 TheMonarch underway | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 Canada | |
| Name | Monarch |
| Operator | Northern Navigation Company, Ltd |
| Builder | John Dyble |
| Launched | June 27, 1890 |
| Fate | Wrecked 6 December 1906 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Passenger-package freighter |
| Length | 259 feet |
| Beam | 35 feet |
| Depth | 15 feet |
| Installed power | 900HP |
| Propulsion | triple expansion steam engine |
| Speed | 14 knots |
| Notes | Official Number 96843 |
MONARCH | |
 Bow section of theMonarch | |
   | |
| Location | Palisade area, north side of Blake Point,Isle Royale National Park,Michigan[2] |
| Coordinates | 48°11′20″N88°26′3″W / 48.18889°N 88.43417°W /48.18889; -88.43417 |
| Area | 45.9 acres (18.6 ha) |
| Built | 1890 |
| Architect | John Dyble |
| Architectural style | Passenger-package freighter |
| MPS | Shipwrecks of Isle Royale National Park TR |
| NRHP reference No. | 84001779[1] |
| Added to NRHP | June 14, 1984 |
SSMonarch was a passenger-package freighter built in 1890 that operated on theGreat Lakes. She was sunk off the shore ofIsle Royale inLake Superior in 1906 and the remains of her wreck and cargo are still on the lake bottom. The wreck was placed on theNational Register of Historic Places in 1984.[1]
Monarch (Official Number 96843) was a woodenpassenger-cargo ship built in 1890 inSarnia,Ontario,Canada, by John Dyble[3] for the Northwest Transportation Company.[4][5] She waslaunched on June 27, 1890, the last ship built in Sarnia untilWorld War II.[3] The ship was 259 feet (79 meters) long, 35 feet (11 meters) in beam, and 15 feet (4.6 meters) in depth.[4] She had a 900-hp (671-kW)triple-expansion steam engine with twoScotch boilers, allowing her to attain 14 mph.[4] The ship's hull was heavily reinforced with iron, and she was fitted with 65 cabins.[3][4]
Monarch was used to transport both passengers and packages on theGreat Lakes throughout her career,[6] primarily running between Sarnia,Thunder Bay,Ontario, andDuluth,Minnesota.[3] In 1899, Northwest Transportation merged with another company to form the Northern Navigation Company, Ltd.[3]
On December 6, 1906, theMonarch finished loading a cargo ofwheat,oats,salmon, and general merchandise and departed Thunder Bay for Sarnia in a blinding snowstorm.[3][4] For some reason, the ship headed off her planned course, and that night she ran at full speed into the palisade area on the north side of Blake Point onIsle Royale.[4][5] The ship's engineer kept the engine engaged to maintain the ship's position on the shore, and John D. McCallum, brother offirst mate Burt McCallum, carried a line to shore through the rough seas.[4] The crew and passengers used the line to escape the wreck, and only one person perished.[4] The survivors camped on Isle Royale for four days, salvaging food from the wreck and keeping signal fires alight, before they were rescued on December 10, 1906.[3][4]
During the night of 11–12 December 1906, the wreck broke into two pieces, leaving only the bow section visible.[7]Salvage operations onMonarch were carried out over the next two years,[3] and the engine and associated machinery was salvaged in 1908.[3]
The wooden wreck has disintegrated, although a number of pieces of wreckage can be seen.[4] Large pieces of wooden wreckage are scattered on the bottom of Lake Superior at depths of 10 to 80 feet (3.0 to 24.4 meters),[5] and there is a trove ofMonarch′s cargo still lying on the bottom near the wreck.[4] Approximately 85dives were made on the wreck in 2009 out of 1,062 dives made to wrecks in theIsle Royale National Park.[8]
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in 1906 | |
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| Shipwrecks |
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| Other incidents |
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