History #
The scow American Champion encountered a series of unfortunate events that ultimately led to its sinking near Leamington, Ontario. On the night of Thursday, October 2, 1875, the scow dragged its anchors ashore and sank. The crew found themselves stranded in the rigging for a grueling 12 hours. However, their rescue came through the heroic efforts of a courageous woman and her two sons. The scow was irreparably damaged and subsequently broken up.
The American Champion was owned by P. Gilcher & Co. and commanded by Captain James Jackson. It had been loading wood near Leamington when it was driven ashore during a powerful gale on Wednesday night. The crew endured a harrowing ordeal, being lashed to the rigging for a terrifying 10 hours. The vessel, valued at $8,000, was insured.
Captain Jackson, along with a crew of seven men, set sail from Robinson’s pier near Leamington on Wednesday evening, intending to deliver a cargo of 130 cords of wood to Captain S. B. Grummond in Detroit. As the storm intensified around 9 o’clock, Captain Jackson decided to drop anchor, believing they were in a secure location. However, the fierce gale caused the scow to drag its anchors. Despite deploying a third anchor and all the available chain, their attempts to secure the vessel were in vain. The scow’s cabin and its contents, including the crew’s personal belongings, were swept away by the force of the sea. The scow began to take on water, pounding on the beach as it drifted closer to shore.
By midnight, the scow had settled to the point where the crew could no longer take any action. Captain Jackson instructed the crew to take refuge in the rigging, but he himself was unable to reach the shrouds. He sought a secure position on the main-gaff, shouting desperately to communicate with his companions, but the noise of the storm made it impossible for them to hear him.
In the frigid and dark conditions, the crew spent the night clinging to the rigging, barely able to move due to the extreme cold. At daybreak, they realized they were about half a mile from shore, devoid of a boat and suffering from numbed limbs. Their hope was revived when they spotted a yawl boat on the beach, which had been damaged in the storm. Not far away, they saw a farmhouse with individuals working around it.
The crew shouted and signaled for help, catching the attention of a woman on the beach. She ran towards them, waving her apron, accompanied by two men. The woman assessed the damaged boat and quickly returned to the house with tools. In a short time, she and the two men began repairing the boat under her direction. She even went back to the house and returned with a yoke of oxen, using them to drag the repaired boat to the water. Equipped with three oars, the crew set out towards the wrecked scow under the woman’s guidance.
After an hour’s journey, the crew was rescued from their precarious situation. Captain Jackson, weakened by exhaustion, was unable to walk, while the rest of the crew suffered cuts and bruises. They were taken to the home of their rescuers, a widow named Mrs. Auguatus Taylor, along with her two sons, Hobert and George.
On October 8, 1875, it was reported that the American Champion had been completely broken up and abandoned as a total wreck near Leamington. Only a small insurance policy covered the vessel. Captain Jackson, the principal owner, deemed any attempt to refloat the scow futile, as the heavy swell had severely damaged it.
In the following weeks, salvage operations continued,
and some remnants of the vessel’s equipment, including shrouds, capstan, windlass, and anchor chains, were recovered. However, the majority of the wreck and its cargo of wood remained strewn along the beach. The American Champion lay submerged, with only its forward hull remaining above water.
The final fate of the American Champion was sealed, and it was listed as a total loss. The incident involving the barges Hannaford and Cash ashore at Long Point and the mention of the Champion being sunk off Manistee Piers are believed to be referring to the same event near Leamington. The scow schooner American Champion, built in 1866 by H. Baker in Trenton, Michigan, met its demise on October 2, 1875, due to the treacherous storm that wrecked it on Lake Erie.
