Cleveland Underwater Explorers CLUE

(Only 117th street wreck portion of report)

Upon surfacing the seas were found to have calmed to 1’. Since it was such a beautiful day, it was
decided to videotape and measure another new wreck found earlier by CLUE. This was the
second wreck located by CLUE, and it was originally found on October 1, 2002, but not dove
until June 14, 2003. It is a wooden tug off Lakewood in 45’ of water in the general vicinity of the
currently known “117th Street Wreck.” Unlike the previous new wreck, the bow and stern are
easily identified. The bow stem points west and stands about 8’ high off the bottom. Although the
primary structure of this wreck is wooden, the bow is clad in metal to aid in ice breaking duties, a
common practice of early tugs. The metal cladding extends along the stem post and sweeps along
the sides towards the stern near the keel. The stem is tilted to the port side by about 30-40
degrees, and wooden ribs are visible along the entire starboard side standing about 3’ off the
bottom. However, no port side of the wreck is visible and is assumed to be either buried or
missing.

Proceeding aft, a respectably large boiler is found amidships. It stands 8’ high off the bottom with
its face pointing towards the bow. There are two side-by-side fireboxes at the bottom and a large
partitioned opening above them that allows a partial examination of the interior. On top along its
length are two small openings. Forward of the boiler is what appears to be a large metal cradle
that stretches from starboard to port with two hollow box ends. The boiler itself is not aligned
along the centerline of the ship but is instead rotated with its forward starboard corner touching
near the ribs on that side.

Aft of the boiler is a large wooden slab near the ribs. The ribs continue in a large sweeping arc to
the stern, which stands about 5’-8’ off the bottom. The stern is a sharply raked, tapered structure
that comes to a single point and seems to be undercut for a propeller and rudder, although neither
of these items can be seen. Four stone blocks can be found in the interior of the ship in this area.

Although this wreck is also unidentified, several things can be deduced about it. First, the engine
and all useful items except the boiler are missing, suggesting the vessel was either scuttled or
salvaged. Second, no artifacts of any type were found on this wreck, and there is some netting at
the bow that appears to have been tied down to the ribs. These are signs of previous diver activity
and suggest the wreck is not “virgin.” The wreck was measured at 90’ +/- 5’ in length with a 270
degree magnetic heading towards the bow. A beam measurement was not obtained since the port
side is completely buried. The boiler measures 14.6’ x 8’ and starts 33’ from the bow. The metal
cradle measures 16’ in total length with the block ends being 1.5’ square.

Towards the end of the dive, the bright ambient lighting conditions suddenly turned dark.
Flashlights were required to see, and the visibility was effectively reduced to 3’. Upon approaching
the anchor line, it was discovered to be completely taut. After struggling to free the anchor from
the wreck, it took off and immediately got caught again to the west. After freeing it again, it took
off at a high rate of speed and required steering around obstacles until it was clear of the wreck.
The anchor line continued to fly along during the ascent, requiring a tight hold of the anchor line.
Upon surfacing, a violent thunderstorm was seen to be in progress, complete with drenching rain,
lightning strikes, 3’ seas, and strong winds. The boat continued to drift in the strong west current
and wind, and eventually the anchor caught about a third mile away from the wreck. It was
decided in the future the anchor doesn’t really need to be released under such conditions.
Strangely enough, within half an hour after surfacing and collecting everything, the storm had blown
itself out, the seas were calm at 1’, and the sun was shining again like nothing had happened.