SS Merchant

{{short description|American passenger and package freighter ship}}

{{ Infobox ship image

| Ship image = Merchant ship.jpg

| Ship caption=Merchant, depicted in a stereoscopic photograph

}}

{{ Infobox ship career

| Ship country = United States

| Ship flag = 60px

| Hide header =

| Ship registry = * Buffalo, New York (1862–1873)

Erie, Pennsylvania (1873–1875)

| Ship name = Merchant

| Ship owner = * James C. & Edwin T. Evans (1862–1873)

Erie & Western Transportation Company (also known as the "Anchor Line") (1873–1875)

| Ship operator = Erie & Western Transportation Company

| Ship ordered =

| Ship builder = * David Bell shipyard of Buffalo, New York

Construction supervised by J. V. F. Wilson

| Ship yard number =

| Ship laid down =

| Ship launched = July 12, 1862

| Ship christened =

| Ship maiden voyage =

| Ship identification = US official number 16332

| Ship acquired =

| Ship nickname =

| Ship in service = August 2, 1862

| Ship out of service = October 6, 1875

| Ship fate = Wrecked on Lake Michigan

| Ship notes = First iron hulled vessel constructed on the Great Lakes, also first to use coal as fuel

}}

{{ Infobox ship characteristics

| Hide header =

| Header caption =

| Ship type = Passenger and package freighter

| Ship tonnage = {{GRT|720.66}}

| Ship displacement =

| Ship length = * {{convert|200|ft|m|1}} LOA

{{convert|189.25|ft|m|1}} or {{convert|192|ft|m|1}} LBP

| Ship beam = {{convert|29.16|ft|m|1}}

| Ship depth = {{convert|13.66|ft|m|1}}

| Ship hold depth =

| Ship draft ={{convert|12|ft|m|1}} (average)

| Ship ice class =

| Ship power = * Engine:

1 × {{convert|600|hp|lk=on|abbr=on}} low pressure direct action condensing engine
Boiler:
1 × {{convert|50|psi|lk=on}} low pressure firebox boiler

| Ship propulsion = 1 × fixed pitch propeller ({{convert|10|ft|m|1}} diameter, {{convert|14|ft|m|1}} pitch)

| Ship speed = {{convert|14|mi/h|kn}}

| Ship capacity = {{c.}}{{nbsp}}{{convert|837|LT|ST t|0}}

| Ship crew=

| Ship notes=

}}

SS Merchant was an American iron–hulled passenger and package freighter in service between 1862 and 1875. The first iron–hulled merchant ship built on the Great Lakes, she was built in 1862 in Buffalo, New York, by the David Bell shipyard, out of components manufactured in Black Rock, New York, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She was built for James C. and Edwin T. Evans of Buffalo, under whom she carried passengers and freight. Merchant made her maiden voyage in August 1862, sailing from Buffalo to Chicago. Between late 1872 and early 1873, she was lengthened by {{convert|30|ft|m|1}}, and had her passenger cabins removed. Also in 1873, Merchant was sold to the Erie & Western Transportation Company (also known as the "Anchor Line") of Erie, Pennsylvania.

On October 6, 1875, while bound from Chicago for Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with a cargo of 20,000 bushels of corn, 200 barrels of flour and 2,000 bags of flax, she ran aground on Racine Reef off Racine, Wisconsin, due to a navigational error. Her hull punctured, she settled onto the reef. Although it was initially believed that she could be saved, she was abandoned by October 13 and had broken apart by November 1. By 1877, all of her machinery had been recovered.

Rediscovered sometime during the 1990s, her wreck lies fragmented and scattered over a large area in about {{convert|25|ft|m}} of water.

