SS Samuel Mather (1887)
Encyclopedia
The SS Samuel Mather (1887) was the first of seven U.S. merchant ships to bear that name. The wooden Mather sank in 1891 after she was rammed by the steel freighter
Brazil in heavy fog
in Whitefish Bay
8 miles (12.9 km) from Point Iroquois, ending the Mather's 4 year career. Her intact wreck is a rare of example of wooden freighters that plied the Great Lakes
and she is a popular scuba diving
site. Although there was no loss of life when the Mather sank, her wreck claimed the lives of two scuba divers more than 100 years after she sank. Artifacts
from her wreck were illegally removed in the 1980s. 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 wreck of the Mather is protected as part of an underwater museum in the Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve
.
that has long since disappeared from the Great Lakes." The 246 feet (75 m) steamer was constructed with wood and had two boilers and two masts
.
The Mather had a series of mishaps and changes in ownerships after she was launched in Cleveland on 7 April 1887 for her first owners, R. John W. Moore, et al. On 20 October 1887 when she was bound from Sandusky, Ohio
to Duluth, Minnesota
, the tug Mystic towed her to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan
with disabled machinery. On 9 May 1888, she was sold to Samuel Mather
, et al of Cleveland, Ohio
. On 11 August 1888, she was damaged in a heavy gale
near Detour, Michigan and later repaired in Cleveland. On 13 April 1889, she was sold to James Pickard, et al of Interlake Transportation Company. In June 1889, she towed the Senator and the Winana. On 30 September 1890, she was libeled for sinking the steamer Ohio. The Mather was a coal-carrying steamer but she "perished with an abnormal cargo of wheat".
for Buffalo, New York
with a load of 58,000 bushels of wheat when she was rammed on the starboard side near the aft
hatch by the steel package freighter Brazil in a thick, heavy fog in Whitefish Bay 8 miles (12.9 km) north of Point Iroquois. The collision made an 11 foot (3.4 m) hole on her starboard side. There was no loss of life from the crew of twenty. During the 25 minutes that it took her to sink, her crew were able to pull away with her life boats
but they lost all of their personal possessions. The crew was picked up by the Brazil and were later transferred to the steamer Parks Foster for transport to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. The Brazil proceeded to Duluth with her load of coal and was found to have 3 frames and a stringer broken from the collision. The Mather was valued at $50,000 and with her wheat cargo, the total loss was estimated in excess of $226,000.
. However, Michigan’s Antiquities Act of 1980 prohibited the removal of artifacts from shipwrecks on the Great Lakes bottomlands. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Environment 1992 raid on the GLSHS offices and Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum included seizure of artifacts that were illegally removed from the Samuel Mather in the 1980s.
Artifacts from the Mather's wreck are on display in the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum as a loan from the State of Michigan by a 1993 settlement agreement with the GLSHS following the DNR raid on the museum in 1992. The Samuel Mather's wreck in now protected by the Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve as part of an underwater museum.
Stonehouse wrote that wreck of " the Mather is one of the best known examples a wooden freighter still available for examination." The Mather is a popular wreck site for scuba diving
as she sits upright with an intact deck and is in very good condition, likely because she sank slowly enough for pressures to equalize. The wreck of the Mather lies at 46°34.308′N 084°42.325′W. Her mast can be reached at 75 feet, her deck at 155 feet, and the bottom at 180 feet. Although the Mather is not the deepest dive in the Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve, she claimed the life of two scuba divers, one in 1998 and the other in 1999. Great Lakes diver Harrington cautions that "divers must be certain of their abilities and equipment" when diving the Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve.
Cargo ship
A cargo ship or freighter is any sort of ship or vessel that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year; they handle the bulk of international trade...
Brazil in heavy fog
Fog
Fog is a collection of water droplets or ice crystals suspended in the air at or near the Earth's surface. While fog is a type of stratus cloud, the term "fog" is typically distinguished from the more generic term "cloud" in that fog is low-lying, and the moisture in the fog is often generated...
in Whitefish Bay
Whitefish Bay
Whitefish Bay is a large bay on the eastern end of the southern shore of Lake Superior between Michigan and Ontario. It begins in the north and west at Whitefish Point in Michigan, about 10 miles north of Paradise, Michigan and ends at the St. Marys River at Sault Ste. Marie on the southeast...
8 miles (12.9 km) from Point Iroquois, ending the Mather's 4 year career. Her intact wreck is a rare of example of wooden freighters that plied the Great Lakes
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
and she is a popular scuba diving
Scuba diving
Scuba diving is a form of underwater diving in which a diver uses a scuba set to breathe underwater....
site. Although there was no loss of life when the Mather sank, her wreck claimed the lives of two scuba divers more than 100 years after she sank. Artifacts
Artifact (archaeology)
An artifact or artefact is "something made or given shape by man, such as a tool or a work of art, esp an object of archaeological interest"...
from her wreck were illegally removed in the 1980s. The artifacts are now the property of the State of Michigan and are on display as a loan to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum
Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum
The Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum is located at the Whitefish Point Light Station north of Paradise in Chippewa County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The light station property was transferred to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society , the Michigan Audubon Society , and the United States...
. The wreck of the Mather is protected as part of an underwater museum in the Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve
Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve
The Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve was established in 1987 to protect and conserve shipwrecks and historical resources on of Lake Superior bottomlands in Whitefish Bay and around Whitefish Point, Michigan. The formation of the Michigan Underwater Preserves helped stop controversy over...
.
