The schooner CORSAIR was a vessel that met a disastrous fate on Lake Huron on Saturday night and Sunday, as reported on October 2, 1872. The CORSAIR was heavily laden with iron ore, with about 50 tons on deck and the rest in the hold. The vessel encountered a heavy gale off Thunder Bay Light and began to make water. The crew tried to pump out the water, but it continued to increase.
The captain decided to seek shelter in Tawas Bay, but the vessel couldn’t survive running before the high seas. The crew tried to relieve the vessel by throwing the deck load overboard, but the situation worsened, and the vessel settled into the water.
The ship’s mate, Mr. Grady, recounted the harrowing experience of the survivors. As the vessel went down, two crew members, Mr. Grady and Thomas B. Foley, managed to find a piece of deck to cling onto. They later floated on the shell of a boat and then climbed onto the quarter-deck, which kept them afloat. They survived for about 36 hours in these precarious conditions, struggling to stay alive as the waves constantly washed over them.
Finally, on Monday afternoon, they were spotted by the propeller City of Boston, which came to their rescue. They were pulled aboard, and Captain Brown and the crew of the City of Boston provided them with care and treatment.
Sadly, the rest of the crew on the CORSAIR, including Captain G.H. Snow, perished in the disaster. The vessel was lost off Highlands Sauble in Saginaw Bay, and only two men survived the ordeal.
The CORSAIR was one of several vessels lost or damaged during the storm on Lake Huron, which caused significant loss of life and property.
