Robert C. Pringle (tug)

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Coordinates: 43°41′30″N 87°33′18″W / 43.69167°N 87.55500°W / 43.69167; -87.55500
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Robert C. Pringle as Chequamegon, c. 1903
History
United States
NameRobert C. Pringle
OperatorPringle Barge Line Company, Mentor, Ohio[4]
Port of registry
Fairport, Ohio[2]
BuilderManitowoc Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company, Manitowoc, Wisconsin[3]
Yard number1
LaunchedMay 9, 1903[3]
In serviceJune 23, 1903[5]
Out of serviceJune 19, 1922[1]
IdentificationRegistry number US  127764[1]
FateSank after striking an obstruction[1]
General characteristics
Class and typeTugboat
Tonnage
Length101 ft (30.8 m)[1]
Beam22.33 ft (6.8 m)[1]
Depth9.50 ft (2.9 m)[1]
Installed power
Propulsion1 × 7.5 ft (2.3 m) fixed pitch propeller[5]
Robert C. Pringle (tug) Shipwreck
Robert C. Pringle (tug) is located in Wisconsin
Robert C. Pringle (tug)
Location8 miles (13 km) southeast of Sheboygan, Wisconsin
Coordinates43°41′30″N 87°33′18″W / 43.69167°N 87.55500°W / 43.69167; -87.55500
Built1903
ArchitectManitowoc Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company
NRHP reference No.100005902
Added to NRHPDecember 14, 2020[7]

Robert C. Pringle, originally named Chequamegon, was a wooden-hulled American tugboat that sank without loss of life on Lake Michigan, near Sheboygan, Wisconsin, on June 19, 1922, after striking an obstruction (possibly floating driftwood).

Chequamegon was built in 1903 in

Cleveland, Ohio
. She was converted to a tug and was renamed Robert C. Pringle.

On June 18, 1922, Robert C. Pringle began towing the wooden bulk freighter Venezuela from

Milwaukee to Sandusky, Ohio
, where the Venezuela was scheduled to receive extensive repairs. At about 2:00 a.m. on the following day, as the vessels were passing Sheboygan, Robert C. Pringle struck an obstruction (some contemporary reports state a piece of driftwood) and began taking on water fast. Despite her pumps being in operation, the water eventually extinguished her boilers, forcing her crew to abandon her and row to Venezuela. All of the crewmen were delivered safely to Manitowoc.

Robert C. Pringle's wreck was discovered in 2008 by Steve Radovan. In the summer of 2019 it was subjected to a thorough archaeological survey by the Wisconsin Historical Society, who described the wreck as "remarkably intact". The wreck of Robert C. Pringle was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 14, 2020.

History

Robert C. Pringle as Chequamegon in a postcard published in 1909

Design and construction

Robert C. Pringle (Official number 127764)[1] was built as Chequamegon in 1903, by the Manitowoc Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company on the banks of the Manitowoc River in Manitowoc, Wisconsin.[3] The first vessel built by the newly established shipyard, she was launched at 3:06 p.m. on May 9, 1903, as hull number #1.[3] Chequamegon's wooden hull was 101 feet (30.8 m) in length, 22.33 feet (6.8 m) (or 22.4 feet, 6.8 m[8]) wide, and 9.50 feet (2.90 m) (or 9.6 feet, 2.9 m[8]) deep.[1] She had a gross register tonnage of 141 tons, and a net register tonnage of 112 tons.[1][8]

Chequamegon was powered by a 500-

triple expansion steam engine, the cylinders of which had bores of 12 inches (30.5 cm), 19 inches (48.3 cm) and 32 inches (81.3 cm), and a stroke of 20 inches (50.8 cm).[5][6] A single 10.5-by-11-foot (3.2 by 3.4 m) 175 pounds per square inch (1,210 kPa) Scotch marine boiler supplied the engine with steam. The engine was manufactured in Montague, Michigan,[9] by the Montague Iron Works, while her boiler was manufactured in Ferrysburg, Michigan, by the Johnson Brothers Company. A 7.5-foot (2.3 m) fixed-pitch propeller propelled her to a top speed of 18 miles per hour (15.6 kn; 29.0 km/h).[5][6]

Chequamegon had two decks, no mast, and a round stern.[8] At great expense, her cabins were fitted out with oak woodwork and upholstered furniture.[5]

Service history

Chequamegon was built for the Chequamegon Bay Transportation Company of

Chicago, Illinois;[6] her home port was changed to Chicago.[13] Chequamegon was transferred to Clinch's Traverse Bay Transportation Company in 1908.[6][13] In that same year, she was taken to Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, where she received a new 9.5 feet (2.9 m) propeller, built by H.G. Trout & Company of Buffalo, New York. After receiving some additional repairs, she returned to her Charlevoix, Michigan – Traverse City, Michigan route. On August 18, 1909, Chequamegon's cook, Sanford M. Silver drowned after falling overboard.[14]

In 1911, Chequamegon was sold to the Pere Marquette Line of Steamers. Her name was changed to Pere Marquette 7 on January 30.

