History
The H.P. BRIDGE was a wooden three-masted barkentine built in 1864 by James M. Jones in Detroit, Michigan. It had a length of 164 feet, a beam of 30 feet, and a depth of 12 feet. The barkentine had a gross tonnage of 426 tons and a net tonnage of 400 tons.
On May 11, 1869, the H.P. Bridge was sailing on Lake Huron, approximately 40 miles southeast of Thunder Bay Island. The vessel was carrying a cargo of oats and 65,000 bricks and was bound from Milwaukee to Detroit and Buffalo. However, in heavy fog, the H.P. Bridge collided with the propeller ship Colorado.
Fortunately, there were no reported casualties in the collision. The crew of the H.P. Bridge managed to escape either by using a yawl or by clambering over the bow of the Colorado before the H.P. Bridge sank.
The H.P. Bridge was owned by Elon W. Hudson of Detroit, and the master of the vessel was Captain Stedman.
The collision case between the H.P. Bridge and the Colorado was decided in Detroit, with Judge Longyear of the United States District Court ruling that the Colorado was at fault for the collision due to a lack of reasonable care, caution, and diligence. A decree was ordered in favor of the H.P. Bridge, and the damages resulting from the collision were to be determined by a commission.
In its history, the H.P. Bridge was readmeasured in 1865, reducing its gross tonnage to 424 tons. It was known for its remarkable record of completing the Detroit-Buffalo run in three days on October 15, 1865, carrying 36,000 bushels of wheat.
