Phoenix (1815 steamer)

Last updated

Phoenix (Shipwreck)
USA Vermont location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
LocationColchester Shoal, Cochester Reef, Colchester, Vermont
Coordinates 44°33′11″N73°19′52″W / 44.55306°N 73.33111°W / 44.55306; -73.33111
Area2.9 acres (1.2 ha)
Built1815 (1815)
Built bySherman, Jahaziel
Architectural styleSidewheel steamboat
NRHP reference No. 98001268 [1]
Added to NRHPNovember 5, 1998

The Phoenix was a sidewheel paddle steamer operating on Lake Champlain between the United States states of New York and Vermont, and the British province of Lower Canada (present-day Quebec). Built in 1815, she grounded, burned and sank in 1819 off the shore of Colchester, Vermont. Her surviving wreckage (approximately 40% complete) is the oldest known example of a sidewheel steamer anywhere in the world. [2] The wreck site is a Vermont State Historic Site, which may be visited by registered and qualified divers. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998. [1]

Contents

Description and history

The Phoenix was a wooden frame steamship, with a total length of 146 feet (45 m), a beam of 27 feet (8.2 m), and a hull depth of 9.25 feet (2.82 m). Her keel measured 125 feet (38 m), to which a 120-foot (37 m) keelson was bolted for added stability. There were 66 full frames along the hull length. The area amidships featured additional stringers and timbering to support the heavy steam engine that was located there. She was reported to have a gracefully curved hull that flared out in a manner similar to whaleboats. She was powered by a steeple engine, which was supplemented by windpower provided from sails attached to a single mast. [2]

The Phoenix was built in 1815 by the Lake Champlain Steam-boat Company at its shipyard in Vergennes, Vermont, under the direction of Jahaziel Sherman. She was the second steamer to sail on Lake Champlain, after the Vermont (launched in 1808), which was the first regularly operated steamship anywhere. The Phoenix was fitted with a steam engine that had previously been used on another steamship that had sailed on the Hudson River. She was operated for four years on a route between Whitehall, New York and Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu in what is now the Canadian province of Quebec. In 1817, she carried President James Monroe from Burlington, Vermont to Plattsburgh, New York, and in 1818 she carried the remains of American Revolutionary War general Richard Montgomery, en route from Quebec City (where he died in the 1775 Battle of Quebec) to his final resting place in New York City. [2]

On September 4, 1819, she caught fire after departing from Burlington. Most of the passengers and crew safely made their escape, but six perished due to the flames or drowning. The ship grounded on Colchester Reef and was burned to the waterline. The company salvaged equipment from the wreck, including the steam engine, and the remnant hulk was dragged off the reef the following spring and allowed to sink. There was a great deal of speculation at the time that the fire was deliberately set by individuals unhappy with the advent of steam powered ships. [2]

The shipwreck was discovered on September 4, 1978, exactly 159 years after her demise. She lies on the sloping bottom of the lake, between 60 and 110 feet depth. The wreck is about 40% complete, the consequence of post-fire salvage, subsequent salvage work, and the ravages of time. [2] The two charred paddlewheel structures were discovered north of the steamers hull by diver Gary Lefebvre on August 28, 2020, in about 180 and 190 feet of water. [3]

See also

Related Research Articles

SS <i>Winfield Scott</i> 1850 sidewheel steamer

SS Winfield Scott was a sidewheel steamer that transported passengers and cargo between San Francisco, California and Panama in the early 1850s, during the California Gold Rush. After entering a heavy fog off the coast of Southern California on the evening of December 1, 1853, the ship crashed into Middle Anacapa Island. All 450 passengers and crew survived, but the ship was lost.