History

=Background=

Although Merchant was the first iron-hulled merchant ship built entirely within the Great Lakes, the gunship USS Michigan, built in 1843, in Erie, Pennsylvania, was the first iron-hulled vessel built on the lakes.{{sfnp|Bugbee|1962a|p=24}} Beginning in the mid-1840s, Canadian companies began importing iron vessels, prefabricated by shipyards in the United Kingdom. However, it would not be until 1862 that the first iron-hulled merchant ship was built on the Great Lakes.{{sfnp|Bugbee|1962a|p=24}} Despite the success of Merchant, wooden vessels remained preferable to iron ones until the 1880s, due to their lower cost and the abundance of timber.{{sfnp|Bugbee|1962a|p=26}}{{sfnp|Bowlus|2010|p=85}}{{sfnp|Thompson|1994|p=32}} In the early 1880s, shipyards around the lakes began construction of iron ships on a relatively large scale; in 1882, Onoko, an iron freighter, temporarily became the largest ship on the lakes.{{sfnp|Thompson|1994|p=32}}{{sfnp|Bugbee|1962b|p=48}} In 1884, the first steel freighters were built on the Great Lakes, and by the 1890s, the majority of ships constructed on the lakes were made of steel.{{sfnp|Bugbee|1962b|pp=49, 59}}

David Bell, a Scottish immigrant, founded the Bell & McNish engine works in 1845 in Buffalo, New York; the company eventually evolved into the Bell's Steam Engine Works. Bell started constructing ships under his own name in 1858; Merchant was the third ship built by his shipyard.{{sfnp|Colton|2016}}

=Design and construction=

File:Merchant (steamship 1862) 01.jpg

Merchant (US official number 16332) was built in 1862 in Buffalo, New York, by the shipyard owned by David Bell out of components manufactured in Black Rock, New York by Pratt & Company. Some components were also manufactured in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.{{sfnp|Bugbee|1962a|p=24}}{{sfnp|Bowling Green State University|2021}}{{sfnp|Meverden|Thomsen|2008|p=98}}{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1862a}} Merchant{{'}}s construction was supervised by J. V. F. Wilson, while the carpentry and joiner work was done by Hitchcock & Gibson.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1862a}}{{sfnp|Wisconsin Shipwrecks|2021}}{{sfnp|Johnston|1957|p=12}}

Her iron hull had an overall length of {{convert|200|ft|m|1}}, and a length between perpendiculars of {{convert|189.25|ft|m|1}} (some sources also state {{convert|189.3|ft|m|1}} or {{convert|192|ft|m|1}}).{{sfnp|Bowling Green State University|2021}}{{sfnp|Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library|2021}}{{sfnp|Stanton|1895}} Merchant{{'}}s hull was {{convert|29.16|ft|m|1}} (some sources also state {{convert|29|ft|m|1}}, {{convert|29.2|ft|m|1}} or {{convert|29.4|ft|m|1}}) wide, {{convert|13.66|ft|m|1}} (some sources also state {{convert|12.9|ft|m|1}}, {{convert|13.8|ft|m|1}} or {{convert|14|ft|m|1}}) deep, and had an average draught of {{convert|12|ft|m|1}}.{{sfnp|Bowling Green State University|2021}}{{sfnp|Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library|2021}}{{sfnp|Stanton|1895}}{{sfnp|Wisconsin Shipwrecks|2021}} She had a gross tonnage of 720.66 tons (also given as 720{{frac|61|95}} in old style measurements).{{sfnp|Bowling Green State University|2021}}{{sfnp|Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library|2021}}{{sfnp|Stanton|1895}}{{sfnp|Berry|2021}}

Merchant was powered by a single cylinder {{convert|600|hp|lk=on|abbr=on}} low pressure direct acting condensing engine, the cylinder of which was {{convert|40|in|cm|1}} in diameter, and had a stroke of {{convert|36|in|cm|1}}.{{sfnp|Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library|2021}}{{sfnp|Stanton|1895}}{{sfnp|Berry|2021}} The engine was built by the David Bell Iron Works.{{sfnp|Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library|2021}} Steam for the engine was provided by a {{convert|50|psi|lk=on}} low pressure firebox boiler which was {{convert|19|ft|m|1}} long, and {{convert|9|ft|m|1}} in diameter.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1862a}}{{sfnp|Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library|2021}}{{sfnp|Stanton|1895}}{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1862b}} She was propelled by a four-bladed fixed pitch propeller; it was {{convert|10|ft|m|1}} in diameter and had a {{convert|14|ft|m|1}} pitch, while the propeller shaft was {{convert|31|ft|m|1}} feet in length. Her top speed was {{convert|14|mph|kn|1}}.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1862a}}{{sfnp|Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library|2021}}{{sfnp|Stanton|1895}} She used coal as fuel, becoming the first ship on the Great Lakes to do so.{{sfnp|Wisconsin Shipwrecks|2021}}

