Mills Listing
The tugboat Wales, with a construction year of 1881 and an official number of 83375, was built in Sarnia, Ontario, by Parry & Dyble. It had a length of 126 feet, a beam of 24 feet, and a depth of 11 feet, with a gross tonnage of 350. Initially owned by the Muskoka Mill & Lumber Co. in Toronto, it later came under the ownership of the Wescott Wrecking Co. in Sarnia in 1895 and 1901. The Wales was powered by a screw propulsion system and was equipped with an engine measuring 22½x20, constructed by E. E. Gilbert in Montreal using parts salvaged from the old “Wales” tug.
There are two wrecks located north of Partridge Point in the St. Mary’s River, near Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, that have been the subject of investigation. The southernmost wreck, situated at coordinates 46° 31.600’N 84° 14.227’W, is believed to be the larger tugboat Wales, which was constructed in 1881 by Parry and Dyble in Sarnia. The original Wales, built in 1864 at Brockville, Ontario, and converted into a tow barge, shared the same name until the newer Wales was built in 1881. Both vessels were owned by the Muskoka Mill and Lumber Company at one point. The tugboat Wales from 1881 was purchased by Captain F.T. Hackett of Amherstburg, Ontario, in 1892 and converted into a wrecking tug. It was primarily involved in salvage operations on Lakes Erie and Huron, as well as the St. Clair and Detroit Rivers. Subsequently, it was acquired by the Wescott Wrecking Company in Sarnia and later by the Great Lakes Towing Company.
Although most sources indicate that the Wales was abandoned in 1904, an article from September 5, 1905, published in the Sault Evening News under the column “Canadian Soo News Notes,” states that “The lake tug Wales has been brought up from Sarnia by the Great Lakes Towing company and will be placed in commission here.” However, it seems that the Wales was not utilized after being taken to Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, as there are no further mentions of it in local newspapers until an obituary for Captain Peter Telfer in the Sault Daily Star. The obituary, dated January 10, 1936, mentions the presence of the old steamer Wales off Partridge Point in the St. Mary’s River, where it had been beached. Captain Telfer, who was 81 years old at the time of his death, had served as a wheelsman on the Wales when he was only 17. Although Captain Telfer likely served on the first Wales tug from 1864 (as the 1881 Wales had not yet been built when he was 17), it appears that the ship beached off Partridge Point was the Sarnia-built Wales from 1881. The dimensions of the southernmost wreck, as measured on Google Earth, closely match the specifications of the 1881 Wales (126 feet in length, 24 feet in beam, 11 feet in depth). Additionally, remnants of the two 7′ x 15′ boilers, which were part of the original construction, can still be observed within the hull of the wreck.