SS <i>City of Rio de Janeiro</i> American passenger ship built in 1878; sank in 1901

The SS City of Rio de Janeiro was an iron-hulled steam-powered passenger ship, launched in 1878, which sailed between San Francisco and various Asian Pacific ports. On 22 February 1901, the vessel sank after striking a submerged reef at the entry to San Francisco Bay while inward bound from Hong Kong. Of the approximately 220 passengers and crew on board, fewer than 85 people survived the sinking, while 135 others were killed in the catastrophe. The wreck lies in 287 feet (87 m) of water just off the Golden Gate and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places as nationally significant.

SS <i>Appomattox</i> Largest wooden steamship on the Great Lakes wrecked in 1905

SS Appomattox was a wooden-hulled, American Great Lakes freighter that ran aground on Lake Michigan, off Atwater Beach off the coast of Shorewood, Wisconsin in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States in 1905. On January 20, 2005 the remnants of the Appomattox were listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

SS <i>Regina</i> (1907) Steel ship that foundered in Lake Huron in a storm

The SS Regina was a cargo ship built for the Merchant Mutual Line and home ported in Montreal, Quebec. Named after Regina, Saskatchewan, Regina had a tonnage of 1,956 gross register tons (GRT) and a crew of 32.

SS <i>Comet</i> (1857) 1857 steamship, only treasure ship of Lake Superior

SS Comet was a steamship that operated on the Great Lakes. Comet was built in 1857 as a wooden-hulled propeller-driven cargo vessel that was soon adapted to carry passengers. It suffered a series of maritime accidents prior to its final sinking in 1875 causing the loss of ten lives. It became known as the only treasure ship of Lake Superior because she carried 70 tons of Montana silver ore when it sank. The first attempts to salvage its cargo in 1876 and 1938 were unsuccessful. Comet was finally salvaged in the 1980s when the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society illegally removed artifacts from the wreck. The artifacts are now the property of the State of Michigan and are on display as a loan to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum. The fate of her silver ore cargo is unknown. Comet's wreck is now protected by the Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve as part of an underwater museum.

SS <i>Glenlyon</i> Freighter sunk off the shore of Isle Royale in Lake Superior

The Glenlyon was a freighter built in 1893; it was sunk off the shore of Isle Royale in Lake Superior in 1924 and the remains are still on the lake bottom. The wreck was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

SS <i>Algoma</i> Screw steamer sunk on Lake Superior

Algoma was a screw steamer built in 1883. She sank off Mott Island near Isle Royale in Lake Superior in 1885 and some of her remains are still on the lake bottom. The wreck was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

SS <i>America</i> (1898) Steam packet wrecked off Isle Royale in Lake Superior

America was a packet boat transporting passengers, mail, and packages between settlements along the North Shore of Lake Superior, an inland sea in central North America. Built in 1898, America sank in Washington Harbor off the shore of Isle Royale in 1928, where the hull still remains. The wreck was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

PS <i>Cumberland</i> Wooden-hulled side paddlewheeler wrecked in Lake Superior

The Cumberland was a wooden-hulled side paddlewheeler built in 1871; it was wrecked off the shore of Isle Royale in Lake Superior in 1877 and the remains are still on the lake bottom. The wreck was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

SS <i>Henry Chisholm</i> Wooden freighter wrecked in isle royale

The Henry Chisholm was a wooden freighter that sank off the shore of Isle Royale in Lake Superior in 1898 and the remains are still on the lake bottom. The wreck was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

SS <i>Monarch</i> Passenger-package freighter that sank in Lake Superior

SS Monarch was a passenger-package freighter built in 1890 that operated on the Great Lakes. She was sunk off the shore of Isle Royale in Lake Superior in 1906 and the remains of her wreck and cargo are still on the lake bottom. The wreck was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

The Burlington Bay Horse Ferry is a shipwreck in Lake Champlain off Burlington, Vermont, United States. It is the only known example of a turntable horse ferry, a ship type that was common on United States waterways in the mid-19th century. The wreck is a Vermont State Historic Site, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993. Its location is marked by buoys in Burlington Bay between the northern end of the Burlington Breakwater and Lone Rock Point, and it is visitable by certified divers.

