The CITY OF GENOA was a propeller bulk freighter built in 1892 by James Davidson in West Bay City, Michigan. It had dimensions of 301 feet in length, 42.42 feet in width, and 20 feet in depth. The vessel had a gross tonnage of 2109 tons and a net tonnage of 1773 tons.
On August 26, 1911, the CITY OF GENOA met its demise in a collision with the steel freighter W.H. GILBERT. The accident occurred near the ferry dock at Sarnia, Ontario, in the St. Clair River. The collision caused significant damage to the CITY OF GENOA, which sank as a result. Fortunately, there were no reported casualties in the incident.
The W.H. GILBERT, built at a rival shipyard in the same year as the CITY OF GENOA, was owned by the Gilchrist Transportation Company of Cleveland, Ohio. The Reid Wrecking Company raised the sunken vessel on September 20, 1911, but it was deemed a constructive total loss. The machinery and boilers were stripped from the CITY OF GENOA, and the hull was eventually burned at the dock in Port Huron, Michigan, on October 9, 1915.
After being stripped and burned, the remains of the CITY OF GENOA were towed out into Lake Huron. In 1928, the hull was scuttled approximately 11 miles north of Sarnia, Ontario. The wreck now rests among the other abandoned vessels of the Sarnia “Ghost Fleet” in about 80 feet of water at the southern end of Lake Huron.
The sinking of the CITY OF GENOA and the subsequent salvage and disposal of the wreck left a lasting impression on the residents of Port Huron and Sarnia. The fermented grain cargo caused a strong and unpleasant odor, creating a public outcry due to the smell emanating from the salvage dock.