She had four water-tight bulkheads, a single mast with an auxiliary sail and a cargo capacity of approximately {{convert|837|LT|ST t|0}}. She cost between ($70,000 equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|70000|1862}}}} in {{inflation-year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|US-GDP|name-list-style=amp}}), and $75,000 (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|75000|1862}}}} in {{inflation-year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|US-GDP|name-list-style=amp}}), although some sources state $90,000 (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|90000|1862}}}} in {{inflation-year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|US-GDP|name-list-style=amp}}) to build.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1862a}}{{sfnp|Wisconsin Shipwrecks|2021}}{{sfnp|Johnston|1957|p=12}}{{sfnp|Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library|2021}} Merchant was launched on July 12, 1862, at 5:30 a.m., in order to avoid a large crowd attending the ceremony.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1862a}}{{sfnp|Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library|2021}}

=Service history=

File:Merchant lithograph.jpg of Merchant]]

Merchant was enrolled in Buffalo, which was also her home port, on August 2, 1862.{{sfnp|Bowling Green State University|2021}}{{sfnp|Berry|2021}} She was built for James C. and Edwin T. Evans (also of Buffalo), under whom she carried passengers and freight.{{sfnp|Bugbee|1962a|p=24}} On her maiden voyage in August 1862, Merchant travelled from Buffalo to Chicago, Illinois, under the command of Captain Albert Briggs.{{sfnp|Bugbee|1962a|p=24}}{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1862a}}{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1904}} Throughout her career, Merchant was involved in multiple accidents and incidents.{{sfnp|Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library|2021}}

The first accident Merchant was involved in occurred in November 1862, when she collided with and damaged the schooner Mazeppa in Buffalo.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1862b}} After the old measurement system was abolished, Merchant was remeasured in Buffalo on April 25, 1865; under the new system, Merchant was {{convert|194.5|ft|m|1}} or {{convert|194.6|ft|m|1}} long, {{convert|29|ft|m|1}} or {{convert|29.1|ft|m|1}} wide and {{convert|13|ft|m|1}} deep, while her gross tonnage was 861.18 tons.{{sfnp|Bowling Green State University|2021}}{{sfnp|Berry|2021}}

While travelling on Lake Michigan in May 1866, Merchant lost one of her crewmen overboard.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1866}} In May 1867, Merchant became stuck in ice near Buffalo.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1867a}} On November 19 of that same year, Merchant ran aground {{convert|2|mi|km|1}} north of White Lake.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1867b}} While bound for Buffalo with a cargo of flour and oats on October 11, 1868, Merchant struck a submerged shipwreck in the Detroit River; she was beached near Malden, Ontario, to prevent her from sinking. She was removed by the wrecking tug Margaret and was repaired in Detroit, Michigan.{{sfnp|Wisconsin Shipwrecks|2021}}{{sfnp|Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library|2021}}{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1868}} In October 1869, Merchant was damaged in a collision with an unknown vessel in Buffalo.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1869}}

In May 1872, while loaded with general merchandise, Merchant struck an obstruction off Bar Point, near Amherstburg, Ontario, and sank. She was raised, and taken to Detroit for repairs.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1872}} Between late 1872 and early 1873, Merchant was lengthened by {{convert|30|ft|m|1}}; her gross tonnage increased to 1068.65 (some sources state 1068.66) tons.{{sfnp|Bowling Green State University|2021}}{{sfnp|Berry|2021}}{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1873a}}{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1873b}} Her passenger cabins were also removed.{{sfnp|Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library|2021}} That same year, she was sold to the Erie & Western Transportation Company (also known as the "Anchor Line") of Erie, Pennsylvania, which became her home port.{{sfnp|Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library|2021}}{{sfnp|Berry|2021}} In September 1873, Merchant rammed the bark City of Painsville in Chicago, severely damaging the latter.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1873c}}