The O.J. Walker was a cargo schooner that plied the waters of Lake Champlain between New York and Vermont. Built in 1862 in Burlington, Vermont, she hauled freight until sinking off the Burlington coast in a storm in 1895, while carrying a load of brick and tile. The shipwreck, located west of the Burlington Breakwater, is a Vermont State Historic Site, and is accessible to registered divers. It is one of the best-preserved examples of the 1862 class of sailing canal schooners, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998.

Josephine was an American iron-hull, sidewheel steamer that transported mail, freight, and passengers, in the Gulf of Mexico, mainly between New Orleans, Louisiana and Galveston, Texas, beginning in 1868. In 1881, the Josephine was transferred to the New Orleans – Havana route. Returning from Havana in February 1881, the Josephine encountered a winter storm in the Gulf of Mexico, south of Biloxi, Mississippi, took on water and sank, but all passengers and crew survived. In 2000, the Josephine shipwreck was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

SS <i>Robert Wallace</i> Wooden steamship wrecked in Lake Superior in 1902

SS Robert Wallace was a wooden-hulled American bulk freighter that served on the Great Lakes of North America from her construction in 1882 to her sinking in 1902 on Lake Superior near the town of Palmers, St. Louis County, Minnesota, United States. On November 17, 1902 shortly after leaving Superior, Wisconsin with a cargo of iron ore, Robert Wallace sprang a leak and sank. Her wreck was found in 2006, and on October 14, 2009, the wreck of Robert Wallace was listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

SS <i>Australasia</i> Defunct wooden-hulled American Great Lakes freighter

Australasia was a wooden-hulled American Great Lakes freighter that served on the Great Lakes of North America between her construction in 1884 to her burning and sinking in 1896. On October 18, 1896, while loaded with coal, the Australasia sank in Lake Michigan near the town of Sevastopol, Door County, Wisconsin, United States, after burning off Cana Island. On July 3, 2013, the wreck of the Australasia was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

SS <i>Lakeland</i> Steel ship wrecked in Lake Michigan

The SS Lakeland was an early steel-hulled Great Lakes freighter that sank on December 3, 1924, into 205 feet (62 m) of water on Lake Michigan near Sturgeon Bay, Door County, Wisconsin, United States, after she sprang a leak. On July 7, 2015, the wreck of the Lakeland was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

SS <i>Senator</i> Steel-hulled Great Lakes freighter that sank on Lake Michigan

SS Senator was a steel-hulled Great Lakes freighter that sank on Lake Michigan with the loss of nine lives and 268 Nash automobiles, on Halloween of 1929 after she was rammed in heavy fog by the bulk carrier Marquette. She lies in 450 feet (140 m) of water 16 miles northeast of Port Washington, Wisconsin. On April 12, 2016 her wreck was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

PS <i>Anthony Wayne</i> Early wooden-hulled sidewheel steamship

The PS Anthony Wayne was an early wooden-hulled sidewheel steamship that sank on April 28, 1850, in Lake Erie off the coast of Vermilion, Ohio, after two of her starboard side boilers exploded. The number of people on board the ship at the time of incident is estimated to be about 100. The ship's clerk reported that there were 80 to 100 people on board, which included the crew, with about 30 of them surviving.

SS <i>Atlanta</i> Wooden hulled Great Lakes steamer

The SS Atlanta was a wooden hulled Great Lakes steamer that sank in Lake Michigan off the coast of Cedar Grove, Wisconsin, United States, after a failed attempt of her being towed to shore ultimately killing 5 out of her 7 crew members on board. Her wreckage still remains at the bottom of the lake, and on November 6, 2017, the wreck of the Atlanta was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Roger L. Ciuffo (1998). "NRHP nomination for Phoenix (shipwreck)". National Park Service . Retrieved November 17, 2016. with photos from 1998
  3. "Colchester diver Gary Lefebvre discovers wreckage in Lake Champlain". Saint Albans Messenger. September 4, 2020. Retrieved October 9, 2020.