SS Superior City
Superior City - after launching. First vessel launched from the Lorain shipyard of the Cleveland Ship Building Co.
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| History | |
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| Name: | Superior City |
| Owner: | American Steamship Company 1898 - 1901; Pittsburg Steamship Company 1901 - 1920 |
| Port of registry: |
Cleveland, Ohio  United States
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| Builder: | Cleveland Shipbuilding Company, Lorain, OH |
| Completed: | 1898 |
| Fate: | Sank in Whitefish Bay 20 August 1920 after colliding with Willis L. King |
| Notes: | United States Registry # 116820 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Bulk freighter, propeller |
| Tonnage: |
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| Length: | 429 ft (131 m) |
| Beam: | 50 ft (15 m) |
| Height: | 25 ft (7.6 m) |
| Propulsion: | Propeller, 1900 hp engine |
| Crew: | 33 |
The SS Superior City was considered a pioneer vessel at her launching in 1898. She was the largest vessel ever built on freshwater at that time. She sailed the Great Lakes for twenty-two years until she sank after a collision in 1920 with the steamer Willis L. King in Whitefish Bay of Lake Superior that resulted in the loss of 29 lives. Controversy was immediate over the collision. It was subsequently ruled that the captains of both ships failed to follow the “rules-of-the-road”. Controversy started again in 1988 when the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society produced a video called "Graveyard of the Great Lakes" that included extensive footage of the skeletons of the Superior City crew. The controversy continued as late as 1996 over artifacts removed from her wreck. She is now a protected shipwreck in the Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve.
The Superior City launched 13 April 1898 in the yards of the Cleveland Ship Building Company (later named the American Ship Building Company) at Lorain, Ohio. The Superior City was a pioneer vessel representing the steady progression of bigger, longer, and stronger craft from the days of ships powered by sails. At her launching, she was the largest vessel ever built on freshwater. The whole town of Lorain crowded the river front to watch her launch.
On April 26, 1909, Dr. Griffin, the local health officer at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan received reports that boats tied up at the Soo Locks had been quarantined and a couple of the lockmen said that they heard that the Superior City had displayed a smallpox sign for a few hours on the previous night. Dr. Griffin boarded the Superior City and had a heated conference in which everyone denied any knowledge of a smallpox sign. Dr. Griffin issued a warning that any misuse of a contagious disease sign would be immediately reported to the Michigan Secretary of State. Shipwreck historian Wes Oleszewski reported, "In the ensuing days, there were far fewer uninvited guests aboard any of the boats tied up at the Soo Locks, especially the Superior City."
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Wikipedia