Madeira (ship)
{{short description|Barge that sank in Lake Superior in 1905}}
| {{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image |Ship image=Madeira 4.jpg |Ship caption=Madeira, off the starboard bow, c. 1900–1905 }} {{Infobox ship career |Hide header= |Ship country= |Ship flag= |Ship name= |Ship namesake= |Ship owner= |Ship operator= |Ship registry= |Ship route= |Ship ordered= |Ship awarded= |Ship builder= |Ship original cost= |Ship yard number= |Ship way number= |Ship laid down=1900 |Ship launched=1900 |Ship sponsor= |Ship christened= |Ship completed= |Ship acquired= |Ship commissioned= |Ship recommissioned= |Ship decommissioned= |Ship maiden voyage= |Ship in service= |Ship out of service= |Ship renamed= |Ship reclassified= |Ship refit= |Ship struck= |Ship reinstated= |Ship homeport= |Ship identification= |Ship motto= |Ship nickname= |Ship honours= |Ship honors= |Ship captured= |Ship fate=Sank November 28, 1905 |Ship notes= |Ship badge= }} {{Infobox ship characteristics |Hide header= |Header caption= |Ship class= |Ship type= |Ship tonnage= |Ship displacement= |Ship tons burthen= |Ship length={{convert|436|ft|m|abbr=on}} |Ship beam={{convert|50|ft|m|abbr=on}} |Ship height= |Ship draught= |Ship draft= |Ship depth= |Ship hold depth= |Ship decks= |Ship deck clearance= |Ship ramps= |Ship ice class= |Ship power= |Ship propulsion=Towed by a steam-powered freighter with sails on three masts for assistance{{cite web|url=http://www.mnhs.org/places/nationalregister/shipwrecks/madeira/madeira.html|title=Madeira|work=Lake Superior Shipwrecks|publisher=Minnesota Historical Society|date=1996|accessdate=2007-02-18}} |Ship sail plan= |Ship speed= |Ship range= |Ship endurance= |Ship test depth= |Ship boats= |Ship capacity= |Ship troops= |Ship complement= |Ship crew= |Ship time to activate= |Ship sensors= |Ship EW= |Ship armament= |Ship armour= |Ship armor= |Ship aircraft= |Ship aircraft facilities= |Ship notes= }} {{Infobox NRHP | embed = yes | name = Madeira (Schooner-Barge) Shipwreck | nrhp_type = | image = Madeira 041.JPG | caption = A closeup of the port bow fairlead on the wreck of Madeira | nearest_city = Beaver Bay, Minnesota | area = | built = 1900 | architect = Chicago Shipbuilding Co. | added = July 23, 1992 | coordinates = {{coord|47|12|22|N|91|21|29|W|display=inline,title}} | locmapin = Minnesota#USA | mpsub = Minnesota's Lake Superior Shipwrecks MPS | refnum = 92000843 {{NRISref|2006a}} }} |
Madeira was a schooner barge that sank off the coast of Minnesota in Lake Superior on November 28, 1905. A schooner barge is a type of ship that functions like a barge, in that it is towed by a steamship, but also has sails like a schooner. This type of ship evolved from wooden sailing ships that were cut down into barges and towed behind wooden steamships, a practice which originated in the late 1880s in coastal areas. This design was commonly used in the Great Lakes for transporting grain, iron ore, and other products.{{cite book
| last = Gardner
| first = Denis P.
| author-link =
| year = 2004
| title = Minnesota Treasures: Stories Behind the State's Historic Places
| publisher = Minnesota Historical Society
| location = St. Paul, Minnesota
| isbn = 0-87351-471-8
}}
History
Madeira was built at the Chicago yard of the Chicago Shipbuilding Company in 1900 primarily of heavy steel plates that were riveted together, with wood joinery used in other places. The ship had a flat plate keel and was shaped very flat and full to maximize cargo capacity. The career of the ship is mostly unknown, except for some notoriety gained when it struck the former Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan in 1902.
Final voyage
On November 28, 1905, Madeira, under tow of the steamer William Edenborn, was caught in a fierce storm with winds around 70 to 80 miles per hour, blowing snow onto the deck and kicking up huge swells. The captain of William Edenborn feared the loss of his ship and made the decision to cut the Madeira loose. Some speculated at the time that the crew tried to set anchor and ride out the storm, but the wreck site later revealed that both anchors were still intact at the bow. About two hours after it was cut loose, Madeira crashed into a cliff named Gold Rock. One of the crewmen leapt to shore with a safety line and was able to bring eight other men to safety. The first mate went down with the ship. Two days later, the tugboat Edna G rescued the stranded crewmen.
Wreck
In 1955, divers from the Frigid Frogs dive club in Duluth, Minnesota, first explored the wreck, but reported that there was little or no treasure on board. In 1960, a salvage company purchased the rights to the ship from the Pittsburgh Steamship Division of U.S. Steel Corporation. Divers removed one of the anchors and the ship's wheel, which were sold to the nearby Split Rock Trading Post. In 1974, a wrecking crew spent significant effort salvaging steel from Madeira. The ship currently lies broken in three sections. The bow is upside-down in {{convert|40|to|50|ft|meter|abbr=off|sp=us}} of water, and the stern, containing a large steam winch and open hatches, lies on its starboard side at {{convert|65|ft|m|abbr=off|sp=us}}. A small, roofless pilot house is at {{convert|75|ft|m|abbr=off|sp=us}}.{{cite book|last=Kohl|first=Cris|title=The 100 Best Great Lakes Shipwrecks, Volume II|edition=2nd|publisher=Seawolf Communications, Inc.|location=West Chicago, IL|date=2005|isbn=0-9679976-6-6|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/100bestgreatlake0000kohl}}
References
{{1905 shipwrecks}}
{{Registered Historic Places}}
{{NRHP in Lake County, Minnesota}}
{{NRHP Lake Superior shipwrecks}}
{{Recreational dive sites|wresit}}
Category:Ships built in Chicago
Category:Maritime incidents in 1905
Category:Shipwrecks of Lake Superior
Category:Shipwrecks on the National Register of Historic Places in Minnesota
Category:National Register of Historic Places in Lake County, Minnesota
Category:Schooners of the United States
Category:Barges of the United States