Fairport, Ohio.[4][2] She towed barges in the Lake Erie coal trade.[6] Briefly during her career, she was renamed Henry R. Heath.[2]

Final voyage

The Pringle Barge Line Company acquired the wooden bulk freighter Venezuela in 1922. As Venezuela required significant repairs, Robert C. Pringle was dispatched to

Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in order to tow Venezuela to Sandusky, Ohio, where the repairs were scheduled to be made. The vessels departed Milwaukee at around midnight on June 18, with Robert C. Pringle under the command of Captain Martin Oglesbee.[17] At around 2:00 a.m. on the following day, as Robert C. Pringle and Venezuela were passing Sheboygan, Wisconsin, Robert C. Pringle struck an obstruction (possibly floating driftwood), and began taking on water fast.[17] She sank in ten minutes, with all her crew being rescued by Venezuela, who dropped her crew off in Milwaukee.[18][19] Venezuela proceeded to sail to Sandusky under her own steam. After she sank, there was speculation that Robert C. Pringle sank because of a weakness in her hull due to her age.[18]

Robert C. Pringle wreck

The wreck of Robert C. Pringle was discovered in 300 feet (91.4 m) of water by Steve Radovan in 2008.

Home in the process.[21][22] Her wreck is upright and was described by the Wisconsin Historical Society as "remarkably intact on a sand and silt covered lake bottom, with little damage or deterioration".[18][20] Her pilothouse, along with the glass in four of its windows, remains in place.[20][23] The captain's cabin, located behind the pilothouse is also intact.[24] Robert C. Pringle's triple expansion engine still has gold lettering on it.[25] In 2019, maritime archaeologists from the Wisconsin Historical Society partnered with Tom Crossmon's Crossmon Consulting LLC to conduct a thorough archaeological survey of the wreck.[20][26]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Bowling Green State University (2010).
  2. ^ a b c Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 31.
  3. ^ a b c d Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 20.
  4. ^ a b Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 30.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 22.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library (2020).
  7. ^ National Park Service (2020).
  8. ^ a b c d Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 21.
  9. ^ Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library (2021).
  10. ^ a b Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 23.
  11. ^ a b Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 24.
  12. ^ Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 25.
  13. ^ a b Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 26.
  14. ^ a b Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 27.
  15. ^ Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 28.
  16. ^ Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 29.
  17. ^ a b Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 32.
  18. ^ a b c d Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 33.
  19. ^ Wisconsin State Journal (1922).
  20. ^ a b c d Wisconsin Shipwrecks (2021).
  21. ^ The Associated Press (2008).
  22. ^ La Crosse Tribune (2008).
  23. ^ Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 37.
  24. ^ Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 39.
  25. ^ Pioneer Press (2008).
  26. ^ Wisconsin Historical Society (2020), p. 34.

Sources

  • Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library (2020). "Chequamegon (1903, Excursion Vessel)". Alpena, Michigan:
    Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library
    . Retrieved January 6, 2021.
  • Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library (2021). "Hunter (1877, Propeller)". Alpena, Michigan:
    Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library
    . Retrieved January 6, 2021.
  • Bowling Green State University (2010). "Chequamegon". Bowling Green, Ohio: Bowling Green State University. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
  • La Crosse Tribune (2008). "Divers find shipwreck in Lake Michigan off Sheboygan coast". La Crosse, Wisconsin: La Crosse Tribune. Archived from the original on January 19, 2021. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
  • National Park Service (2020). "Weekly List – December 18, 2020". Washington D.C.: National Park Service. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
  • Pioneer Press (2008). "Divers find shipwreck in Lake Michigan off Sheboygan coast". Saint Paul, Minnesota: St. Paul Pioneer Press. Retrieved January 21, 2021.
  • The Associated Press (2008). "Sheboygan, Wis. / Group finds shipwreck". Saint Paul, Minnesota: St. Paul Pioneer Press. Retrieved January 21, 2021.
  • Wisconsin Historical Society (2020). "Significance Through Obscurity: An Agglomeration of Wisconsin's Submerged Archaeological Sites" (PDF). Madison, Wisconsin: Wisconsin Historical Society. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
  • Wisconsin Shipwrecks (2021). "Robert C. Pringle (1903)". Wisconsin Shipwrecks. Madison, Wisconsin: Wisconsin Historical Society. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
  • Wisconsin State Journal (1922). "Ten Men Rescued From Lake Craft". Madison, Wisconsin:
    Newspapers.com
    .

External links

Media related to Robert C. Pringle (ship, 1903) at Wikimedia Commons

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