Other Names #
- Russel Sage 1881
- Wire Bale Wreck
- Bulk Carrier
- 65 ffw 24m
- 218 ft length
- Point Travers, Lake Ontario. N 43’53.633 W 76’59.650
History #
The barge ATLASCO, previously known as the RUSSELL SAGE, had an official Canadian number of 138234 and a registered tonnage of 788 tons. It was originally built in Buffalo, New York, USA in 1881 and later rebuilt in Sorel, Quebec in 1917. The barge’s home port was Montreal, Quebec, and it was owned by the Sincennes McNaughton Line.
Originally named RUSSELL SAGE, the barge was a package freight propeller constructed on May 21, 1881. It was made of wood and had a US number of 110472. The vessel had a gross tonnage of 1224 and a net tonnage of 1104. It measured 218 feet in length, 32 feet in width, and had a depth of 13 feet. In 1906, it was converted into a bulk propeller.
The barge underwent a name change and was renamed RUSSELL SAGE (Can) in 1914, with the Canadian registration number C 138234. In 1917, it was further converted into a barge and given the name ATLASCO (Can). Tragically, the ATLASCO foundered off South Bay, Ontario, in Lake Ontario on August 7, 1921.
The historical timeline of the barge includes various ownership changes and incidents. It was first launched on May 23, 1881, and enrolled in Buffalo, New York on June 10. At that time, it was owned by the Wabash Pacific & Saint Louis Railway Company, with a tonnage of 1104.75. On August 5, 1883, the barge was chartered by the Commercial Line. It later came under the ownership of the Lake Erie Transportation Company on January 20, 1890. In 1906, M.W. Humphry from Detroit, Michigan, and Frank S. Upton from Charlotte, New York, became the owners. The barge underwent a major rebuild on November 27, 1906, transforming it into a coarse freighter with dimensions of 218 x 32 x 13.4 feet and a tonnage of 597 gross and 456 net.
Ownership changed hands again on August 12, 1907, when George C. Bayless from Binghamton, New York, became the owner. Tragedy struck on November 1, 1912, when the barge burned, sank, and was abandoned in Oswego, New York. The documents for the vessel were surrendered in Ogdensburg, New York, on March 17, 1914.
The barge was rebuilt as a barge in either Sorel, Quebec, or Port Dalhousie, Ontario, in 1917. It was then owned by the Sincennes-McNaughton Company based in Montreal, Quebec. In April 1917, it was given the name ATLASCO. Later, it came under the ownership of the Atlas Transportation Company in 1918.
The final unfortunate event occurred on August 7, 1921, when the ATLASCO foundered during a storm off South Bay Point in Ontario, on Lake Ontario.
