Isaac M. Scott
Vessel Type: Motor: bulk freighter
GPS Location: N45° 03.920’ W83° 02.353’
Depth: 175 feet
Wreck Length: 524 feet
Beam: 54 feet
Gross Tonnage: 6372
Cargo: Coal
Built: 1909 by American Ship Building Co. at Lorain, Ohio
Wrecked: November 10, 1913
Description:
"No lake master can recall in all his experience a storm of such unprecedented violence with such rapid changes in the direction of the wind and its gusts of such fearful speed.” - Lake Carriers Association, 1913.
The year 1913 was one of extremes for Great Lakes mariners. It saw more coal, ore, and grain shipped than ever before. But prosperity came with a price. For three days in November, fierce weather swept across the Great Lakes as two major storms converged to produce blinding snow squalls, 35-foot-high waves, and 90-mile-per-hour wind gusts. Twelve ships sank; 31 more were driven ashore by wind and waves; and 248 sailors lost their lives in the “white hurricane.”
On the morning of November 9, the 504-foot Isaac M. Scott entered Lake Huron headed to Milwaukee with a load of coal. The ship left the safety of Port Huron and sailed north into the full fury of one of the biggest storms in Great Lakes history. Struggling in incredible seas, just east of Thunder Bay, Isaac M.Scott lost the battle. The huge ship rolled over and sank. Lake Huron claimed all 28 crew members. Today, the giant ship rests upside down in 180 feet of water.
Great Lakes Maritime Collection digital archive: http://greatlakeships.org/2899839/data?n=1
