Cleveland Underwater Explorers CLUE

CLUE, 2005-05-22 - New Wreck Dive Report

(Only CSU wreck portion of report)

On Sunday, May 22, 2005, David VanZandt and Kevin Magee went diving off Dave’s boat “Sea
Dragon” out of Cleveland, OH. This was their first Lake Erie dive of the year. It was also a
momentous occasion because it was the first dive on a newly discovered wreck. It was located by
CLUE on October 11, 2004, but not dove at the time of discovery. This is the third wreck located
and explored by CLUE so far, and is approximately 2 miles off Cleveland in 45’ of water. The
purpose of the dive was to explore and characterize the wreck – and also to get wet. The weather
was pleasant with partly sunny skies and 1’ seas, but the air was somewhat cool at 63-64 deg F.

Surface visibility was a decent 5’, and upon descending the divers were pleasantly surprised to find
5’-8’ of visibility on the bottom with bright ambient lighting conditions. The water was 51-52 deg
F with no thermocline or gradient. The anchor snagged off the wreck, so a reel was deployed, and
the wreck was quickly located by sweeping. It consists of a single wooden side, approximately
80’ long (estimated from sidescan imagery), lying north-south with about 5’ of relief. The hull is
sturdily constructed with horizontal planking on both the inside and outside of the ribs. The top of
the hull is highly broken with no railing or gunwale evident. The north end features a square post
(likely a samson post) lying at a 45 deg angle to the west, indicating the wreck lies with the west
side buried. Distinct bow or stern features could not be discerned at either end, but the samson
post makes the bow most likely at the north end. The side curves outward towards the east as it
travels south, then curves back somewhat towards the (assumed) stern. There is a large
breakdown approximately amidships with several large boards lying on the bottom inboard (west)
of the breakdown.

Exploring the bottom around the wreck, an unbroken brown ceramic jug was located amidships
with a small ringed handle near its mouth. A fist-sized piece of coal was found amidships, a red
brick was found near the south end, and half a red brick was found at the north end. Searching the
debris field revealed several boards but nothing significant in the way of equipment. A very fine
gravel patch was located off the north end on the otherwise silty bottom. It is unclear whether the
wreck is a schooner or tug, but the presence of coal and bricks makes a wooden tug the most
likely candidate. There was no snagged fishing tackle on the wreck nor were there signs of
previous diver activity, suggesting the wreck may be “virgin.” The presence of the jug strongly
suggests earlier divers may not have previously located this wreck since such items were usually
taken.

After surfacing the weather began to turn gray and the waves began building to 2’. Due to the lack
of a thermocline and the cool air temperatures, it was also fairly chilly after the dive, so it was
decided to head back to shore. However, the divers were elated to have such great underwater
visibility on the wreck, and more study will be necessary to better identify it. This may prove
challenging due to the highly broken and buried nature of the wreck.

CLUE, 2005-05-28 – “CSU Wreck” and “117th Tug” Dive Report

On Saturday, May 28, 2005, David VanZandt and Kevin Magee once again went diving in Lake
Erie off Dave’s boat “Sea Dragon” out of Cleveland, OH. The purpose was to measure,
videotape, and further investigate the new 45’ deep wooden wreck first dove and reported on May
22 (CLUE, 2005-05-22). The wreck is located roughly off Cleveland State University, so it has
been dubbed the “CSU Wreck.” The day was sunny with 2’ seas and a pleasant air temperature
of 73 deg F. The water temperature was 55-56 deg F, warmer than the previous weekend, and
visibility was just as good at 5’-8’. Upon entering the water, a fairly significant surface current from
the west was encountered, requiring a vigorous swim to the anchor line.

The wreck was measured at 92’ in length, although +/- 10’ should be considered since the wreck
is highly broken and neither the bow nor stern can be definitely distinguished. The measurement
line was along a 0 deg magnetic heading. A beam measurement was not obtained since one side is
completely buried or missing.

Examination of the brown ceramic jug found earlier revealed no distinguishing marks at all, and the
same was true for the two red bricks. Another piece of broken crockery was found near the north
end (suspected bow), and a small piece of machinery, possibly a gear or winch spool, was found
trapped almost completely under the wreck at the north end. A piece of what appears to be
burned wood was found near the south end. The style of construction of the wooden hull is robust
with two layers of planking, an inside and outside layer, sandwiching the ribs. Metal spikes are
used in the construction, and what appears to be collapsed decking is folded up against the west
side of the hull in some places. Overall, however, no further clues or significant information was
obtained. Because of its highly buried and broken state, it is felt significant work and excavation
would be required at this point to proceed any further in identifying this wreck.