and the crew had to abandon ship. For two days and nights they took shelter on the island as the relentless November storm destroyed the Marquette.
The Michigan was a "lighter" and her job was to help recover cargo and reuseable materials from wrecked ships. On November 24, 1943 she was removing the grain cargo of the stranded Riverton at Hope Island when the Michigan herself was blown to the shallows by strong winds. Her crew managed to escape, and the Riverton was saved, but the Michigan was broken up. She was one of the few salvage freighters lost on the Great Lakes.
The Midland City, was a familiar passenger steamer during the 1900's. She was built in Scotland in 1871 and operated for 84 years. For the last 20 years of her life, beginning in 1921, she made daily runs between Midland and Parry Sound.
She became known as "the heart beat of Georgian Bay" because she was always on time. In 1933 her steam engines were replaced with a diesel motor and one year later she had her first wreck. Fortunately she was repaired and ran for another 20 years. As
area roads were extended and cars became popular, her daily trips became less necessary. In 1955 she was towed to the Wye river, dismantled and burned. The remains of the Midland City are now part of the break -wall located at Wye Heritage Marina.
The Ontario was a wooden barge built at Welland in 1867. Like her sisters, the Wales and the Chippewa, she spent many years in the timber trade working for Muskoka Mills at the mouth of the Musquash River. She
was abandoned up river below the second set of rapids after her years of service had taken their toll. Her remains now lie in a sheltered location in approximately 3-12 ft of water.
The Reliever was a 226 ft steamer. She was built in 1888 at West Bay City, Michigan. She was first called the Germanic but was later rebuilt, and renamed. In 1908 the lumber merchant Manley Chew acquired the Reliever. On November 3, 1909 she caught fire while loading lumber at Chew's Sawmill on Methodist Point. She was set adrift to save the mill and the dock and floated to a mainland beach where she grounded and burned completely
The Saucy Jim was a steam tug built in Meaford in 1887. The Jim was kept busy, towing, wrecking, and freighting, making her a familiar sight on the bay. On November 18, 1910 her colourful career came to an end when she caught fire at Christian Island.
The Thomas Cranage was the largest wooden vessel to be lost on Georgian Bay. She was 305 ft long and built in West Bay City, Michigan in 1893. She wrecked on the Watcher Reef northeast of Hope Island on September 25, 1911 on her way from
Detroit. Her cargo and her seventeen member crew was saved but she went to pieces in the rough weather. Her remains, including her rudder and her engine, are scattered on the reef in 3-6 m ( 10-20 ft) of water.
The Wales was originally launched as a 110 footsteamer in 1864 and was later converted to sail. Like her sisters, the Ontario and the Chippewa, she spent many years in the timber trade working for Muskoka Mil
ls at the mouth of the Musquash River. In 1895 she was deemed unseaworthy and abandoned on the east side of Longuissa Point in Longuissa Bay. Her large hull now rests in 10-20 feet of water.
On September 21, 1942 the yacht Wawinet wrecked at the tip of Beausoleil Island becoming one of the most tragic accidents ever to have occured on Georgian Bay. The Wawinet was built in 1904 and owned by Bertrand Corbeau of
Penetang who purchased her in 1938. On that fatal evening in September,
Corbeau and a group of fellow employees from the Midland Foundry and
Machine Company were returning home to Penetang when the Wawinet made a sudden turn. The vessel heeled until the lower windows were under water. The Wawinet
filled and sank in two minutes. Forty-two passengers and crew were on board that evening and only 17 survived. Corbeau was not among the survivors. The wreck of the Wawinet lies at the tip of beausoleil in approximently 25 feet of water.
What is the name of the largest wooden vessel lost on Georgian Bay?
c)Luckport
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