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.

Bark / Three‑masted Wooden Ship

Shotline Diving Wreck Profile

• Official Number: 23361 (Great Lakes Shipwreck Files)
• Type: Wooden bark (sometimes reported as 3‑masted schooner)
• Tonnage: Approx. 853 tons (registered), about 655 tons old measurement (Great Lakes Shipwreck Files)
• Build Year & Location: 1867 by Bailey Brothers, Fairport, Ohio (Great Lakes Shipwreck Files)
• Date of Loss: 3 November 1874
• Location of Loss: Cassidy’s Reef (also reported as Kennedy’s Reef), ~2 miles from Port Colborne, Lake Erie (Great Lakes Shipwreck Files)
• Cargo: Iron ore
• Loss Cause: Wrecked on the reef in a general gale
• Lives Lost: None recorded — crew survived (Great Lakes Shipwreck Files)

Vessel Type

A three‑masted, full‑rigged wooden bark used primarily as bulk freight carrier—specifically hauling iron ore across Lake Erie. Built for heavy cargo trade in the late 19th century Great Lakes economy.

Description

• Wooden hull, bark rigged (square‑sails), substantial iron ore capacity (~850 tons). The vessel’s size and design reflect era‑typical ore transport ships.
• Registered in Fairport, indicating local regional trading routes between Lake Huron/Huron ports and Buffalo/Montreal via Erie (Great Lakes Shipwreck Files).

Operational History

• Built in 1867 in Fairport, Ohio by Bailey Bros., the Osborn served Midwest ore trades.
• Details on intermediate incidents are scarce, but her final voyage in 1874 bound her from Escanaba (Lake Superior iron) toward Buffalo, indicating a heavy bulk freight lane.
• Encountered a severe gale on Lake Erie, stranded onto Cassidy’s Reef near Port Colborne.
• Salvage teams initially believed she could be refloated, but persistent violent weather broke the vessel apart before significant salvage could occur (Wikipedia, Great Lakes Shipwreck Files).

Final Disposition

• The vessel was wrecked and ultimately broken up on the reef under severe weather. No salvage of value; she was abandoned as a total loss.
• No records of lives lost; crew survived and were presumably rescued.
• Wreck site status: not officially surveyed or located by modern exploration; appears undisturbed or undocumented in modern databases.

Notmars & Advisories

• No Notices to Mariners published for the reef hazard post-loss.
• Sources stem largely from historic registry and archival ocean‑weather logs compiled in Great Lakes Shipwreck Files, with no modern hazard listing.

Significance

• S.S. Osborn represents the era’s ore‑transport barkers vulnerable to Lake Erie’s notorious November storms.
• The incident illustrates early Great Lakes bulk trade hazards where reef-grounding in storms often spelled the vessel’s end.
• No fatalities reported—a somewhat uncommon outcome for this period’s wrecks, which often claimed lives.

Research Gaps & Further Investigation

• Primary source verification: Port Colborne / Port Detroit newspapers Nov 1874 for account of grounding/rescue details.
• Maritime registry leads: Examination of insurance, salvage company or underwriters’ logs referencing the wreck of Osborn.
• Local historical & hydrographic survey: Cassidy’s Reef location mapping to determine potential wreck site coordinates for future identification.

Resources & References

• Great Lakes Shipwreck Files (WordPress): entry “S.S. Osborn” listing official no. 23361, build info, loss details (Cassidy’s/Kennedy’s Reef, iron ore carrier, none lost) (Great Lakes Shipwreck Files, 3DShipwrecks.org)
• Great Lakes Shipwreck lists (Wikipedia-derived): compiled dataset for S.S. Osborn that places her loss contextually in Lake Erie storm‑wreck bowls (Wikipedia)

Keywords & Categories

Wooden bark, iron ore bulk freight, Lake Erie storm, reef‑grounding, 1874 wreck, survived crew, Fairport‑built vessel

s-s-osborn-us-23361 1874-11-03 16:48:00