Identification & Site Information

• Other Names: Unknown
• Official Number: None
• Vessel Type: Wooden Schooner
• Builder: Oswego, New York
• Year Built: 1836
• Specifications:
• Tonnage: 23 tons
• Home Port: Oswego, New York

Service History

The Hannah was built in 1836 in Oswego, New York, and operated as a small cargo Schooner transporting general merchandise, iron, and other goods between ports on the Great Lakes. She was a typical early Great Lakes sailing vessel, part of the expanding trade network that connected New York, Ontario, Michigan, and Ohio.

Schooners like the Hannah were vital for early commercial shipping, especially for transporting raw materials and manufactured goods to the growing frontier cities of Detroit, Cleveland, and Buffalo.

Final Voyage & Loss – October 18, 1844

On October 18, 1844, the Hannah was sailing upbound from Oswego to Detroit when she encountered a severe storm on Lake Erie.

• The gale forced the Schooner ashore about 20 miles downstream from Malden (modern-day Amherstburg, Ontario).
• Despite the violent grounding, no lives were lost.
• The vessel sustained heavy damage, and she was deemed a Total Loss.
• However, about 30 tons of cargo and some of her rigging were successfully recovered.

Final Disposition & Wreck Site

• Location: 20 miles down from Malden (Amherstburg), Ontario, Lake Erie
• Condition: Wrecked ashore and salvaged; no known remains

Located By & Date Found

Nil return

NOTMARs & Advisories

Nil return

Resources & Links

📖 More on Great Lakes Shipwrecks:
🔗 Maritime History of the Great Lakes
🔗 Great Lakes Shipwreck Research
🔗 David Swayze Shipwreck File
🔗 Save Ontario Shipwrecks

Conclusion

The Hannah was one of many small merchant schooners that helped build the Great Lakes trade routes in the early 19th century. Though she only sailed for eight years, she contributed to the movement of iron and general cargo between ports. Her loss in a storm off Amherstburg in 1844 was a common fate for early schooners, but her story is a reminder of the challenges faced by early mariners on the Great Lakes.

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