Career
Shipwreck historian Frederick Stonehouse wrote, "The Mather is a rare example of a type of freighterCargo ship
A cargo ship or freighter is any sort of ship or vessel that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year; they handle the bulk of international trade...
that has long since disappeared from the Great Lakes." The 246 feet (75 m) steamer was constructed with wood and had two boilers and two masts
Mast (sailing)
The mast of a sailing vessel is a tall, vertical, or near vertical, spar, or arrangement of spars, which supports the sails. Large ships have several masts, with the size and configuration depending on the style of ship...
.
The Mather had a series of mishaps and changes in ownerships after she was launched in Cleveland on 7 April 1887 for her first owners, R. John W. Moore, et al. On 20 October 1887 when she was bound from Sandusky, Ohio
Sandusky, Ohio
Sandusky is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Erie County. It is located in northern Ohio and is situated on the shores of Lake Erie, almost exactly half-way between Toledo to the west and Cleveland to the east....
to Duluth, Minnesota
Duluth, Minnesota
Duluth is a port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Saint Louis County. The fourth largest city in Minnesota, Duluth had a total population of 86,265 in the 2010 census. Duluth is also the second largest city that is located on Lake Superior after Thunder Bay, Ontario,...
, the tug Mystic towed her to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan
Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan
Sault Ste. Marie is a city in and the county seat of Chippewa County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is in the north-eastern end of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, on the Canadian border, separated from its twin city of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, by the St. Marys River...
with disabled machinery. On 9 May 1888, she was sold to Samuel Mather
Samuel Mather
Samuel Mather was born in Cleveland, Ohio and for many years was that city's richest citizen and a major philanthropist, particularly favoring Kenyon College. In 1847 his father had founded the Cleveland Iron Mining Company, and Mather was destined to follow him in the management of this company....
, et al of Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
. On 11 August 1888, she was damaged in a heavy gale
Gale
A gale is a very strong wind. There are conflicting definitions of how strong a wind must be to be considered a gale. The U.S. government's National Weather Service defines a gale as 34–47 knots of sustained surface winds. Forecasters typically issue gale warnings when winds of this strength are...
near Detour, Michigan and later repaired in Cleveland. On 13 April 1889, she was sold to James Pickard, et al of Interlake Transportation Company. In June 1889, she towed the Senator and the Winana. On 30 September 1890, she was libeled for sinking the steamer Ohio. The Mather was a coal-carrying steamer but she "perished with an abnormal cargo of wheat".
Final voyage
On 22 November 1891 at 2:00 am, the wooden Mather was downbound from Duluth, MinnesotaDuluth, Minnesota
Duluth is a port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Saint Louis County. The fourth largest city in Minnesota, Duluth had a total population of 86,265 in the 2010 census. Duluth is also the second largest city that is located on Lake Superior after Thunder Bay, Ontario,...
for Buffalo, New York
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
with a load of 58,000 bushels of wheat when she was rammed on the starboard side near the aft
Aft
Aft, in naval terminology, is an adjective or adverb meaning, towards the stern of the ship, when the frame of reference is within the ship. Example: "Able Seaman Smith; lay aft!". Or; "What's happening aft?"...
hatch by the steel package freighter Brazil in a thick, heavy fog in Whitefish Bay 8 miles (12.9 km) north of Point Iroquois. The collision made an 11 foot (3.4 m) hole on her starboard side. There was no loss of life from the crew of twenty. During the 25 minutes that it took her to sink, her crew were able to pull away with her life boats
Lifeboat (shipboard)
A lifeboat is a small, rigid or inflatable watercraft carried for emergency evacuation in the event of a disaster aboard ship. In the military, a lifeboat may be referred to as a whaleboat, dinghy, or gig. The ship's tenders of cruise ships often double as lifeboats. Recreational sailors sometimes...
but they lost all of their personal possessions. The crew was picked up by the Brazil and were later transferred to the steamer Parks Foster for transport to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. The Brazil proceeded to Duluth with her load of coal and was found to have 3 frames and a stringer broken from the collision. The Mather was valued at $50,000 and with her wheat cargo, the total loss was estimated in excess of $226,000.
Wreck History
The Mather's wreck was discovered in May 1978 by Bob Smith of Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan and has been extensively filmed by the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society (GLSHS). Shipwreck historian Janice Gerred reported that the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society took the Mather's artifacts for preservation to display in the Great Lakes Shipwreck MuseumGreat Lakes Shipwreck Museum
The Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum is located at the Whitefish Point Light Station north of Paradise in Chippewa County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The light station property was transferred to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society , the Michigan Audubon Society , and the United States...
. However, Michigan’s Antiquities Act of 1980 prohibited the removal of artifacts from shipwrecks on the Great Lakes bottomlands. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Environment 1992 raid on the GLSHS offices and Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum included seizure of artifacts that were illegally removed from the Samuel Mather in the 1980s.
Artifacts from the Mather's wreck are on display in the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum as a loan from the State of Michigan by a 1993 settlement agreement with the GLSHS following the DNR raid on the museum in 1992. The Samuel Mather's wreck in now protected by the Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve as part of an underwater museum.
Stonehouse wrote that wreck of " the Mather is one of the best known examples a wooden freighter still available for examination." The Mather is a popular wreck site for scuba diving
Scuba diving
Scuba diving is a form of underwater diving in which a diver uses a scuba set to breathe underwater....
as she sits upright with an intact deck and is in very good condition, likely because she sank slowly enough for pressures to equalize. The wreck of the Mather lies at 46°34.308′N 084°42.325′W. Her mast can be reached at 75 feet, her deck at 155 feet, and the bottom at 180 feet. Although the Mather is not the deepest dive in the Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve, she claimed the life of two scuba divers, one in 1998 and the other in 1999. Great Lakes diver Harrington cautions that "divers must be certain of their abilities and equipment" when diving the Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve.