Superior (schooner)

The Superior was a schooner that operated on the Great Lakes in the early 19th century.

History
United States
NameSuperior
Laid down1816
FateDeliberately destroyed (1829)
General characteristics [1]
TypeSchooner
Tonnage70.26 long tons (71.39 t)
Tons burthen70 BOM[2]
Length62 ft (19 m)
Beam18 ft 1 in (5.51 m)
Depth7 ft 2 in (2.18 m)
Decks1
PropulsionSails

History

The wooden schooner was built in Ashtabula, Ohio, in 1816[1] from "the best materials".[2] The following year it was enrolled at Presque Isle, Michigan. On April 13, 1824 it was purchased by a joint group of parties in Detroit. The following year, on May 17, it was sold to Reynold Gillet of Buffalo, New York.[1] In 1825, an advert was placed with the Buffalo Emporium showing that the ship was to make voyage from Buffalo to Detroit on March 24, weather permitting. The advert invited interested travellers to apply to the captain "for freight or passage [with] good accommodations".[3]

On May 9, 1825 the schooner ran aground near Cedar Point, Ohio on Lake Erie. Three years later, on January 29, 1828, it again ran aground on the lake near Buffalo.[1]

Over the falls
See also: List of objects that have gone over Niagara Falls

In 1829, the Superior was purchased by businessmen for use in a stunt. A planned dive by Sam Patch into the base of the falls was advertised as a major public event, occurring on October 7. A side-attraction was to have the schooner sail over the falls and crash spectacularly in the lower Niagara River. However, on October 15 the Cleveland Weekly Herald reported that the Superior stunt "eventuated in a perfect failure".[4] The story described how the ship should have "precipitated entire, into the gulf below", but that it became caught on a reef.[4]

Over a month later, on November 23, the Fredonia Censor announced that a severe gale had dislodged the ship and that it went over the falls, having "reached the brink of the Falls without breaking".[5]

References
  1. "SUPERIOR; 1816; Schooner; AMERICAN". Great Lakes Maritime Database. University of Michigan. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  2. "Superior (Schooner), aground, 1 May 1819". Niagara Journal. 10 August 1819. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  3. "Superior (Schooner), 19 Mar 1825". Buffalo Emporium. 19 March 1825. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  4. "Superior (Schooner), went over falls, 1 Oct 1829". Cleveland Weekly Herald. 15 October 1829. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  5. "Superior (Schooner), went over falls, 1 Oct 1829". Fredonia Censor. 2 December 1829. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
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