LADY OF THE LAKE (1813)

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IDENTIFICATION & SITE INFORMATION #

Name: Lady of the Lake
Type: Schooner (originally a 5-gun armed schooner)
Built: 1813, Sacket’s Harbor, New York
Builder: American Great Lakes Navy
Dimensions:
- Displacement: 89 tons (with conflicting reports indicating 49 tons or 230 tons)
Final Resting Place: Off the coast of Oswego, New York, Lake Ontario
Official Number: None (as it predates the use of official registration numbers)

VESSEL TYPE DESCRIPTION #

The Lady of the Lake was initially constructed as a 5-gun armed schooner for the American Great Lakes Navy during the War of 1812. The vessel was designed for naval combat on the Great Lakes, with a wooden hull and armed capabilities. After the war, the Lady of the Lake was converted into a merchant ship, continuing its service on the Great Lakes in a commercial capacity.

HISTORY #

The Lady of the Lake was built in 1813 at Sacket’s Harbor, New York, during a time of intense conflict between the United States and Great Britain. As part of the American naval forces, the schooner played a role in the War of 1812. Following the conclusion of the war, the ship was decommissioned from military service and repurposed as a merchant vessel.

The schooner continued its life as a merchant ship, transporting goods across the Great Lakes. However, the vessel’s final voyage remains shrouded in mystery. In December 1826, the Lady of the Lake departed from York (now Toronto) bound for Oswego, New York, but never arrived at its destination.

FINAL DISPOSITION #

The Lady of the Lake met its tragic end during a severe storm on either December 13 or 15, 1826. The storm, which occurred off the coast of Oswego, New York, on Lake Ontario, led to the vessel’s presumed foundering. The only evidence of the ship’s fate was a small piece of wreckage that washed up on Ford’s Shoal. The following year, reports surfaced that the hulk of the ship was located three miles off Oswego in deep water.

The storm claimed the lives of seven individuals, including the vessel’s master, Captain John Rogers. The exact circumstances of the sinking and the cargo on board remain unknown.

LOCATED BY & DATE #

The hulk of the Lady of the Lake was reportedly located three miles off Oswego in deep water the year following its disappearance, but there are no specific modern records confirming the exact location or further details about the discovery.