SS Florida was a wooden hulled Great Lakes freighter that served on the Great Lakes of North America from her construction in 1889, to her sinking in May 1897 when she collided with the larger wooden hulled freighter George W. Roby. Her wreck was located by Ed Ellison in July 1994, in 206 feet (63 m) of water almost completely intact, save for her stern.[1][2][3]
The Florida (Official number 120753) was built in 1889 by Robert Mills & Company in Buffalo, New York for Peter P. Miller of Buffalo, New York.[4] At a length of 270.3 feet (82.4 m) in length, the Florida was one of the largest wooden ships ever built; her beam was 40.2 feet (12.3 m) wide, and her hull was 15.4 feet (4.7 m) deep.[5] She had a gross tonnage of 2103.36 tons, and a net tonnage of 1834.65 tons. She had a cargo capacity of 2400 tons. She was powered by a 650-horsepower triple expansion steam engine that was built by H.G. Trout of Buffalo, New York, and had three cylinders that had a 32 & 52 × 45 inch bore, and a 20-inch stroke.[4]
On October 12, 1889 the Florida ran aground at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, and was freed by the tugs Mystic and Swain after unloading several hundred tons of coal.[4] In 1890 she was chartered to the Lackawanna Transportation Company, where she would carry cargoes of grain and coal between Buffalo, New York and Chicago, Illinois. In October 1893 the Florida went ashore near Whiting, Indiana and was raised and repaired.[4]
Final voyage
In May 1897 the Florida left Chicago, Illinois with a cargo of flour, barrels of whiskey, syrup, and various manufactured goods. She then proceeded to sail up Lake Michigan, into the Straits of Mackinac and finally into upper Lake Huron. On May 20, 1897, at around 9:00 a.m., the Florida was rammed by the larger freighter George W. Roby in a dense fog off the coast of Presque Isle, Michigan.[6] All her crew were taken aboard the Roby. During her sinking, escaping air from her hull blew her cabins off. Captain Henry Murphy, her captain said that "the ship collapsed like a jackknife when the stern hit bottom in over 200 feet (61 m) feet of water".[6][7]
The Florida today
Wreck of the Florida
The remains of the Florida rest in 160 feet (49 m) of water from her deck, and 206 feet (63 m) of water from the lake bottom.[1][3] Most of her hull is completely intact, except for her stern which collapsed when she hit the bottom.[2] Her broken stern exposes her triple expansion steam engine that still has its intact gauge panel. Although the forward cabins are gone, the boiler cabin remains attached to her hull. Forward of her boiler cabin is a wooden deckhouse which could be a guest dining room. Her masts lie on her deck. Her cargo is also still in her hold.[2] Her wreck lies close to the early steel freighter Norman.[8]
^ abc"Freighter Florida". Superior Trips. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
^ ab"Steamer S.S. Florida". Shipwreck Explorers. Retrieved January 12, 2019.
^ abcd"FLORIDA (1889, Package Freighter)". Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library. Retrieved January 10, 2019.
^"Florida". Great Lakes Vessel Histories of Sterling Berry. Retrieved January 12, 2019.
^ ab"Florida 1889-1897". Great Lakes Underwater. Retrieved January 12, 2019.
^"SS Florida (+1897)". Wrecksite. Retrieved January 12, 2019.
^"Shipwrecks". Google Maps. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
May 03, 2023
florida, other, uses, florida, disambiguation, confused, with, florinda, coordinates, 296350, 283517, 296350, 283517, wooden, hulled, great, lakes, freighter, that, served, great, lakes, north, america, from, construction, 1889, sinking, 1897, when, collided, . For other uses see Florida disambiguation Not to be confused with SS Florinda Coordinates 45 17 781 N 83 17 011 W 45 296350 N 83 283517 W 45 296350 83 283517 SS Florida was a wooden hulled Great Lakes freighter that served on the Great Lakes of North America from her construction in 1889 to her sinking in May 1897 when she collided with the larger wooden hulled freighter George W Roby Her wreck was located by Ed Ellison in July 1994 in 206 feet 63 m of water almost completely intact save for her stern 1 2 3 The Florida circa 1890HistoryUnited StatesNameFloridaOwnerPeter P MillerBuilderRobert Mills amp CompanyLaunched1889In serviceMay 25 1889Out of serviceMay 21 1897IdentificationU S Registry 120753FateSank in a collision with the George W RobyGeneral characteristicsTonnage2 103 GRT 1 834 NRTLength270 3 ft 82 4 m Beam40 2 ft 12 3 m Depth15 4 ft 4 7 m Installed powerSteam Contents 1 History 2 Final voyage 3 The Florida today 4 ReferencesHistory EditThe Florida Official number 120753 was built in 1889 by Robert Mills amp Company in Buffalo New York for Peter P Miller of Buffalo New York 4 At a length of 270 3 feet 82 4 m in length the Florida was one of the largest wooden ships ever built her beam was 40 2 feet 12 3 m wide and her hull was 15 4 feet 4 7 m deep 5 She had a gross tonnage of 2103 36 tons and a net tonnage of 1834 65 tons She had a cargo capacity of 2400 tons She was powered by a 650 horsepower triple expansion steam engine that was built by H G Trout of Buffalo New York and had three cylinders that had a 32 amp 52 45 inch bore and a 20 inch stroke 4 On October 12 1889 the Florida ran aground at Sault Ste Marie Michigan and was freed by the tugs Mystic and Swain after unloading several hundred tons of coal 4 In 1890 she was chartered to the Lackawanna Transportation Company where she would carry cargoes of grain and coal between Buffalo New York and Chicago Illinois In October 1893 the Florida went ashore near Whiting Indiana and was raised and repaired 4 Final voyage EditIn May 1897 the Florida left Chicago Illinois with a cargo of flour barrels of whiskey syrup and various manufactured goods She then proceeded to sail up Lake Michigan into the Straits of Mackinac and finally into upper Lake Huron On May 20 1897 at around 9 00 a m the Florida was rammed by the larger freighter George W Roby in a dense fog off the coast of Presque Isle Michigan 6 All her crew were taken aboard the Roby During her sinking escaping air from her hull blew her cabins off Captain Henry Murphy her captain said that the ship collapsed like a jackknife when the stern hit bottom in over 200 feet 61 m feet of water 6 7 The Florida today Edit Wreck of the Florida The remains of the Florida rest in 160 feet 49 m of water from her deck and 206 feet 63 m of water from the lake bottom 1 3 Most of her hull is completely intact except for her stern which collapsed when she hit the bottom 2 Her broken stern exposes her triple expansion steam engine that still has its intact gauge panel Although the forward cabins are gone the boiler cabin remains attached to her hull Forward of her boiler cabin is a wooden deckhouse which could be a guest dining room Her masts lie on her deck Her cargo is also still in her hold 2 Her wreck lies close to the early steel freighter Norman 8 References Edit a b Florida National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary Retrieved January 9 2019 a b c Freighter Florida Superior Trips Retrieved January 9 2019 a b Steamer S S Florida Shipwreck Explorers Retrieved January 12 2019 a b c d FLORIDA 1889 Package Freighter Alpena County George N Fletcher Public Library Retrieved January 10 2019 Florida Great Lakes Vessel Histories of Sterling Berry Retrieved January 12 2019 a b Florida 1889 1897 Great Lakes Underwater Retrieved January 12 2019 SS Florida 1897 Wrecksite Retrieved January 12 2019 Shipwrecks Google Maps Retrieved 3 March 2018 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title SS Florida amp oldid 1098634273, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
