SSMonarch

TheMonarchunderway
History
Canada
Name	Monarch
Operator	Northern Navigation Company, Ltd
Builder	John Dyble
Launched	June 27, 1890
Fate	Wrecked 6 December 1906
General characteristics
Type	Passenger-package freighter
Length	259 feet
Beam	35 feet
Depth	15 feet
Installed power	900HP
Propulsion	triple expansion steam engine
Speed	14 knots
Notes	Official Number 96843
MONARCH
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Bow section of theMonarch
Location	Palisade area, north side of Blake Point,Isle Royale National Park,Michigan
Coordinates	48°11′20″N88°26′3″W
Area	45.9 acres (18.6 ha)
Built	1890
Architect	John Dyble
Architectural style	Passenger-package freighter
MPS	Shipwrecks of Isle Royale National Park TR
NRHP referenceNo.	84001779
Added to NRHP	June 14, 1984

SSMonarchwas a passenger-package freighter built in 1890 that operated on theGreat Lakes.She was sunk off the shore ofIsle RoyaleinLake Superiorin 1906 and the remains of her wreck and cargo are still on the lake bottom. The wreck was placed on theNational Register of Historic Placesin 1984.

History

Monarch(Official Number 96843) was a woodenpassenger-cargo shipbuilt in 1890 inSarnia,Ontario,Canada,by John Dyblefor the Northwest Transportation Company.She waslaunchedon June 27, 1890, the last ship built in Sarnia untilWorld War II.The ship was 259 feet (79 meters) long, 35 feet (11 meters) in beam, and 15 feet (4.6 meters) in depth.She had a 900-hp(671-kW)triple-expansion steam enginewith twoScotch boilers,allowing her to attain 14 mph.The ship's hull was heavily reinforced with iron, and she was fitted with 65 cabins.

Monarchwas used to transport both passengers and packages on theGreat Lakesthroughout her career,primarily running between Sarnia,Thunder Bay,Ontario,andDuluth,Minnesota.In 1899, Northwest Transportation merged with another company to form the Northern Navigation Company, Ltd.

Final voyage

On December 6, 1906, theMonarchfinished loading a cargo ofwheat,oats,salmon,and general merchandise and departed Thunder Bay for Sarnia in a blinding snowstorm.For some reason, the ship headed off her planned course, and that night she ran at full speed into the palisade area on the north side of Blake Point onIsle Royale.The ship's engineer kept the engine engaged to maintain the ship's position on the shore, and John D. McCallum, brother offirst mateBurt McCallum, carried a line to shore through the rough seas.The crew and passengers used the line to escape the wreck, and only one person perished.The survivors camped on Isle Royale for four days, salvaging food from the wreck and keeping signal fires alight, before they were rescued on December 10, 1906.

During the night of 11–12 December 1906, the wreck broke into two pieces, leaving only the bow section visible.Salvageoperations onMonarchwere carried out over the next two years,and the engine and associated machinery was salvaged in 1908.

The wreck today

The wooden wreck has disintegrated, although a number of pieces of wreckage can be seen.Large pieces of wooden wreckage are scattered on the bottom of Lake Superior at depths of 10 to 80 feet (3.0 to 24.4 meters),and there is a trove ofMonarch′s cargo still lying on the bottom near the wreck.Approximately 85diveswere made on the wreck in 2009 out of 1,062 dives made to wrecks in theIsle Royale National Park.

Further reading

• Daniel J. Lenihan (1994),Shipwrecks of Isle Royale National Park: The Archeological Survey,Lake Superior Port Cities,ISBN0-942235-18-5,archived fromthe originalon 2010-11-25
• Daniel Lenihan; Toni Carrell; Thom Holden; C. Patrick Labadie; Larry Murphy; Ken Vrana (1987), Daniel Lenihan (ed.),Submerged Cultural Resources Study: Isle Royale National Park(PDF),Southwest Cultural Resources Center