Throughout 1874, Merchant was involved in four accidents. In April, she collided with the bulk freighter Fred Kelly in the Straits of Mackinac.{{sfnp|Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library|2021}}{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1874a}} Two months later, she collided with an unknown vessel in Chicago, sustaining $100 (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|100|1862}}}} in {{inflation-year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|US-GDP|name-list-style=amp}}) worth of damage.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1874b}} In July, while loaded with 17,000/18,000 bushels of corn, 7,000 bushels oats, flour and sundries, Merchant ran aground on Racine Reef in fog; she sustained heavy damage, flooded, and sank into {{convert|12|ft|m|1}} of water.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1874c}} Merchant{{'}}s hull was pumped free of water and arrived in Milwaukee, Wisconsin at 3:00 p.m. on July 31. She was placed in dry dock at the Wolf & Davidson shipyard in Milwaukee, where it was discovered that she had sustained severe damage to her keel and bottom.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1874c}} Her hull sustained $9,500 (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|9500|1862}}}} in {{inflation-year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|US-GDP|name-list-style=amp}}) worth of damage, while her cargo was a total loss, resulting in a loss of $25,000 (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|25000|1862}}}} in {{inflation-year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|US-GDP|name-list-style=amp}}).{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1874c}} Merchant ran aground on Peche Island in Lake St. Clair in November.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1874d}}

=Final voyage and wreck=

On October 6, 1875, while bound from Chicago for Milwaukee, with a cargo of 20,000 bushels of corn, 200 barrels of flour and 2,000 bags of flax, Merchant ran aground at full speed in the middle of Racine Reef off Racine, Wisconsin, at around 11:00 p.m. due to a navigational error.{{sfnp|Wisconsin Shipwrecks|2021}}{{sfnp|Swayze|2001}}{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1875}} Her second mate, who was in charge at the time, miscalculated her position; he believed Merchant was approximately {{convert|10|mi|km|1}} off Kenosha, Wisconsin, and did not notice his mistake until he saw the buoy marking Racine Reef.{{sfnp|Wisconsin Shipwrecks|2021}}{{sfnp|Swayze|2001}}{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1875}} She punctured her hull and sank onto the reef in about fifteen minutes. There were no casualties.{{sfnp|Wisconsin Shipwrecks|2021}}{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1875}}{{sfnp|Baillod|2009}}

Although Merchant was initially thought to be saveable, she was abandoned by October 13, and had begun to break apart by November 11.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1875}}{{sfnp|Baillod|2009}} By November 3, she had been broken in two by a storm.{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1875}} Merchant was insured for $100,000 (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|100000|1862}}}} in {{inflation-year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|US-GDP|name-list-style=amp}}) at the time of her loss.{{sfnp|Baillod|2009}} Throughout the summer of 1877, Knapp & Gillen of Racine removed Merchant{{'}}s machinery and a significant amount of scrap metal.{{sfnp|Wisconsin Shipwrecks|2021}}{{sfnp|Maritime History of the Great Lakes|1875}}{{sfnp|Baillod|2009}} In the following years, Merchant{{'}}s wreck was dynamited multiple times.{{sfnp|Baillod|2009}}

The remains of Merchant lay forgotten until sometime in the 1990s, when some of her remains were located on Racine Reef.{{sfnp|Baillod|2009}} Her wreck lies in {{convert|25|ft|m}} of water, broken up and scattered over a large area, with only minor structural components remaining.{{sfnp|Wisconsin Shipwrecks|2021}} Maritime historian Brendon Baillod dubbed Merchant "one of the most significant, most historic vessels lost in Wisconsin waters".{{sfnp|Baillod|2009}}

