The ''Balize'' was a wooden hulled tugboat that operated on the Great Lakes in the United States and Canada. She was powered by a single cylinder steam powered

Steeple engine A marine steam engine is a steam engine that is used to power a ship or boat. This article deals mainly with marine steam engines of the reciprocating type, which were in use from the inception of the steamboat in the early 19th century to their ...

and fueled by one coal-fired Scotch marine boiler. She had a length of 131.50 feet, a beam of 21.58 feet and height of 12 feet.

History

The ''Balize'' was built in 1863

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

by Ira Lafrinier as the ''Mary Grandy''. On August 2, 1864 she was purchased by the United States Navy, and was renamed USS ''Bignonia''. She was commissioned on September 14, 1864. She was used by the Union Navy as a tugboat in support of the Union Navy blockade of Confederate waterways. Until April 1865, the ''Bignonia'' served with the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron as a tug. She was reassigned to the West Gulf Blockading Squadron in April 1865. On 12 July 1865 she was sold to L. Burrows of Stonington and renamed ''Balize''. On September 22, 1871, the ''Balize'' grounded off Stony Point, she was later removed by the tug ''Vulcan''. She was rebuilt with two 460-horsepower compound engines in Buffalo, New York. On June 11, 1881, the ''Balize'' was rebuilt in Detroit to haul logs across

Lake Huron Lake Huron ( ) is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. Hydrology, Hydrologically, it comprises the easterly portion of Lake Michigan–Huron, having the same surface elevation as Lake Michigan, to which it is connected by the , Strait ...

. On April 28, 1883, she was sold to the Detroit Tug & Transit Company of Detroit. In September 1883 the ''Balize'' had a collision with the steamer ''A.W. Coulton'' near Belle Isle Park on the Detroit River. She caught fire in Detroit in December that same year. On November 7, 1900, the ''Balize'' and another tug the ''Wales'' freed the wooden freighter after she ran aground Detroit River near

Amherstburg, Ontario Amherstburg is a town near the mouth of the Detroit River in Essex County, Ontario, Canada. In 1796, Fort Malden was established here, stimulating growth in the settlement. The fort has been designated as a National Historic Site. The town is ...

. The tugs were going to take the ''Kaliyuga'' to Erie, Pennsylvania, unfortunately they couldn't continue the trip because of a storm and problems with the ''Balizes engine. The ''Kaliyuga'' made it to Erie, Pennsylvania, when the ''Balize'' was replaced by the tug ''Harvey D. Goulder''. In 1902 she was purchased by Victoria Harbour Lumber Company of Virginia.''Windsor Evening Record'', Saturday November 10, 1900, pg 1
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Disposition

In November of 1915 the ''Balize'' was taken to Midland, Ontario, where she was dismantled. Her hull lies on the north side of Midland Bay.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Balize Ships of the Union Navy Ships built in Cleveland Steamships of the United States Navy Tugs of the United States Navy American Civil War auxiliary ships of the United States 1863 ships Tugboats on the Great Lakes