Shotline Diving

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Jim Sherriffs, (Peters, Charles Horn, and James Dempsey) US 76392

Explore the remains of the Jim Sherriffs, a wooden steambarge that served the Great Lakes for nearly 40 years before its fiery end in 1922.

Shotline Diving Wreck Profile

  • Name: Jim Sherriffs
  • Type: Wooden steambarge
  • Year Built: 1883
  • Builder: Wolf & Davidson, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
  • Dimensions: Length: 182.8 ft (55.7 m); Beam: 32 ft (9.8 m); Depth of hold: 13.3 ft (4 m)
  • Registered Tonnage: 634.61 tons gross; 561.65 tons net
  • Location: Manistee, Michigan, Lake Michigan
  • Official Number: 76392
  • Original Owners: W.H. Wolf & Thomas Davidson; Kelley Island Lime & Transport Co.; Nessen Transportation Co.
  • Number of Masts: 3 (reduced later)

Wreck Location Map

Vessel Type

Jim Sherriffs was a wooden-hulled steambarge designed for general cargo and bulk trade, especially in the ore and grain trades, with a typical three-masted rig for emergency sail power, common for large steambarges of the era.

Description

The vessel was built with a plain head and rounded stern, measuring 182.8 ft with a single screw. Initially constructed with a single deck, she was rebuilt within her first year to add a second deck and increase capacity. Jim Sherriffs was fitted with a steeple compound engine rated at 400 HP with steel boilers, powerful enough to haul consort barges and operate in the grain and stone trades.

History

  • April 30, 1883: First enrollment at Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
  • September 21, 1883: Rebuilt with a second deck, remeasured at 841.27 gross tons.
  • July 30, 1884: Crank pin failure on Lake Michigan.
  • 1885: Working in the iron ore trade between Marquette, Michigan, and Chicago, Illinois.
  • March 17, 1887: Sold to Kelley Island Lime & Transport Co., Cleveland, Ohio.
  • October 5, 1887: Towed into Sault Ste. Marie with a broken shaft, then repaired at Detroit.
  • July 19, 1890: Aground with consort George at Black Hole, near Encampment Island, St. Mary’s River.
  • October 1895: Burned.
  • November 25, 1895: Ashore with consort Mattie C. Bell in a storm on Summer Island, Wisconsin.
  • May 1896: Wreck recovered.
  • September 3, 1896: Rebuilt at Milwaukee; upper deck and one mast removed. Installed a new fore-and-aft compound engine (20 + 40 × 30 in, 575 HP at 100 RPM) from City of Kalamazoo, built by Wilson & Hendrie, Montague, Michigan; remeasured at 634.61 gross tons.
  • April 9, 1898: Locked in ice at Straits of Mackinac, released with minor damage.
  • 1899: Fitted with two new 6 × 14 ft firebox boilers by R. Davis, Milwaukee.
  • 1906: Same owner in Buffalo, NY.
  • February 1, 1907: Owned by Nessen Transportation Co., Michigan City, Indiana.
  • April 26, 1907: Renamed Peters.
  • 1912: Same owner, operated from Manistee, Michigan.
  • 1915: Rebuilt again at Manistee, measured at 182.8 × 42.9 × 13 ft, 847 gross / 692 net tons; renamed Charles Horn.
  • April 20, 1920: Renamed James Dempsey.
  • December 10, 1922: Burned at dock in Manistee, Michigan.
  • March 28, 1923: Enrollment documents surrendered at Grand Haven, Michigan.

Significant Incidents

  • Crank pin failure on Lake Michigan (July 30, 1884).
  • Aground with consort George at Black Hole (July 19, 1890).
  • Burned (October 1895).
  • Ashore with consort Mattie C. Bell in a storm (November 25, 1895).
  • Locked in ice at Straits of Mackinac (April 9, 1898).

Final Disposition

Burned at dock in Manistee on 10 December 1922 and abandoned.

Current Condition & Accessibility

No modern dive survey; remains presumed destroyed or removed following the fire.

Resources & Links

[shotline_reference_links slug=”jim-sherriffs-peters-charles-horn-and-james-dempsey-us-76392″ title=”References & Links”]

The Jim Sherriffs (later Peters, Charles Horn, and James Dempsey) typifies the long-serving wooden steambarges of the Great Lakes, undergoing repeated rebuilds, renaming, and changes of ownership over nearly 40 years. Her workhorse career in the ore, grain, and stone trades reflects the durability and adaptability of the wooden steambarge era before modern steel freighters took over.

Legacy Notes & Full Historical Record

This section preserves the original unedited Shotline content for this wreck so that no historical detail is lost as we transition to the new logbook format.

