 The above-water remains of the wreck of the tugMetamora. Visible is the ship′s boiler, which has been painted white and has a channel marker attached to it as a hazard warning. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name | Metamora |
| Builder | Peck & Masters,Cleveland |
| Completed | 1864 |
| Fate | Ran into a shallow shoal off of Turning Island, Georgian Bay, September 29, 1907[1] |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Tug |
| Tonnage | 300 tons |
| Length | 121 feet |
| Beam | 21 feet |
| Installed power | Steam |
TheMetamora was a woodentug commissioned in 1864 and used predominantly for ferrying passengers and goods in theGeorgian Bay area ofOntario. It ran onto a shallow shoal near Turning Island in Georgian Bay on July 30, 1907, caught fire and sank in six feet of water.[2]
She was constructed at the Peck & Masters shipyard inCleveland,Ohio in 1864.[1] The ship was 121 feet long, and 21 feet wide, and displaced about 300 tons.[1] TheMetamora was originally fitted out with armour-plating and a cannon, and was tasked with patrolling the waters of what was thenUpper Canada forFenian raiders.[2] These were removed in the 1870s, when the Fenian threat had diminished, and theMetamora then plied the waters ofGeorgian Bay as a freighter and passenger vessel.[2] It was being used primarily as a logging tug boat, by the Burton Bros. of Collingwood in 1895, Midland lumbermenJames Playfair & Company purchased the Metamora along with three barges and a large quantity ofboom logs, for use in connection with their lumbering business.[3]
On September 29, 1907 theMetamora was towing a boom, bound for the mill town ofByng Inlet, when she struck a shallow shoal just west of Turning Island, relatively nearPointe au Baril. She caught fire and sank in shallow water, with all of her crew and passengers surviving by swimming the relatively short distance to shore.[2] The Metamora was owned by the Midland Towing and Wrecking Co.[4]
For many years afterward a portion of the upper deck that did not burn was visible above the water. Currently theMetamora's boiler is the only portion of the ship that can still be seen above the surface. It is known locally as "The Wreck".[2] The boiler has been painted white and a channel marker has been attached to it as a hazard warning for the boats that travel in this area. The shallow waters have also made the ship a favourite haunt for scuba divers.[5] The wreck is located at45°31′43.39″N80°24′26.61″W / 45.5287194°N 80.4073917°W /45.5287194; -80.4073917.
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in 1907 | |
|---|---|
| Shipwrecks |
|
| Other incidents |
|
