Charter (1848)

Shotline Diving Wreck Profile

• Name: Charter
• Type: Wooden sidewheel steamer, later converted to screw propeller
• Year Built: 1848
• Builder: Frederick D. Ketchum
• Dimensions: 131 ft (40.19 m) long × 20 ft 2.75 in (6.16 m) beam × 7 ft 9 in (2.36 m) depth
• Registered Tonnage: 197 old-style tons
• Location: ~9.7 km (~6 mi) north of Fairport Harbor, OH
• Original Owners: Chipman P. Turner & Henry P. Smith, Black Rock & Tonawanda, NY
• Number of Masts: Two

Wreck Location Map

Vessel Type

A mid-19th-century, two-deck wooden sidewheel steamer built for passenger and freight service on Lake Erie; later adapted to propeller configuration.

Description

Originally powered by side wheels under high-pressure steam (two boilers, one cylinder); after a rebuild in 1853 by Bidwell & Banta, she was refitted as a screw-driven propeller vessel—removal of her mast, new dimensions (25 ft 5 in beam), and tonnage revised to 241 tons, improving freight handling capabilities.

History

• 1849 (6 Jun): Enrolled in Buffalo
• 1851: Operated between Buffalo and Dunkirk; collided with steamer Columbia on Lake Erie
• 1852: Ran Buffalo–Port Stanley route; stranded off Mentor, OH (21 Aug)
• 1853 (22 Mar): Converted to screw steamer in Buffalo; began towing logs, passengers and freight (e.g. Buffalo–Ashtabula)
• 1854 (Dec): Charter service for Buffalo & Brantford Railroad
• 1856 (April): Owned by American Transportation Co. (Lake Erie Line)
• 1856 (20 Aug): Foundered in storm while bound from Cleveland to Buffalo with grain & flour cargo

Significant Incidents

• 1851: Collided with the steamer Columbia on Lake Erie.
• 1852: Stranded off Mentor, OH on 21 August.

Final Disposition

The Charter sank on 20 August 1856 during storm conditions. Her cargo and structure were lost, but the crew was rescued. The wreck lies off Fairport Harbor in deep water and was not salvaged.

Current Condition & Accessibility

Believed located near Fairport Harbor, OH, based on archival storm reports. Specific site surveys or dives have not been documented. No modern navigational hazards noted; position beyond nearshore and no remnants posing current risk.

Resources & Links

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The Charter illustrates mid-century transitions in passenger-cargo steamer design: originally built as a sidewheeler, she was converted to propeller for utility service. Despite active use, she succumbed to a summer storm in 1856. Though crew were saved, the ship’s loss underscores the unpredictability of Great Lakes weather and the vulnerability of wooden steamers at the time. Her wreck remains a subject for potential deep-water archaeological interest.