The R.G. Stewart was a commercial packet steamer. On June 4, 1899, it caught fire and sank in

Lake Superior Lake Superior in central North America is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. and the third-largest by volume, holding 10% of the world's surface fresh wa ...

, off the coast of Michigan Island in

Chequamegon Bay Chequamegon Bay ( ) is an inlet of Lake Superior in Ashland and Bayfield counties in the extreme northern part of Wisconsin. History A Native American village, known as ''Chequamegon'', developed here in the mid-17th century. It was developed b ...

. The site of the wreck was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1991.

History

The R.G. Stewart was built in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

, in 1878. It was originally used as a

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

on the

Niagara River The Niagara River () is a river that flows north from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario. It forms part of the border between the province of Ontario in Canada (on the west) and the state of New York (state), New York in the United States (on the east) ...

. The ship was brought to

Duluth, Minnesota , settlement_type = City , nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City , motto = , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...

in 1882 and purchased by Captain Cornelius "Con" Flynn in 1894. Flynn used the ship to carry passengers and cargo to various

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

s along the south shore of

, and had a very profitable business for several years. On Saturday, June 3, 1899, Flynn left

Hancock, Michigan Hancock is a city in Houghton County, Michigan, Houghton County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is across the Keweenaw Waterway from the city of Houghton, Michigan, Houghton on the Keweenaw Peninsula. The population was 4,634 at the 2010 United ...

with three passengers and his crew. The cargo included some live cattle. After stopping in

Ontonagon, Michigan Ontonagon ( ) is a village in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,285 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat and only village of Ontonagon County. The village is located within Ontonagon Township, at the mouth of the Ontonagon R ...

, The R.G. Stewart was destined for its home port of Duluth. A heavy

fog Fog is a visible aerosol consisting of tiny water droplets or ice crystals suspended in the air at or near the Earth's surface. Reprint from Fog can be considered a type of low-lying cloud usually resembling stratus, and is heavily influ ...

soon developed, making visibility very poor. At 11:00 pm, running blind, the ship suddenly crashed aground on Michigan Island. All efforts to free the ship failed, and the crew decided to wait until morning to deal with the problem. The next morning, the crew watched for other passing boats who could have helped, but no boats were sighted, and Captain Flynn decided to deal with the problem himself. The engines were started, and he pushed them feverishly in hopes of backing the boat off its standing point. Unfortunately, this caused the boilers to overheat, and the ship was set on fire. With the whole ship severely ablaze, the cattle were pushed overboard to save them. The cattle successfully swam to shore. Several of the crew and passengers used the

lifeboat Lifeboat may refer to: Rescue vessels * Lifeboat (shipboard), a small craft aboard a ship to allow for emergency escape * Lifeboat (rescue), a boat designed for sea rescues * Airborne lifeboat, an air-dropped boat used to save downed airmen A ...

, while some swam to shore. All survived, except for a crew member named George McKenna, who drowned. The eleven survivors were found by the keeper of the Michigan Island Light, who offered them food and shelter for the night. The following morning he took them to the mainland in his boat.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:R.G. Stewart 1878 ships Maritime incidents in 1899 Shipwrecks of the Wisconsin coast Shipwrecks on the National Register of Historic Places in Wisconsin Shipwrecks of Lake Superior Apostle Islands National Register of Historic Places in Ashland County, Wisconsin Ships built in Buffalo, New York

History

See also

References