Site Description #
- Tug
- 30ffw 9m
- Scattered
- Buffalo, NY, Lake Erie
- 42° 50′ 42″ N
-78° 57′ 50.4″ W
History #
The ACME was a tug (towboat) built in 1893 in Buffalo, New York, with an official number of 107039. It was constructed by O’Grady & Maher for the Maytham Tug Line, which was its original owner. The vessel had a wooden hull and a single deck.
Powered by a high-pressure non-condensing (HPNC) engine manufactured by Sutton Bros. of Buffalo in 1893, the ACME had one cylinder with dimensions of 22 x 26 inches, producing 500 horsepower at 120 rpm. It also had one firebox boiler measuring 8 feet 6 inches by 14 feet, operating at 125 pounds per square inch, built by Riter Bros. of Buffalo in 1892.
With a length of 66.8 feet, a beam of 17 feet, and a depth of 9.6 feet, the ACME had a gross tonnage of 58.52 and a net tonnage of 29.26.
The history of the ACME includes ownership changes. It was initially enrolled in Buffalo, New York, on July 17, 1893, under the Maytham Tug Line. It later became part of the Great Lakes Towing Co. in Buffalo, and at an unknown date, it was owned by Hand & Johnson Tug Line, also based in Buffalo.
Unfortunately, the ACME met a tragic fate. On April 15, 1902, it was run down and sunk by the steamer WILKESBARRE of the Lehigh Valley Line in Lake Erie off Buffalo. The tug was declared a total loss. There were four individuals on board at the time of the collision, but no lives were lost.
The wreck of the ACME occurred near the Buffalo breakwater in Buffalo, New York. Some pieces of wreckage, including the pilot house, were found floating in the river at Niagara Falls, but the vessel was ultimately considered beyond salvage. The documents for the ACME were surrendered on August 17, 1907, in Buffalo.
