On a dense foggy morning, around half-past eight o’clock on Thursday, May 25, 1854, the steamer DETROIT collided with the bark NUCLEUS in Saginaw Bay. The accident caused severe damage to the DETROIT, and she began to take on water rapidly. Despite the efforts to keep her afloat, she sank in about an hour and a half after the collision in thirty fathoms of water, approximately fifteen miles north of Point au Barques.
The DETROIT was under charter to the Sault Ste. Marie Canal Company and was partly loaded with hay and lumber for the Sault. She was also towing two large scows, also loaded with hay and lumber for the company. The collision was so violent that the smoke pipe fell, crushing the wheelhouse and severely injuring the pilot and another person on board. The DETROIT was owned by Capt. E.B. Ward and was valued at $12,000. Unfortunately, she was not insured, resulting in a total loss.
The collision caused two crew members of the DETROIT to be severely injured, with one of them having his leg broken. The cargo and most of the furniture on board were lost in the accident. The steamer NUCLEUS was the other vessel involved in the collision.
This incident marked the eighth heavy marine loss on the Great Lakes during that season.
