Shotline Diving Wreck Profile
- Name: J.R. Sprankle
- Type: Oil screw (oil-powered vessel)
- Year Built: 1894
- Builder:
- Dimensions: Unknown
- Registered Tonnage:
- Location: Lake Erie
- Coordinates: Not recorded
- Original Owners: L.A. Wells Construction Company
Wreck Location Map
Vessel Type
A wooden or steel-hulled oil screw—i.e., a vessel powered by an internal combustion engine driving a propeller—commonly used in mid-20th-century Great Lakes service.
Description
Built in 1894, this small oil-powered vessel was likely employed in coastal cargo or fuel transport across Lake Erie. Precise dimensions, construction details, and appearance are not available in accessible records.
History
No further operational history is documented beyond ownership and loss. At the time of wreck, she was owned by L.A. Wells Construction Company and was lost during a severe gale. The incident details are briefly noted in the Great Lakes Shipwreck Files (“24 PM S”)(project.geo.msu.edu, wwmt.com, people.com, en.wikipedia.org).
Significant Incidents
- The J.R. Sprankle foundered in gale conditions and was abandoned as a total loss on November 21, 1956. No casualties were reported.
Final Disposition
The J.R. Sprankle foundered in gale conditions and was abandoned as a total loss on November 21, 1956. No casualties were reported.
Current Condition & Accessibility
Not located. There are no records of this vessel having been found, surveyed, or dived.
Resources & Links
[shotline_reference_links slug=”j-r-sprankle-1894″ title=”References & Links”]
The J.R. Sprankle was a late-19th-century oil-powered screw vessel that succumbed to a November storm on Lake Erie in 1956. Little else is known about her construction or service history. Lost as a derelict during a gale, her wreck remains undocumented and undiscovered, typifying many small auxiliary vessels of the era that quietly disappeared into the murky depths of Great Lakes storms.
Full Wreck Record — complete historical article, construction details, voyage logs, incident reports, dive conditions, and all research sources.
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