Other Names #
- HELENA – 1974
History #
AMBOY, formerly known as HELENA, was a schooner-barge that was built in 1874 by Quayle & Martin in Cleveland, Ohio. It had three masts and was constructed using wood as its hull material. The vessel had a length of 209 feet, a beam of 34.2 feet, and a depth of 14.4 feet. Its gross tonnage was 863.93 tons, and its net tonnage was 820.73 tons.
The AMBOY was owned by the Cleveland Transportation Company of Cleveland, Ohio, and later by the Tonawanda Iron & Steel Co. It operated as a consort to the screw bulk freighter HAVANA. In July 1891, the AMBOY sank in Little Mud Lake in the St. Marys River after a collision, resulting in the loss of one life.
After being wrecked in 1891, the vessel was probably bought and raised by the Milwaukee Tug Boat Line. It was repaired, renamed AMBOY, and its dimensions were modified to 209.3 feet in length, 33.8 feet in beam, and 14.3 feet in depth. It had a gross tonnage of 893 tons and a net tonnage of 849 tons.
On November 28, 1905, the AMBOY, in tow of the steamer GEORGE SPENCER, encountered a storm on Lake Superior. The vessel struggled against the gale for a full day before finally going ashore near Thomasville, Ontario. The AMBOY broke up as a result of the storm and was declared a total loss. There were no reported fatalities among the six crew members aboard. The vessel was carrying coal at the time of the incident.
Prior to its final loss, the AMBOY had a history of accidents and incidents, including collisions, groundings, and being stranded in storms.
