AH-WR-1917

Kate Williams

Tug · Lost Late September 1907; refloating attempts abandoned in 1909. · Door County & Lake Michigan

A Civil War-era Cleveland tug drifted onto the rocks between Washington and Rock islands in 1907 and could never be freed.

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Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents. See the documented evidence.

Interpretive Reconstruction, drawn to convey the vessel's era, type and general form. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

The wooden steam tug Kate Williams was built at Cleveland in 1862 and was owned at loss by John Martin's dredging, wrecking and towing company of Escanaba. In late September 1907, anchored between Jackson Harbor and Rock Island, her chain parted in a northerly blow and she drifted onto the rocks. Leathem and Smith's tug George Nelson failed to release her, and by 1909 salvors gave up, recovering her boiler, engine and propeller.

Vessel

Built: 1862
Registry: US registry no. 14040
Builder: Ira Lafrinnier
Yard: Cleveland, Ohio
Material: Wood
Length: 112.6 ft
Beam: 20.9 ft
Tonnage: 164 gross tons
Propulsion: Steam, screw
Owners: Not established

Loss

Date: Late September 1907; refloating attempts abandoned in 1909.
Cause: Storm
Location: Rocks between Washington Island and Rock Island, Door County, Wisconsin
Water: Lake Michigan
Voyage: Not established
Cargo: None (light)
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: Not established
Master: Not established