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SS Onoko
SS Onoko was an iron-hulled Great Lakes freighter. She was launched in 1882 in Cleveland, Ohio, by the Globe shipbuilding firm, as its hull number #4, and sank on September 14, 1915, in Lake Superior near Knife River, Minnesota. According to the Minnesota Historical Society, Onoko is regarded as a prototype of the single-steel hulled Great Lakes bulk carrier, These vessels made possible the cheap transport of bulk cargoes such as iron ore, coal and limestone. Her wreckage still remains on the bottom of Lake Superior and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992.
Onoko (Official number 155048) was built at Radcliffe's yard in Cleveland by the Globe Iron Works Company and was launched on February 16, 1882. She had a length of 302.6-feet, a beam of 38.6 feet and a height of 24.8-feet. She was powered by a 900-horsepower compound steam engine fueled by two Scotch marine boilers, and gaff-rigged with auxiliary sails on four masts. She was commissioned by Phillip Minch of Vermillion, Ohio, for the Minch Transportation Company of the Kinsman Steamship Company and a syndicate of other investors. The ship was built to take advantage of the channels of 17-foot (5.2 m) depth opened in 1881 when the new Weitzel Lock was built at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.
The superintendent of Onoko's construction was John H. Smith, who learned iron shipbuilding technology and techniques on the River Clyde in Scotland. Smith worked for the newly founded Globe Shipbuilding Company of Cleveland, Ohio, successors to an old and respected boiler and engine building company.
On February 16, 1882, the day Onoko was scheduled to be launched, about five thousand people came to watch the launching despite rough weather conditions. With all preparations completed Smith gave the launch signal at 3 p.m., and Onoko slid into the water. During the next few months Onoko was outfitted and rigged. Although most of the vessel's machinery had been fitted before her launching, her masts at least were installed later by the Messrs. Upson, Walton & Company.
Onoko was enrolled[clarification needed] in Cleveland on March 31, 1882. On her maiden voyage Onoko sailed from Cleveland on April 19, 1882, leaving port at 11 p.m. and arriving in Chicago around 2 p.m. the next day. She was carrying 2,536 tons of coal. Onoko's captain, W.H. Pringle, reported that Onoko "behaved splendidly and steered like a yacht". By April 25, Onoko had been loaded with a cargo of wheat bound for Buffalo, New York, and left at 3:30 p.m. She discharged 88,140 bushels of wheat at the Niagara B Elevator. Not a bit of the cargo was wet. It was thought that Onoko could carry 115,000 to 120,000 bushels of wheat. Onoko's capacity to carry oats was believed to be at around 155,000 bushels. The Buffalo Courier provides an accurate account of when Onoko arrived in Buffalo. It said that "About noon on Saturday the new iron steamer Onoko arrived here with something over 88,000 bushels wheat. She left Chicago last Tuesday at 4:20PM and her time in coming down was three days and nineteen and a half hours".
On May 2, 1882, the writers of the Buffalo Courier wrote a rather unpleasant report about the looks of Onoko:
The Onoko is the largest vessel afloat on the lakes - and by far the homeliest. She looks very like a huge canal boat with a smokestack and four sticks. Her model is really frightful; her upper works are without decent shape, and to cap all her painting is but a daub. For a new vessel she is the worst looking sight that ever appeared on our inland waters. She could have been given a respectable appearance without much interfering with her carrying qualities. One of these days we will show those Cleveland fellows an iron steamer that will be worth looking at. The Onoko is an eye-sore.
The Buffalo Courier criticizing the appearance of Onoko did not sit well with her owners. On May 5, 1882, the Cleveland Herald responded that function trumped form:
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SS Onoko
SS Onoko was an iron-hulled Great Lakes freighter. She was launched in 1882 in Cleveland, Ohio, by the Globe shipbuilding firm, as its hull number #4, and sank on September 14, 1915, in Lake Superior near Knife River, Minnesota. According to the Minnesota Historical Society, Onoko is regarded as a prototype of the single-steel hulled Great Lakes bulk carrier, These vessels made possible the cheap transport of bulk cargoes such as iron ore, coal and limestone. Her wreckage still remains on the bottom of Lake Superior and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992.
Onoko (Official number 155048) was built at Radcliffe's yard in Cleveland by the Globe Iron Works Company and was launched on February 16, 1882. She had a length of 302.6-feet, a beam of 38.6 feet and a height of 24.8-feet. She was powered by a 900-horsepower compound steam engine fueled by two Scotch marine boilers, and gaff-rigged with auxiliary sails on four masts. She was commissioned by Phillip Minch of Vermillion, Ohio, for the Minch Transportation Company of the Kinsman Steamship Company and a syndicate of other investors. The ship was built to take advantage of the channels of 17-foot (5.2 m) depth opened in 1881 when the new Weitzel Lock was built at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.
The superintendent of Onoko's construction was John H. Smith, who learned iron shipbuilding technology and techniques on the River Clyde in Scotland. Smith worked for the newly founded Globe Shipbuilding Company of Cleveland, Ohio, successors to an old and respected boiler and engine building company.
On February 16, 1882, the day Onoko was scheduled to be launched, about five thousand people came to watch the launching despite rough weather conditions. With all preparations completed Smith gave the launch signal at 3 p.m., and Onoko slid into the water. During the next few months Onoko was outfitted and rigged. Although most of the vessel's machinery had been fitted before her launching, her masts at least were installed later by the Messrs. Upson, Walton & Company.
Onoko was enrolled[clarification needed] in Cleveland on March 31, 1882. On her maiden voyage Onoko sailed from Cleveland on April 19, 1882, leaving port at 11 p.m. and arriving in Chicago around 2 p.m. the next day. She was carrying 2,536 tons of coal. Onoko's captain, W.H. Pringle, reported that Onoko "behaved splendidly and steered like a yacht". By April 25, Onoko had been loaded with a cargo of wheat bound for Buffalo, New York, and left at 3:30 p.m. She discharged 88,140 bushels of wheat at the Niagara B Elevator. Not a bit of the cargo was wet. It was thought that Onoko could carry 115,000 to 120,000 bushels of wheat. Onoko's capacity to carry oats was believed to be at around 155,000 bushels. The Buffalo Courier provides an accurate account of when Onoko arrived in Buffalo. It said that "About noon on Saturday the new iron steamer Onoko arrived here with something over 88,000 bushels wheat. She left Chicago last Tuesday at 4:20PM and her time in coming down was three days and nineteen and a half hours".
On May 2, 1882, the writers of the Buffalo Courier wrote a rather unpleasant report about the looks of Onoko:
The Onoko is the largest vessel afloat on the lakes - and by far the homeliest. She looks very like a huge canal boat with a smokestack and four sticks. Her model is really frightful; her upper works are without decent shape, and to cap all her painting is but a daub. For a new vessel she is the worst looking sight that ever appeared on our inland waters. She could have been given a respectable appearance without much interfering with her carrying qualities. One of these days we will show those Cleveland fellows an iron steamer that will be worth looking at. The Onoko is an eye-sore.
The Buffalo Courier criticizing the appearance of Onoko did not sit well with her owners. On May 5, 1882, the Cleveland Herald responded that function trumped form: