Shotline Diving Wreck Profile
- Name: Scandinavian
- Type: Schooner
- Year Built: 1862
- Builder:
- Dimensions: Length X ft (Y m); Beam; Depth of hold
- Registered Tonnage: 200-300 tons (estimated)
- Location: Offshore near point of grounding (specific shore not recorded)
- Original Owners: Likely based in Erie, Pennsylvania
- Number of Masts: Two-masted
Wreck Location Map
Vessel Type
- Presumed two-masted wooden schooner optimized for grain transport on the Great Lakes (typical for 1860s Chicago–Erie traffic)
Description
- No builder records, tonnage, or dimensions located
- Capable of carrying ~13,000 bu grain—suggest likely gross tonnage of 200–300 tons, flat-bottomed, canal-style hull common to that era
History
- Operated between Chicago and Erie hauling grain in the late 1860s
- Official enrollment and ownership records not yet located
- No prior incidents documented
Significant Incidents
- Grounding during gale on 31 October 1868
- Cargo: Grain (13,000 bushels)
- Casualties: None; crew survived
- No insurance or salvage records publicly found
Final Disposition
- No modern rediscovery recorded
- Wreck is presumed offshore near point of grounding, but no archaeological survey exists
Current Condition & Accessibility
- No official Notices to Mariners or later hazard bulletins documented beyond the fact entry in shipwreck listings such as “List of shipwrecks in 1868”
Resources & Links
[shotline_reference_links slug=”scandinavian-1862″ title=”References & Links”]
Scandinavian was a Chicago-registered grain schooner built in 1862, lost in a gale on 31 October 1868 while bound for Erie. Despite complete wreckage, all crew survived. Key construction, ownership, and localization details remain unknown. The lack of survey, dive site records, or modern documentation indicates a Probable wreck—unlocated but historically documented.
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.
lost 31 October 1868
Shotline Diving Wreck Profile
- Name: Scandinavian (no prior names known)
- Year Built: 1862
- Registry: Likely enrolled in Chicago, with owner/operator based in Erie (Pennsylvania) — typical of regional grain schooners
- Date of Loss: 31 October 1868
- Voyage: Laden with approximately 13,000 bushels of grain from Chicago, bound for Erie
- Location of Loss: Went ashore in a gale (specific shore not recorded), resulting in total wreck. Crew was rescued; no loss of life
Vessel Type
- Presumed two‑masted wooden schooner optimized for grain transport on the Great Lakes (typical for 1860s Chicago–Erie traffic)
Description
- No builder records, tonnage, or dimensions located
- Capable of carrying ~13,000 bu grain—suggest likely gross tonnage of 200–300 tons, flat‑bottomed, canal‑style hull common to that era
History
- Operated between Chicago and Erie hauling grain in the late 1860s
- Official enrollment and ownership records not yet located
- No prior incidents documented
Final Disposition
- Cause of Loss: Grounding during gale on 31 October 1868
- Cargo: Grain (13,000 bushels)
- Casualties: None; crew survived
- No insurance or salvage records publicly found
Located By & Date Found
- No modern rediscovery recorded
- Wreck is presumed offshore near point of grounding, but no archaeological survey exists
Notices & Advisories
- No official Notices to Mariners or later hazard bulletins documented beyond the fact entry in shipwreck listings such as “List of shipwrecks in 1868” (wisconsinshipwrecks.org, wisconsinshipwrecks.org, greatlakesrex.wordpress.com, en.wikipedia.org)
Gaps & Further Research Suggestions
Because records on Scandinavian are fragmentary, here are recommended next steps:
- Search HCGL (Bowling Green) vessel accident lists for 1868—they often record grounded schooners laden with grain in late October.
- Review Chicago & Erie shipping records or customs rolls around 31 October 1868 for vessels named Scandinavian.
- Search contemporary Great Lakes and Erie‑area newspaper archives (e.g. Chicago Tribune, Erie Dispatch, Buffalo Commercial Advertiser) in early November 1868 for storm damage or grounding of a grain vessel.
- Check maritime insurance registers—underwriters often kept claims on total losses of grain schooners.
Conclusion
Scandinavian was a Chicago‑registered grain schooner built in 1862, lost in a gale on 31 October 1868 while bound for Erie. Despite complete wreckage, all crew survived. Key construction, ownership, and localization details remain unknown. The lack of survey, dive site records, or modern documentation indicates a Probable wreck—unlocated but historically documented.
If you have access to specific archival sources—HCGL records, newspapers, customs ledgers from Erie or Chicago, or insurer archives—I can assist in targeted searches. Let me know if you’d like me to probe specific databases or family research leads for crew or owner names.
Keywords & Categories
Region: Lake Erie corridor (Chicago–Erie)
Vessel type: Wooden grain schooner
Cause of loss: Gale, grounding
Cargo: Grain (~13,000 bu)
Period: October 1868
Registry: Chicago / Erie trade route
Casualty: None known