Mary
Two-Masted Schooner · Canada · Lost 1905 · Lake Ontario & the St. Lawrence
A coal-laden schooner foundered off Oswego in a 1905 gale; a recently surveyed wreck is believed, but not confirmed, to be her.
Become Captain of RecordSee Shipwreck on Map
The Vessel and Her Loss
Mary was a small wooden schooner built in 1877 at Thorold, Ontario, later carrying coal out of Napanee. On November 6, 1905, she left Fairhaven, New York, laden with coal when a gale swept eastern Lake Ontario, driving her under bare masts before she foundered with the loss of all four aboard. A wreck discovered in 2024 and documented by NOAA in 2025 is believed to be Mary, though conclusive identification has not yet been established.
Vessel
- 1877
- George H. Garner
- Thorold, Ontario
- Wood
- 84 ft
- 20.3 ft
- 87
- Sail, two masts
- Captain Andrew Baird Jr., Napanee, Ontario
Loss
- November 6, 1905
- Storm
- Lake Ontario, off Oswego, New York
- Lake Ontario
- Fairhaven, New York → Napanee, Ontario
- 225 tons of coal
- 4
- 4
- Captain Andrew Baird Jr.
The Wreck Today
- Not established
- Cabin and stern broken; a clipper-style bow survives
- Not established
- 2024
- Within Lake Ontario National Marine Sanctuary
Position
- 43.46° N 76.51° W
- General area only
- Oswego, New York
General area only: coordinate of Oswego, New York from the USGS Geographic Names Information System, marking the named place of loss (off Oswego) recorded for this vessel, not a surveyed wreck position.
Evidence
Overall confidence: Partially documented (60/100)
The wreck's identity as Mary has not been conclusively confirmed by NOAA's investigation.
NOAA Lake Ontario National Marine Sanctuary
Vessel history, loss narrative, and wreck documentation status.
USGS Geographic Names Information System — City of Oswego
coordinate of the named place of loss