Shotline Diving Wreck Profile

  • Name(s): Jim Sherriffs, also known as Peters, Charles Horn, and James Dempsey
  • Official Number: 76392
  • Year Built: 1883
  • Builder: Wolf & Davidson, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
  • Master Carpenter: W.H. Wolf
  • Original Owner: W.H. Wolf & Thomas Davidson, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
  • Vessel Type: Wooden steambarge
  • Hull Materials: Wood
  • Number of Decks: 1 (later rebuilt with 2 decks in 1883)
  • Number of Masts: 3 (reduced later)
  • Propulsion: Screw steamer
  • Engine Type: Steeple compound, 2 cylinders (20 + 30 × 36 in), 400 HP at 83 RPM, built by Sherriffs Manufacturing Co., Milwaukee
  • Boilers: Two steel boilers
  • Propellers: 1
  • Capacity: 40,000 bushels
  • Dimensions:
    • Length: 55.7 m (182.8 ft)
    • Beam: 9.8 m (32 ft)
    • Depth: 4 m (13.3 ft)
  • Gross Tonnage: 634.61 tons
  • Net Tonnage: 561.65 tons
  • Final Location: Manistee, Michigan, Lake Michigan
  • Date Lost: 10 December 1922
  • Disposition: Burned at dock

Vessel Type

Jim Sherriffs was a wooden-hulled steambarge designed for general cargo and bulk trade, especially in the ore and grain trades, with a typical three-masted rig for emergency sail power, common for large steambarges of the era.

Description

The vessel was built with a plain head and rounded stern, measuring 182.8 ft with a single screw. Initially constructed with a single deck, she was rebuilt within her first year to add a second deck and increase capacity. Jim Sherriffs was fitted with a steeple compound engine rated at 400 HP with steel boilers, powerful enough to haul consort barges and operate in the grain and stone trades.

History

  • April 30, 1883: First enrollment at Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
  • September 21, 1883: Rebuilt with a second deck, remeasured at 841.27 gross tons.
  • July 30, 1884: Crank pin failure on Lake Michigan.
  • 1885: Working in the iron ore trade between Marquette, Michigan, and Chicago, Illinois.
  • March 17, 1887: Sold to Kelley Island Lime & Transport Co., Cleveland, Ohio.
  • October 5, 1887: Towed into Sault Ste. Marie with a broken shaft, then repaired at Detroit.
  • July 19, 1890: Aground with consort George at Black Hole, near Encampment Island, St. Mary’s River.
  • October 1895: Burned.
  • November 25, 1895: Ashore with consort Mattie C. Bell in a storm on Summer Island, Wisconsin.
  • May 1896: Wreck recovered.
  • September 3, 1896: Rebuilt at Milwaukee; upper deck and one mast removed. Installed a new fore-and-aft compound engine (20 + 40 × 30 in, 575 HP at 100 RPM) from City of Kalamazoo, built by Wilson & Hendrie, Montague, Michigan; remeasured at 634.61 gross tons.
  • April 9, 1898: Locked in ice at Straits of Mackinac, released with minor damage.
  • 1899: Fitted with two new 6 × 14 ft firebox boilers by R. Davis, Milwaukee.
  • 1906: Same owner in Buffalo, NY.
  • February 1, 1907: Owned by Nessen Transportation Co., Michigan City, Indiana.
  • April 26, 1907: Renamed Peters.
  • 1912: Same owner, operated from Manistee, Michigan.
  • 1915: Rebuilt again at Manistee, measured at 182.8 × 42.9 × 13 ft, 847 gross / 692 net tons; renamed Charles Horn.
  • April 20, 1920: Renamed James Dempsey.
  • December 10, 1922: Burned at dock in Manistee, Michigan.
  • March 28, 1923: Enrollment documents surrendered at Grand Haven, Michigan.

Final Disposition

Burned at dock in Manistee on 10 December 1922 and abandoned.

Located By & Date Found

No modern dive survey; remains presumed destroyed or removed following the fire.

Notmars & Advisories

None noted.

Resources & Links

Conclusion

The Jim Sherriffs (later Peters, Charles Horn, and James Dempsey) typifies the long-serving wooden steambarges of the Great Lakes, undergoing repeated rebuilds, renaming, and changes of ownership over nearly 40 years. Her workhorse career in the ore, grain, and stone trades reflects the durability and adaptability of the wooden steambarge era before modern steel freighters took over.

Keywords, Categories, Glossary Terms

wooden steambarge • sidewheel • Lake Michigan • grain trade • ore trade • shipwreck • Manistee • 19th-century Great Lakes shipping

jim-sherriffs-peters-charles-horn-and-james-dempsey-us-76392 1922-12-10 20:39:00