SS Charles S. Price

43°09.174′N 82°21.174′W / 43.152900°N 82.352900°W / 43.152900; -82.352900

SS Charles S. Price was a steel-hulled lake freighter. Launched on May 14, 1910 in Toledo, Ohio, The ship would remain in use for 3 years under the Mahoning Steamship Company before being lost on Lake Huron during the Great Lakes storm of 1913, along with all 28 crew members.^{[1] [2]} The next day the ship would be rediscovered floating upside down, with only its bow sticking out of the water, having capsized and partially sank during the storm.^[3] It was one of twelve ships lost with all hands on the same day, including the Price's nearly identical sister ship, the SS Isaac M. Scott.^{[4] [5]}

The Charles S. Price was laid down in 1910 as hull number 381 at the American Ship Building Co. shipyard in Toledo, Ohio. ^[6] The ship was launched a few months later on May 14, 1910 and transferred into the ownership of the Mahoning Steamship Company, eventually entering into service on June 7 of the same year.

The Price was 504 ft (154 m) long, 54 ft (16 m) wide, had a depth of 30 ft (9.1 m) and was assessed at 6372 Gross register tons. ^{[7] [8]} It was powered by two Scotch marine boilers and a triple expansion steam engine, turning a single screw. ^{[9] [10]}

The Charles S. Price was nearly identical in design to the SS Isaac M. Scott, which was also constructed by the American Ship Building Company the previous year. The Scott would also be lost with all hands during the Great Lakes storm of 1913, and is tied with the Price as well as the SS John A. McGean for deadliest shipwreck of that day. Both ships are also tied for the 10th largest shipwreck in the great lakes. ^[11]

Under the command of captain William A. Black, the Charles S. Price left Ashtabula, Ohio on November 8th, carrying 9000 tons of coal and a crew of 28 people. The ship was last seen on November 9, heading north on Lake Huron by the crew of the SS H.B. Hawgood, battling large waves and strong winds. ^{[12] [13]}

The Price was found the next day with her bow above water, and her stern dipping below. Because of her disposition, the ship's length could not be measured to make a positive identification of the vessel: the wreck was initially assumed to be the Regina, another ship that had gone missing during the storm. It would take until the 15th for a diver to be sent to inspect the underwater portion of the wreck, who was able to identify the vessel as the Price. The ship later sank on November 17, roughly 8 days after it initially capsized during the storm. ^{[14] [15]}

In the aftermath of the storm, debris and bodies identified as coming from both the SS Regina and the Charles S. Price washed ashore together, leading many to theorize that the two ships had collided during the chaos of the storm. This theory further increased in popularity when it was discovered that Chief Engineer John Groundwater of the Price was wearing a life preserver belonging to the Regina, with some theorizing that the Regina had rescued some of the survivors of the Price before she, too, had sunk. Although searches in the area of where the Price had sunk failed to locate wreck of the Regina, it would remain as the most popular theory until the salvage attempt in 1916, which would confirm that the wreck of the Price showed no damage consistent with a collision. ^{[16] [17] [18]}

The wreck of the Regina would later be located in 1986. It, too, showed no signs of being involved in a collision and is instead believed to have run aground and capsized. ^[19]

The wreck of the price was rediscovered in 1916, roughly 3 years after the ship's sinking during the great storm. shortly thereafter the salvage rights were sold to the Great Lakes Towing and Wrecking company. On June 8th of 1916 the tugboat Favorite arrived at the wreck site to help in the salvage attempt. on June 18th, 1916, The company successfully raised the bow of the ship from the lakebed. By June 23rd the anchor and chains of the ship had been recovered. The company initially predicted that the ship would have been successfully salvaged by June 25th, however work was unexpectedly halted until July 11th due to bad weather. Once the weather was clear, the company returned to the wreck. Divers cut a hole in the side of the aft hull, allowing them to enter the wreck where they would try to seal breaks in the hull and build bulkheads, after sealing off the inside they would then attempt to pump compressed air into the ship to refloat it. By the time work began, the company had came to the conclusion that salvaging the wreck would likely take an additional two weeks longer than initially expected. ^{[20] [21] [22]}

By July 29th salvaging the wreck was decided to be too costly to be worth the expense for the Great Lakes Towing and Wrecking company. The company abandoned all attempts to raise her and the ship was lowered back into the lake for the last time. 2 years later in 1918, the salvage rights were sold to the American Salvage Co, but they too were unable to recover any part of the wreck. ^{[23] [24]}

The wreck is resting upside-down at a depth of 28.6 m (94 ft) approximately 11 miles south of Lexington, Michigan. The ship is missing it's rudder and its cargo holds are almost entirely empty as result of the ship drifting upside down for several days. During the initial salvage attempt in 1916 divers noted significant damage to the ship's stern. Captain Alex Cunning of the Favorite also suggested that the ship's anchor chains may have been cut prior to the sinking.^{[25] [26]}

The lack of a rudder would have made the ship impossible to steer, causing it to fall into a trough and be battered by waves, some of which are estimated to have been up 38 ft (12 m) feet high. Eventually, the ship would capsize, although an air pocket would remain in the bow allowing it to continue floating for several days. ^{[27] [28] [29]}

Today, the wreck of the Price is protected as a part of the Sanilac Shores Underwater Preserve, the wreck is located at 43°09.174′N 82°21.174′W / 43.152900°N 82.352900°W / 43.152900; -82.352900. ^[30]

The sinking of the Charles S. Price occurred under very similar circumstances to several other shipwrecks that occurred during large storms on the Great Lakes, including those also lost during the Great Storm of 1913. Examples include the SS Argus, SS Isaac M. Scott, and the SS John A. McGean, all of which also sank during the 1913 storm, as well as the sinking of the SS William B. Davock, which was lost during the Armistice Day Blizzard in 1940. All ships sank as a result of a missing (or in the case of Davock, jammed) rudder combined with being capsized by large rogue waves. In the case of the McGean and the Argus, both ships contain evidence of having drifted upside-down for a significant period of time similarly to the Price, possibly for several hours or even days after initially capsizing. Although the Price was the only ship out of the three to have actually been observed floating before it sank.^{[31] [32]}

• The wreck of the price floating upside down after the great storm.
• Another angle of the wreck of the price after the storm.
• The Price passing through a draw-bridge, sometime before 1913