TASMANIA U75598

JAMES COUCH

Schooner
30ffw 10m
221ft Length
Point Pelee Island
N 41 47.300 W 82 29.790

The James Couch, also known as the TASMANIA, was a schooner built in 1871 in Port Huron, Michigan. It was constructed by Muir, Livingston & Co. for Captain Thomas L. Parker from Chicago, Illinois. The vessel initially experimented with lee boards, but this proved unsuccessful, and a centerboard case was added in 1872.

The James Couch had a wooden hull with a single deck and three masts. It measured 223.7 feet in length, 34 feet in beam, and had a depth of 14.5 feet. With a gross tonnage of 843, the schooner had a significant carrying capacity of 60,000 bushels.

Throughout its history, the James Couch had a series of ownership changes and incidents. In 1875, it came under the ownership of Merrill & Skeele from Chicago. The vessel underwent repairs in 1879 to maintain its seaworthiness.

In March 1890, the James Couch was rebuilt as a four-masted schooner-barge, with dimensions of 221 x 35 x 16.4 feet and a gross tonnage of 979. It was renamed TASMANIA and owned by Corrigan Bros. from Cleveland, Ohio. However, in August of the same year, the TASMANIA collided with and was sunk by the steamer J. H. WADE in Lake George Flats, St. Mary’s River. The wreck was later raised by the Moran Wrecking Company in September and towed to Cleveland for repairs after the coal was removed.

The TASMANIA faced another collision in July 1891 when it was damaged by the steamer CITY of LONDON in Lake Superior. On October 11, 1894, the vessel was driven ashore in Cleveland, Ohio, but the crew members were successfully rescued. Unfortunately, on October 20, 1905, the TASMANIA foundered in a storm while carrying iron ore from Escanaba, Michigan, to Cleveland, Ohio. The vessel struck the bottom, and the tow line was cut from the steamer BULGARIA, resulting in its rapid sinking. Eight lives were lost in the incident.

The documents of the TASMANIA were surrendered in Cleveland on October 23, 1905. In July 1906, the wreck was blown up as it posed a threat to navigation in its location, three miles southwest of SE Shoal Light in the Pelee Passage of Lake Erie.