SS James Carruthers
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The SS ''James Carruthers'' was a Canadian
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freighter built in 1913. The ship was owned by the St. Lawrence & Chicago Steam and Navigation Company of
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, Ontario, with the official registry number 131090. The ''Carruthers'' was lost 9 November 1913 on
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 ...
during the
Great Lakes Storm of 1913 The Great Lakes Storm of 1913 (historically referred to as the "Big Blow", the "Freshwater Fury", and the "White Hurricane") was a blizzard with hurricane-force winds that devastated the Great Lakes Basin in the Midwestern United States and Sou ...
. The crew of 22 perished with the vessel.


Construction

The ''James Carruthers'' was built at
Collingwood, Ontario Collingwood is a town in Simcoe County, Ontario, Canada. It is situated on Nottawasaga Bay at the southern point of Georgian Bay. Collingwood is well known as a tourist destination, for its skiing in the winter, and limestone caves along the Nia ...
by the Collingwood Shipbuilding Company; her hull number was 00038. She was a steel-hulled, propeller-driven lake freighter; 550 feet in length, 58 feet wide and 27 feet deep. The gross tonnage was 7862 and the net tonnage 5606.


Final voyage

On the evening of November 6, 1913, the ''James Carruthers'' loaded a total of 375,000 bushels of wheat at
Fort William, Ontario Fort William was a city in Ontario, Canada, located on the Kaministiquia River, at its entrance to Lake Superior. It amalgamated with Port Arthur and the townships of Neebing and McIntyre to form the city of Thunder Bay in January 1970. Since th ...
. Her destination was
Midland, Ontario Midland is a town located on Georgian Bay in Simcoe County, Ontario, Canada. It is part of the Huronia/Wendat region of Central Ontario. Located at the southern end of Georgian Bay's 30,000 Islands, Midland is the economic centre of the region, ...
, on the shores of
Georgian Bay Georgian Bay (french: Baie Georgienne) is a large bay of Lake Huron, in the Laurentia bioregion. It is located entirely within the borders of Ontario, Canada. The main body of the bay lies east of the Bruce Peninsula and Manitoulin Island. To ...
. Captain William H. Wright had conferred with another downbound skipper, S.A. Lyons of the ''J.H. Sheadle'', and planned to travel down
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 ...
together. Wright commented on his new boat, "We've still to learn all her tricks, and some of the lads in the
fo'c'sle The forecastle ( ; contracted as fo'c'sle or fo'c's'le) is the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or, historically, the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters. Related to the latter meaning is the phrase " be ...
are complaining that the paint in their rooms is still a little sticky." By 3 o'clock on the morning of Saturday, November 8, the first hints of the storm blew over Lake Superior. The winds quickly shifted from southwest to northwest, bringing with them freezing temperatures, snow squalls, and high waves. The ''Carruthers'' and the ''Sheadle'' were better than halfway to the Soo when the storm hit. By the evening, both vessels were locking through and snaking their way down the St. Mary's River. While going down the river the Canadian freighter passed the upbound ''Midland Prince''. Angus "Ray" McMillan, wheelsman of the ''Carruthers'', sighted his friend Jack Daley aboard the ''Prince'' and yelled out, "We're going to Midland this time, Jack! I'll tell your father we passed you!" At 12:53 on the morning of Sunday, November 9, the ''Carruthers'' was sighted taking on coal at the Picklands, Mather & Company dock near De Tour, Michigan. Shortly after refueling, the ''James Carruthers'' entered
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 ...
, with the ''J.H. Sheadle'' a short distance behind. The lights of the ''Carruthers'' were visible for a short time aboard the ''Sheadle'' as they sailed on a southeastern heading. A little after dawn, the ''Carruthers'' turned to port on a course that would keep her south of Great Duck Island and on a straight line for Georgian Bay. The ''Carruthers'' hasn't been seen since.


Aftermath

After the great storm finally blew itself out late on Monday, November 10, copious amounts of wreckage from several boats began to wash onto Lake Huron's shores. Evidence of the ''James Carruthers'' was slow at first, until great amounts of debris from Canada's newest and largest freighter began coming ashore, mostly near Kincardine and
Point Clark Point Clark is a lakefront cottage community on Lake Huron, in Ontario Canada. It is approximately 15 kilometres south of Kincardine and 40 kilometres north of Goderich. Main streets include Huron Road and Lake Range Road. Point Clark is served ...
. A large field of wreckage was found offshore between Kincardine and Goderich, nearly seventy miles (113 km) south of the ''Carrutherss known course. Several bodies of the crew washed ashore as well, mostly around Point Clark. Captain Wright was identified by his large red mustache. Most of the bodies wore life jackets and heavy coats, indicating that they had had time to prepare for disaster. During the height of the storm late on the afternoon of the 9th, several witnesses heard steamer whistles and sighted distress rockets far offshore of Inverhuron. It was concluded that the rockets were from the ''Carruthers'' as most of her wreckage and crew were found in the vicinity. How the brand-new freighter sank, and how she came to be so far off course (she was bound for Georgian Bay) are mysteries that have never been answered. As of 2021, the wreck of the ''James Carruthers'' has not been located.


John Thompson

By the evening of Tuesday, November 11, there were still several unidentified bodies in the Goderich morgue from a few different vessels. Thomas Thompson of
Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Hamilton has a population of 569,353, and its census metropolitan area, which includes Burlington and Grimsby, has a population of 785,184. The city is approximately southwest of T ...
, scanned the corpses for signs of his son John, a crewman aboard the ''James Carruthers''. Thomas saw one body who looked a lot like his son. The facial features and hair color were identical. The corpse was missing an eyetooth like his son and had a tattoo of J.T. on the left forearm. Several scars and a birth defect (the second and third toes of the feet grew together) convinced Thomas Thompson that he had finally found his son John. He arranged to take possession of the body and notified his family. Meanwhile, in
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, John Thompson read newspaper accounts of the great storm and saw his name on a list of the known dead. Thompson had not accompanied the ''Carruthers'' on its final voyage. Instead of immediately wiring his family, young Thompson leisurely took a train to Hamilton to explain what happened in person. While John dawdled, his father Thomas had purchased a coffin, somberly watched as a grave was dug, and made funeral preparations for his dead son. Once in Hamilton, John still inexplicably wandered around town, visiting a friend who advised him to return home at once. Young Thompson walked into his family's house while the wake was in progress. Mrs. Thompson, after the tremendous shock, was overjoyed that her son was still alive. Thomas Thompson was angered beyond belief at the debts incurred and shame, and yelled "It's just like you to come home and attend your own wake, and you can get right out of this house until this thing blows over!" The young man whom Thomas Thompson mistook for his son remains unidentified to this day; he rests with four other unknown sailors in Goderich, Ontario.Boyer, Dwight. ''True Tales of the Great Lakes''. Cleveland: Freshwater Press, 1971. (pgs. 293-294)


References


External links


University of Detroit MercyHistorical Collection of the Great Lakes Great Lakes Vessels Online Index
{{DEFAULTSORT:James Carruthers, SS Shipwrecks of Lake Huron Maritime incidents in 1913 1913 ships Ships built in Collingwood, Ontario Ships lost with all hands Missing ships Great Lakes freighters Ships powered by a triple expansion steam engine