The schooner CLAYTON BELLE was involved in a tragic collision with the schooner T. PARSONS off Lakeport in Lake Huron on April 10, 1882. As a result of the collision, the CLAYTON BELLE sank almost immediately, leading to the loss of four crew members’ lives, including the captain. Only two members of the crew survived the accident. The ship was carrying a cargo of 522 tons of pig iron and was bound for Erie, Pennsylvania from Port St. Ignace at the time of the collision.
After the collision, the CLAYTON BELLE came to rest upright, with its masts still showing above the water. Salvage operations were undertaken, and divers discovered the wreck in 1993. They found the hull split from stem to stern, with the port side of the ship lying about twelve hundred feet away from the rest of the wreck. Divers found evidence that suggested the ship was intentionally torn apart to salvage the cargo of pig iron.
The collision and subsequent loss of the schooner raised some controversy, as it was reported that the captain of the PARSONS was criticized for failing to launch a lifeboat and search for survivors immediately after the accident. The survivors from the CLAYTON BELLE stated that they tried to launch a lifeboat from the PARSONS to rescue their friends but received little help from the crew of the latter vessel. The collision happened because the PARSONS was reefing sail, and a partially hanging sail obstructed the wheelman’s view, preventing them from seeing the CLAYTON BELLE until it was too late.
Efforts to salvage the cargo of pig iron from the wreck of the CLAYTON BELLE were undertaken by a diving and salvage company called Quinn Brothers. The salvagers successfully raised the iron from the wreck site using buckets and a barge anchored at the location. Over the years, the wreck has been further explored by divers, and various parts of the ship, including sails, rigging, iron and brass fittings, and even the rudder, have been stripped from the wreck.
The CLAYTON BELLE was built in 1868 in Clayton, New York. The wreck lies in about 40 feet of water, and the remaining parts of the hull, cargo deck, keelson, and other components are still visible.
Sources:
- Chicago Inter Ocean, “Two Schooners Collide with Fatal Effect in the Waters of Huron,” Apr. 13, 1882
- Evening News, Detroit, “Down to Death,” April 12, 1882
- Port Huron Daily Times, “The Schooner CLAYTON BELLE Goes Down on Lake Huron And Four of The Crew Drowned,” Apr. 12, 1882
- Detroit Free Press, “Collision on Lake Huron,” Apr. 13, 1882
- Inland Seas, Winter 1996, p. 276
- Schooners in Peril by James L. Donahue
