SS Emperor was a Canadian lake freighter in service between 1911 and 1947. She was built between 1910 and April 1911 by the Collingwood Shipbuilding Company in Collingwood, Ontario, for Inland Lines, Ltd., of Midland, Ontario. She entered service on May 3, 1911. Emperor was sold to Canada Steamship Lines of Montreal, Quebec. Under the ownership of Canada Steamship Lines, she carried a wide variety of cargoes, but most frequently iron ore to Point Edward, Ontario, where it would be transported to Hamilton, Ontario, by train. After the opening of the fourth Welland Canal, Emperor carried the ore directly to Hamilton. She was involved in several accidents throughout her career.
After discharging a cargo of coal in Fort William, Ontario, on June 3, 1947, Emperor headed to Port Arthur, Ontario, where she loaded of iron ore bound for Ashtabula, Ohio. She left Port Arthur at 10:55p.m. (EST). The weather was clear, and visibility was good. At midnight, Captain Eldon Walkinshaw handed over watch duties to first mate James A. Morrey. Emperor ran hard aground on Canoe Rocks, on the northeast point of Isle Royale shortly before 4:15a.m. on June 4. She sank in between 20 and 35 minutes. Twelve of her crew were killed, while the 21 survivors were picked up by the United States Coast Guard Cutter Kimball.
Emperors wreck is the most recent, and second largest shipwreck of Isle Royale, surpassed only by the freighter Chester A. Congdon, which also wrecked on Canoe Rocks. The wreck rests in . Her bow lies partially broken up in shallow water, while her stern is intact and in deeper water. The wreck was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984, and has become a popular site for recreational divers.
History Background
The gunship USS Michigan became the first iron-hulled vessel built on the Great Lakes, upon her launching in 1843, in Erie, Pennsylvania. By the mid-1840s, Canadian merchants were importing iron vessels prefabricated in the United Kingdom. The first iron–hulled merchant vessel built on the lakes, Merchant, was built in 1862, in Buffalo, New York. Despite Merchant clear success proving the potential of iron hulls, ships built from wood remained preferable until the 1880s, due to their lower cost, as well as the abundance of high quality timber and workers trained in carpentry.
Between the early–1870s and the mid-1880s, shipyards around the Great Lakes began to construct iron ships on a relatively large scale. In 1884, the first steel freighters were built on the Great Lakes. By the 1890s, metal had become a common hull material used on the lakes. The development of the pneumatic rivet gun and the advancement of gantry cranes enabled shipyard employees to work at an increased speed, with greater efficiency. This, combined with the rapidly decreasing steel prices, contributed to the rapid increase in the size of lake freighters in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Throughout the 1880s, the iron ore trade on the Great Lakes grew significantly, primarily due to the increasing size of the lake freighters, and the rise in the number of trips they made to the ore docks of Lake Superior. As the railways were unable to keep up with the rapid production of iron ore, bulk freighters became integral to the region's iron ore industry. By 1890, 56.95% of the of the iron ore produced by mines in the United States was sourced from the region surrounding Lake Superior.
Design and construction
Emperor (Canadian official number 126654) was built in Collingwood, Ontario, between 1910 and 1911, by the Collingwood Shipbuilding Company. She was launched into Collingwood harbour on December 17, 1910, as hull number 28; she was christened by James Playfair of Midland, Ontario. Emperor was built for the Playfair managed Inland Lines, Ltd. of Hamilton, Ontario. Playfair was known to give the ships in his fleet names related to royalty. Emperor was ready to go into commission in April 1911. When she was completed, Emperor became the largest Canadian ship built to that date, earning her the nickname "The Pride of Canada". She was built exclusively for the iron ore trade.
Built with an arch-and-web frame system designed to create an unobstructed cargo hold, Emperor had 30 cargo hatches. The hatches were by wide, and were placed apart. Emperors cargo hold was divided into five separate compartments, each with six hatches and a capacity of ; she had a total cargo capacity of . There was an ore chute at each hatch. She was equipped with seven side-ballast and bilge tanks (each with a capacity of ), which were connected with seven steel pipes. The side and bottom tanks were not separated. This tank system enabled Emperor to quickly take on and discharge water. Emperor had 11 bulkheads. Her pilothouse, the captain's and mate's quarters were at the bow, while the crew's quarters were located at the stern. Emperors engine room was in length.
The hull of Emperor had an overall length of , and a length between perpendiculars of . Her beam was wide. The moulded depth (roughly speaking, the vertical height of Emperors hull) was . Her maximum draught was . Emperor had a gross register tonnage of 7,031 and a net register tonnage of 5,408.
Emperor was powered by a 82 rpm triple-expansion steam engine; the cylinders of the engine were , and in diameter, and had a stroke of . Steam was provided by two coal-fired, single-ended Scotch marine boilers in length and in diameter, with a working pressure of . The boilers were each fitted with 6 furnaces, accounting for a combined grate surface of , and a total heating surface of . Both the engine and boilers were manufactured by Emperor builder. Emperor had a registered nominal speed of .
