General Slocum

Shipwreck General Slocum
Type:
shipwreck, barge, USA
Built:
1891, Brooklyn NY USA, as General Slocum
Specs:
( 235 x 37 ft ) 1284 gross tons, 4 crew
Sunk:
Monday December 4, 1911
storm - no casualties
Depth:
25 ft ( 30 ft, including mud )

The coal barge Maryland sank in heavy weather with no casualties - an utterly forgettable occurrence, were it not for the hulk's previous existence as the side-wheel excursion steamer General Slocum, and the disaster that befell her. On Wednesday, June 15, 1904, the General Slocum caught fire in the East River, New York City.

Shipwreck General Slocum New York Times

The old wooden ship burned fiercely from stem to stern; the situation worsened by negligence and incompetence on the part of the owners, the captain, and the crew. In just minutes the General Slocum burned to the waterline. Over 1000 persons, mostly women and children, died in the flames or drowned in the swift currents of Hell Gate. Entire families perished, and a community of German immigrants was destroyed, leaving just grieving husbands and fathers, many of whom subsequently took their own lives.

Shipwreck General Slocum
Shipwreck General Slocum
The charred remains were lifted from the river bottom and rebuilt as a barge.

The remains of the ship were salvaged and rebuilt as a barge, rechristened Maryland. The Maryland sank three more times before she was finally abandoned. The wreck was rediscovered with reasonable certainty beneath several feet of sand and muck by author Clive Cussler. I doubt it is worth diving.


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Redbird Subway Car - in service
Type:
250 "Redbird" subway cars - NYC Subway system - steel bodies / frames
Built:
1959-1960 - American Car & Foundry - Model R26 # 7750-7859
1960-1961 - American Car & Foundry - Model R28 # 7860-7959
1962-1963 - St. Louis Car - Model R29 # 8570-8805
1962-1963 - St. Louis Car - Model R33 # 8806-9345
1963-1964 - St. Louis Car - Model R36 # 9346-9769
Specs:
( 51 x 9 ft ) 15,000 to 18,000 pounds (body)
Sunk:
50 cars - Cape May Reef on July 3, 2003
50 cars - Deepwater Reef on July 16, 2003
50 cars - Atlantic City Reef on July 25, 2003
50 cars - Garden State North Reef on Sept 3, 2003
50 cars - Shark River Reef on Oct 14, 2003
619 cars - Delaware Reef 11 from Aug 2001 to Nov 2003
Sponsor:
New York City Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA)
anti-
Sponsor:
Environmental group Clean Ocean Action lobbied aggressively and almost successfully to prevent the use of these subway cars as artificial reefs in New Jersey, resulting in most of the cars going to other states.
GPS:
too many to list, and all gone anyway
Depth:
Depths vary by location between 80 ft and 130 ft.

Printed from njscuba.net