Shotline Diving Wreck Profile
- Name: T.G. Lester
- Type: Wooden Schooner-Barge
- Year Built: 1868
- Builder: T.G. Lester at East Saginaw, MI
- Dimensions: 113 × 26 × 9 ft (205 gross, 191 net tons)
- Registered Tonnage: 205 gross, 191 net tons
- Location: Foot of 12th Street, Detroit River
- Official Number: 59196
Wreck Location Map
Vessel Type
A steel-strapped wooden schooner-barge originally constructed for freight towing, later repurposed in engineering construction use. This reflects typical Great Lakes barge salvage and reuse practices of the era.
Description
Originally rigged as a small propeller-tug barge, she measured approximately 113 ft in length with modest beam and draft. In later years, she served as a floating platform (barge) in civil engineering operations, indicating robust hull design suited to static usage under load.
History
- Built 1868 at East Saginaw, MI, by a builder bearing her namesake (T.G. Lester) (Great Lakes Shipwreck Files)
- Served general regional freight hauling in early career
- In 1908, repurposed as a construction barge during the Michigan Central Railroad tunnel project under contract to Butler Brothers–Hoff Co. (Canada Southern, Great Lakes Shipwreck Files)
- No earlier wreck incidents documented beyond her repurposed final deployment
Significant Incidents
- Loss Event: In late March 1908, ice severed her hull; she opened her seams and sank on site
- Aftermath: Crew evacuated—the vessel was abandoned in place
- Post-Loss Fate: Likely buried when the Detroit riverfront was later filled in during the 1920s, obscuring her remains beneath modern infrastructure (Great Lakes Shipwreck Files)
Final Disposition
- No documented modern rediscovery. The barge remains unlocated; its final site is most likely buried under reclaimed land.
Current Condition & Accessibility
- No Notice to Mariners identified—consistent with her in-river construction use and final abandonment during redevelopment periods.
Resources & Links
[shotline_reference_links slug=”t-g-lester-us-59196″ title=”References & Links”]
The T.G. Lester is illustrative of late-19th century vessel reuse, transitioning from freight barge to construction platform. Her destruction by ice during tunnel construction highlights the hazards of river-based civil works. Although minor in commercial service, she played a role in the engineering expansion of Detroit—her loss nonetheless emblematic of industrial maritime risk.
Full Wreck Record — complete historical article, construction details, voyage logs, incident reports, dive conditions, and all research sources.
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