Service history
Emperor was accepted by Inland Lines, Ltd. after she ran her sea trials in Georgian Bay off Collingwood. She commenced her maiden voyage on May 3, 1911, sailing upbound, without cargo. While upbound on Lake Huron on May 17, Emperor broke her propeller shaft in Thunder Bay. She was towed to DeTour, Michigan, by the package freighter Superior, after which she was towed to Port Arthur, Ontario, for repairs. On June 16, 1911, the Richelieu & Ontario Navigation Company, Ltd. of Montreal, Quebec, acquired a controlling interest in Inland Lines, Ltd.
On October 18, 1911, Emperor was bound from Fort William, Ontario, for Midland with 310,000 bushels of wheat. While anchoring below the Canadian lock at the Soo Locks, Emperor overrode her anchor, tore a hole in her bow and sank into of water below the lower entry. Her stern went against the north pier, while her bow swung into the channel, blocking it. She was raised on May 19, and after temporary repairs were made, she taken to Midland. Emperors captain, George Pearson said of the accident:I was not on the bast at the time of the accident, the steamer being temporarily in charge of the first mate. It is usual for a steamer leaving the lock to give a sharp blast, indicating to the canal crew that all is in readiness for the flood. In this case the flood was forced. As soon as the gates were opened the force of the water parted the lines of the steamer, causing her to leave the canal at high speed. The mate ordered an anchor dropped. The water at this point was not sufficiently deep to override the anchor, with the result that it was hit by the steamer and tore a hole in her bottom. A court inquiry conducted in Collingwood by Dominion Wreck Commissioner L. A. Demmers determined that the canal employees were to blame for the sinking, as they flooded the lock without checking if Emperor was ready. The court further stated that it believed it was "customary for the master of a vessel to sound one blast of the whistle as a signal to the canal authorities to begin flooding", also adding that it "thinks it is extremely necessary that masters of all vessels should have copies of the regulations governing the operation of locks and canals". Emperors officers were acquitted of any wrongdoing, with the blame being placed on a watchman who "happened to be a deck hand, and therefore irresponsible".
In 1913, the Richelieu & Ontario Navigation Company, Ltd. was merged into the newly formed, Montreal-based Canada Transportation Company, Ltd., the name of which was almost immediately changed to Canada Steamship Lines. While under the ownership of Canada Steamship Lines, Emperor carried a wide variety of cargoes, but mainly carried iron ore to Point Edward, Ontario, which was then taken to the steel mills of Hamilton, Ontario, by train.
While bound for a Lake Superior port, Emperor ran aground on Pointe aux Pins on the north shore of Lake Erie, on the morning of May 29, 1914. She was pulled off the next day by the tugs Hackett and James Reid. On October 29, 1926, Emperor ran aground near Mackinaw City, Michigan, on Major Shoal. She was freed at 16:00p.m., after jettisoning of iron ore. Sometime before 1932, Emperor reportedly ran aground on an unknown object near Michipicoten Island, while on her way to Fort William.
While bound for the lakehead with of coal on the night of November 24, 1936, Emperor encountered a heavy storm. While she was between Passage Island and Lamb Island, she lost her rudder. Emperor spent November 25 drifting in the storm. The tug James Whalen was sent to aid Emperor. However, before she arrived, the canaller Renvoyle arrived on the scene and towed Emperor to Fort William. One of Emperors deckhands was swept overboard in the storm, and drowned.
On May 4, 1937, Emperor was bound from Port Weller, Ontario, for Hamilton with a cargo of iron ore she loaded in Ashland, Wisconsin. Conditions on Lake Ontario were foggy, which caused Emperor to miss the port turn, which would then have put her on a course to the piers of the Burlington Canal at the entrance to Hamilton harbour. However, she carried on, eventually running aground near Bronte, Ontario, at 11:00p.m. The tug Rival and barge Londonderry arrived from Kingston, Ontario, to free her. After a portion of Emperors cargo was removed, she was refloated on May 6, having sustained hardly any damage.
In the spring of 1940, Emperors first mate James A. Morrey fell overboard from one of the bridge wings. He sustained no serious injuries.
Final voyage After unloading a cargo of coal in Fort William on June 3, 1947, Emperor headed to the Canadian National Railway ore dock in Port Arthur, where she loaded of iron ore from the Steep Rock Mine. The loading of the ore took six to seven hours. She left Port Arthur for Ashtabula, Ohio, at 10:55p.m. (EST), under the command of Captain Eldon Walkinshaw. Two of her 35–man crew were left behind at Fort William. She had a draught of at the bow, and at the stern. The weather was clement; there was little wind, and visibility was good. At midnight, Walkinshaw handed over watch duties to first mate Morrey, who had supervised the loading of the iron ore. Shortly before 4:15a.m., Emperor crashed into Canoe Rocks, on the northeast point of Isle Royale, and broke in two.