George A Marsh

Wreck Location

Amherst Island, Ontario, Canada

Description

The trhee masted schooner George Marsh was built in 1882 by Footlanders at the Muskegon, Michigan. After service under the American flag, she was purchased by J.B. Flint, of Belleville, Ontario and given Canadian registration.  On August 8, 1914, she set sail from Oswego, New York, loaded with 450 tons of coal destined for Rockwood Hospital, Kingston, Ontario. On board were 14 souls: Captain Smith, his second wife, five of their seven children; the mate William Watkins; the Captain’s brother, William Smith; Neil McLennon, a deck hand, with his wife, their eighteen-month-old baby, and a nephew

A violent storm came up and battered her loaded hull, until her seams gave way and her pumps gave out. William Smith and Neil McLennan, with babe in arms, managed to get to the ship's yawl and make their way to Amherst Island. The baby succumbed to the cold. All told, 12 souls where lost that day to the fury of the Lake Ontario. Several dead were recovered and the rest remain buried beside the wreck