References

Sources

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{{cite web |last = Baillod |first = Brendon |year = 2009 |title = Fathoms Deep But Not Forgotten: Wisconsin's Historic Shipwrecks – Part II: Racine County |url = http://www.baillod.com/wuaa/Racine.html |access-date = February 21, 2021 |publisher = Brendon Baillod and Great Lakes Shipwreck Research }}
{{cite web |last = Berry |first = Sterling |year = 2021 |title = Merchant |url = https://www.greatlakesvesselhistory.com/histories-by-name/m/merchant |access-date = February 21, 2021 |publisher = Great Lakes Vessel Histories of Sterling Berry |location = Detroit, Michigan }}
{{cite web |author = Bowling Green State University |year = 2021 |title = Merchant |url = https://greatlakes.bgsu.edu/item/437951 |access-date = February 21, 2021 |publisher = Bowling Green State University |location = Bowling Green, Ohio }}
{{cite book |last = Bowlus |first = W. Bruce |year = 2010 |title = Iron Ore Transport on the Great Lakes: The Development of a Delivery System to Feed American Industry |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=nyGjHG1PaUEC&q=merchant&pg=PA109 |access-date = March 3, 2021 |publisher = McFarland & Company, Inc. |location = Jefferson, North Carolina |isbn = 9780786486557 }}
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{{cite web |author = Maritime History of the Great Lakes |year = 1873a |title = Merchant (Propeller), 15 Mar 1873 |url = https://images.maritimehistoryofthegreatlakes.ca/35945/data?n=11 |access-date = March 12, 2021 |publisher = Maritime History of the Great Lakes |location = Ontario, Canada }}
{{cite web |author = Maritime History of the Great Lakes |year = 1873b |title = Merchant (Propeller), 1 May 1873 |url = https://images.maritimehistoryofthegreatlakes.ca/32544/data?n=12 |access-date = March 13, 2021 |publisher = Maritime History of the Great Lakes |location = Ontario, Canada }}
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{{cite web |author = Maritime History of the Great Lakes |year = 1874b |title = Merchant (Propeller), collision, 1 Jun 1874 |url = https://images.maritimehistoryofthegreatlakes.ca/48772/data?n=15 |access-date = March 13, 2021 |publisher = Maritime History of the Great Lakes |location = Ontario, Canada }}
{{cite web |author = Maritime History of the Great Lakes |year = 1874c |title = Merchant (Propeller), aground, 1 Jul 1874 |url = https://images.maritimehistoryofthegreatlakes.ca/48935/data?n=16 |access-date = March 13, 2021 |publisher = Maritime History of the Great Lakes |location = Ontario, Canada }}
{{cite web |author = Maritime History of the Great Lakes |year = 1874d |title = Merchant (Propeller), aground, 1 Nov 1874 |url = https://images.maritimehistoryofthegreatlakes.ca/49494/data?n=17 |access-date = March 13, 2021 |publisher = Maritime History of the Great Lakes |location = Ontario, Canada }}
{{cite web |author = Maritime History of the Great Lakes |year = 1875 |title = Merchant (Propeller), aground, 6 Oct 1875 |url = https://images.maritimehistoryofthegreatlakes.ca/53542/data?n=18 |access-date = March 13, 2021 |publisher = Maritime History of the Great Lakes |location = Ontario, Canada }}
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{{cite web |last1 = Meverden |first1 = Keith N. |last2 = Thomsen |first2 = Tamara L. |year = 2008 |url = https://www.wisconsinshipwrecks.org/Files/Wisconsins%20Historic%20Shipwrecks.pdf |title = Wisconsin's Historic Shipwrecks – An Overview and Analysis of Locations for a State/Federal Partnership With The National Marine Sanctuary Program |publisher = Wisconsin Historical Society |access-date = February 21, 2021 |location = Madison, Wisconsin }}
{{cite web |last = Stanton |first = Samuel Ward |year = 1895 |title = American Steam Vessels: Great Lakes Propeller Merchant, 1862 |url = https://images.maritimehistoryofthegreatlakes.ca/817/data?n=3 |access-date = February 21, 2021 |publisher = Smith & Stanton |location = New York City }}
{{cite web |last = Swayze |first = David |year = 2001 |title = Great Lakes Shipwrecks – M |url = http://www.boatnerd.com/swayze/shipwreck/m.htm |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20020615034001/https://boatnerd.com/swayze/shipwreck/m.htm |access-date = January 25, 2021 |archive-date = June 15, 2002 |publisher = Boatnerd |location = Port Huron, Michigan }}
{{cite book |last = Thompson |first = Mark L. |year = 1994 |title = Queen of the Lakes |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=irtD2o_uQ88C&q=merchant |access-date = February 24, 2021 |publisher = Wayne State University Press |location = Detroit, Michigan |isbn = 0-8143-2393-6 }}
{{cite web |author = Wisconsin Shipwrecks |year = 2021 |title = Merchant (1862) |url = https://www.wisconsinshipwrecks.org/Vessel/Details/432?region=Index |access-date = February 21, 2021 |publisher = Wisconsin Historical Society |location = Madison, Wisconsin }}