SCHOOLCRAFT C134270

SCHOOLCRAFT, a steam screw vessel, was launched in Trenton, near Detroit, on April 18, 1884. Measuring 180 feet in length, 34 feet in beam, and 14 feet in depth, she had a carrying capacity of 700,000 board feet of lumber. The ship was initially owned by John C. Fitzpatrick and others from Cleveland, Ohio, but ownership changed hands several times over the years.

In October 1887, the SCHOOLCRAFT was acquired by Thomas Nester of Detroit, Michigan, and later underwent reboilering in 1895 with a 130-pound steam scotch boiler from Dry Dock Engineering Works in Detroit. In April 1910, the Nester Lumber Company of Duluth, Minnesota took ownership of the vessel, followed by a transfer to the Nester Lumber Company in Michigan in July of the same year.

On April 13, 1911, the SCHOOLCRAFT came under the ownership of the Fairport Transportation Company in Fairport, Ohio. In 1912, she underwent a rebuild to serve in the coal trade. However, on May 10, 1916, her enrollment was surrendered in Cleveland, and the vessel was sold to Canadian interests.

Under new ownership by Manley Chew of Midland, Ontario, the SCHOOLCRAFT was enrolled in Canada as C134270. There are indications that she might have been converted into a motor vessel around this time. In 1919, the ship underwent significant repairs.

Tragically, on December 3, 1920, the SCHOOLCRAFT fell victim to a fire on Lake Ontario and was consumed by the flames.

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