Charles W. Wetmore
Whaleback Freighter · United States · Lost 1892 · The Columbia River Bar & Oregon Coast
An experimental Great Lakes 'whaleback' freighter, one of only two ever to sail the ocean, ran aground and was lost near Coos Bay in fog.
Become Captain of RecordSee Shipwreck on Map
The Vessel and Her Loss
Charles W. Wetmore was a pioneering steel whaleback freighter, a novel Great Lakes design adapted for ocean service to help launch shipbuilding on Puget Sound. After carrying grain to England and machinery around Cape Horn to Everett, Washington, she entered coastal trade. On September 8, 1892, bound from Tacoma to San Francisco with coal, she ran aground in fog about a mile north of Coos Bay and could not be saved.
Vessel
- 1891
- US official no. 126745
- American Steel Barge Company
- Superior, Wisconsin
- Steel
- 264 ft
- 38 ft
- 1399
- Steam, single screw, 700 hp, with auxiliary jury-rigged sails
- American Steel Barge Company, later Pacific Steel Barge Company
Loss
- September 8, 1892
- Grounding
- About one mile north of the entrance to Coos Bay, Oregon
- Pacific Ocean
- Tacoma, Washington → San Francisco, California
- Coal
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
The Wreck Today
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
Position
- 43.38° N 124.33° W
- Approximate position
- Coos Bay, Oregon
Position drawn from a coordinate published on Wikipedia's whaleback ship article; treated as approximate.
Evidence
Overall confidence: Partially documented (65/100)
Exact wreck position and present condition of any remains are not established in the sources reviewed.
Build specifications and general history.
Great Lakes Historical Collections, Bowling Green State University
Loss date, location, and cargo details.
Background on the whaleback design and vessel history.
