Steam Barge Francis Hinton
Historic Shipwreck
Type: Wooden steam barge
Built: 1889, Hansen & Scove, Manitowoc, Wis.
Sank: November 16, 1909
Length: 152’ Beam: 31’
Cargoes: Lumber, wood products
Propulsion: Propeller
Depth of Wreckage: 15’
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places
About one-quarter mile offshore from this point lies the wreck of the steam barge Francis Hinton. The Francis Hinton was built in Manitowoc in 1889 for the Lake Michigan lumber trade. She was the last ship built by the Danish immigrants Jasper Hansen & Hans Scove.
On the morning of Nov. 16, 1909, the Francis Hinton was carrying a full load of Norway pine from Manistique, Mich., to Chicago. Working her way through the heavy seas of a gale, she began taking on water. Captain John Campbell turned toward Two Rivers Harbor, but the rising water extinguished the fire in the steam boiler. The captain ordered the anchor dropped and signaled for help. The heavy seas, however, prevented help from reaching the Hinton. With his ship in danger of sinking, Captain Campbell ordered the anchor chain released, hoping the vessel would drift to safety.
The wind blew the vessel aground, but the pounding surf began breaking up her hull. Captain Campbell and his eleven-man crew took to a small boat and skillfully maneuvered through breakers, while hundreds of people watched from shore.
Today, the Francis Hinton rests in 15 feet of water, with her boiler rising 10 feet above the lakebed. She is marked seasonally by a Wisconsin Historical Society mooring buoy.
Background image: The blades of the Francis Hinton’s propeller are encrusted with zebra mussels. Photo by Kim Brungraber
Marker is on Memorial Drive (Wisconsin Route 42) ½ mile north of Waldo Blvd, on the right when traveling north.
Courtesy hmdb.org
