 SS Kamloops in 1925 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
.svg) Canada | |
| Name | Kamloops |
| Operator | Canada Steamship Lines, Ltd.,Montreal,Quebec, Canada |
| Builder | Furness Ship Building Company, Ltd.,Stockton-on-Tees,Durham, England, UK |
| Yard number | 68 |
| Completed | 1924 |
| Fate | Foundered offIsle Royale in western Lake Superior 7 December 1927 |
| Notes | Canada Registry #147682 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Package freighter –canaller |
| Tonnage |
|
| Length | 250 ft (76 m) |
| Beam | 43 ft (13 m) |
| Height | 24 ft (7.3 m) |
| Propulsion | triple expansion steam |
| Crew | 22 |
KAMLOOPS | |
   | |
| Location | Kamloops Point,Isle Royale National Park,Michigan, U.S.[2] |
| Coordinates | 48°5′6″N88°45′53″W / 48.08500°N 88.76472°W /48.08500; -88.76472 |
| Area | 45.9 acres (18.6 ha) |
| Built | 1924 |
| Architect | Furness Shipbuilding Company, Ltd. |
| Architectural style | Freighter |
| MPS | Shipwrecks of Isle Royale National Park TR |
| NRHP reference No. | 84001769[1] |
| Added to NRHP | 14 June 1984 |
SSKamloops was a Canadianlake freighter that was part of the fleet ofCanada Steamship Lines from its launching in 1924 until it sank with all hands inLake Superior offIsle Royale,Michigan, United States, on or about 7 December 1927.
The steamshipKamloops was built byFurness Shipbuilding Co. Ltd.[3] inHaverton Hill,Stockton-on-Tees,Durham, England, United Kingdom, for Steamships Ltd. ofMontreal,Quebec, Canada.[4] With a length of only 250 feet (75 m) and rated at 2,402gross tons,[4]Kamloops was a relatively small vessel for theGreat Lakes in the 1920s.[3] She was built to fit inside the locks of the Canadian-operated canals of the lower Great Lakes andSt. Lawrence River during the years prior to the construction of theSt. Lawrence Seaway.[3] The ship had two rigged masts and a 1000HP triple expansion steam engine withScotch boilers.[4]
Kamloops completed its sea testing on 5 July 1924, was shipped toCopenhagen, Denmark, to pick up freight, then was taken to Montreal andHoughton,Michigan, United States.[4] As acanaller, she carried diversified "package" freight between Canadian ports. Her chief duty was carrying manufactured goods from Montreal up the lakes toThunder Bay,Ontario, Canada.[3] As Canada was still a part of theBritish Empire in the 1920s, the economically fast-growingPrairie Provinces bought a significant quantity of their manufactured goods from England. Canada's freshwater fleet, includingKamloops, was an essential link in this vein of imperial commerce.[5]
It is the custom of Great Lakes shipping to try to move as much freight as possible before winter and associatedice conditions bring boat movements to a halt.Kamloops's owners operated the ship as late into the season as possible: in 1924 it was one of the last vessels to pass through theSault Ste. Marie Canal, and in 1926 it ended the season stuck in the ice in theSt. Mary's River.[4] She remained under British registry until 1926 when it was nominally purchased by new owners, Canada Steamship Lines, and re-registered in Canada.[4]
Kamloops was dispatched up the lakes in late November 1927, carrying a mixed cargo oftar paper,papermaking machinery, coiled wire for farm fencing, piping, shoes and foodstuffs.[3] On 1 December, the steamer called atCourtright, Ontario, to top off its cargo with some bagged salt.[4] She then steamed upLake Huron, passed through the Sault Ste. Marie Canal on 4 December, and faced the challenge ofLake Superior. Unfortunately forKamloops and other vessels assigned to Lake Superior runs, a massive storm began hammering the lake on 5 December.Kamloops, heavily coated with ice, was last seen steaming towards the southeastern shore ofIsle Royale at dusk on the following day, 6 December.[4] The ship, and the twenty-two men and women aboard, were never seen alive again.[5]
A search forKamloops began on 12 December, concentrating on theKeweenaw Peninsula and Isle Royale; the search continued until 22 December.[4] When the 1928 navigation season opened in April, a further search was made for wreckage fromKamloops.[4] In May, fishermen discovered the remains of several crewmembers at Twelve O'Clock Point on Isle Royale (erroneously reported to be on the nearbyAmygdaloid Island).[3][4] In addition, wreckage from the ship was discovered ashore.[4] In June, more bodies were discovered. A more comprehensive search for the wreck and crewmembers was undertaken, but nothing was found.[4]
Of the nine bodies recovered fromKamloops, five were identified and the remains shipped to next of kin. Four remained unidentified and were buried at Thunder Bay. A collective memorial stone was placed over their gravesite in 2011.[6]
In December 1928, a trapper working at the mouth of theAgawa River found abottled note from Alice Bettridge, a young assistant stewardess who initially survived the sinking ofKamloops and, before she herself perished, wrote, "I am the last one left alive, freezing and starving to death on Isle Royale in Lake Superior. I just want mom and dad to know my fate."[7]
For fifty years,Kamloops was one of the "Ghost Ships of the Great Lakes", having sunk without a trace.[5] However, on 21 August 1977,[4] her wreck was discovered northwest of Isle Royale, near what is now known as Kamloops Point, by a group of sport divers carrying out a systematic search for the ship.[4] The ship, discovered sitting on the lake bottom under more than 260 feet (79 m) of water,[8][9] is lying on itsstarboard side at the base of an underwater cliff.[3] Its detached smokestack lies a short distance away, near the starboard aft cargo mast. Some cargo remains in the holds, while other cargo is strewn around the wreck site.[3] There are still human remains aboard the ship, including the remains of a crew member lodged under a stairway in the engine room, nicknamed "Old Whitey".[3] Approximately fifty dives were made toKamloops out of 1,062 dives made to wrecks in theIsle Royale National Park in 2009.[10] The exact cause of her sinking remains a mystery.[3]
Kamloops features prominently in the novelA Superior Death byNevada Barr. In the novel, the body of a fictional contemporary diver is found together with the historical human remains in the ship'sengine room.[citation needed]
From the archives of theSault Ste. Marie Public Library.Handwriting confirmed by parents.
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in 1927 | |
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