AH-WR-0028

PS Cumberland

Passenger And Freight Steamer · Canada · Lost 1877 · Isle Royale & Lake Superior

A Canadian side-wheel steamer wrecked near the Rock of Ages in 1877, one of the earliest documented shipwrecks at Isle Royale.

Become Captain of Record See Shipwreck on Map

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents.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

Historically Reconstructed. Drawn from partial documentation of this vessel together with her known class and configuration. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

Cumberland was a wooden side-wheel steamer built in 1871 for the Toronto and Lake Superior Navigation Company, carrying passengers and merchandise on Lake Superior. In July 1877, after a delay from an earlier grounding near Nipigon, she struck rocks near the Rock of Ages at Isle Royale and was lost. She is one of the oldest documented wrecks in what is now Isle Royale National Park and remains a popular dive site near the historic Rock of Ages Lighthouse.

Vessel

Built: 1871
Builder: Melancthon Simpson
Yard: Not established
Material: Wood
Length: 204 ft
Beam: 28 ft
Tonnage: 418
Propulsion: Walking beam steam engine, side paddlewheels
Owners: Toronto and Lake Superior Navigation Company / Lake Superior Navigation Co. Ltd.

Loss

Date: July 25, 1877
Cause: Grounding
Location: Near Rock of Ages, Isle Royale, Michigan
Water: Lake Superior
Voyage: Port Arthur (Thunder Bay), Ontario
Cargo: General merchandise
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: 0
Master: Not established

The Wreck Today

Depth: 20-80
Condition: Broken and scattered but with recognizable side-wheel machinery
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: Not established
Protection: Within Isle Royale National Park

Position

Coordinates: 47.858° N 89.328° W
Accuracy: Surveyed position
Nearest: Rock of Ages, Isle Royale, Michigan
Region: Isle Royale & Lake Superior

The wreck is listed on the National Register of Historic Places near the Rock of Ages Light at Isle Royale National Park, with published NRHP coordinates of 47°51.465'N 89°19.650'W.