New Jersey Scuba Diving

Steamer or Steamship

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Steamer is an early term for any vessel power by a steam engine rather than sails.

Shipwreck Delaware
The Delaware, an 1880s screw steamer

Early steamers were propelled by large paddlewheels. "Side-wheelers", with the paddlewheels on each side, were more seaworthy, and therefore more common in ocean waters, while "stern-wheelers", with a single large paddlewheel at the back, were more common as riverboats. Later, these were replaced by more efficient screw (or propeller) vessels.

Shipwreck Black Warrior
The Black Warrior, an 1850s side-paddlewheel steamer. There are no stern-wheelers in the region that I know of.
Click
This sketch of the Delaware shows the remains that you can expect to find of such a vessel.

Of note is the universal pattern of:

< bow - boilers - engine - drive shaft - propeller - rudder/stern )

and the fact that the boilers are always in front of the engine. Identify any one of these features on the wreck, and you can orient yourself in even the murkiest conditions.

Shipwreck Delaware boiler
Boilers on the Delaware. In the foreground is an intact one. Next to that is a collapsed one; there are four altogether. In the background is the engine.
steam engine
An old postcard of the City of Keansburg, the last of the New York commuter ferries, and one of the last steamships to ply local waters - until 1968.
steam engine
One of the Keansburg's two triple-expansion steam engines, at Allaire State Park.

Lexington

Shipwreck Lexington
Type:
steamer, USA
Built:
1835, New York NY USA
Specs:
( 207 x 21 ft ) 488 gross tons, 165 passengers & crew
Sunk:
Monday January 13, 1840
fire - 4 survivors
Depth:
125 ft - 150 ft

More: Lexington ...

Hylton Castle

Shipwreck Hylton Castle
Type:
shipwreck, steamer, England
Built:
1871, England
Specs:
( 251 x 32 ft ) 1258 gross tons, 22 crew
Sunk:
Monday January 11, 1886
overloaded and foundered in storm - no casualties
Depth:
95 ft

More: Hylton Castle ...

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 )

More: General Slocum ...

Visibility

I have found no correlation between good visibility and anything else at all. Calm seas certainly don't hurt, but the worst visibility I have ever been in was with a 1-foot surf on the beach. There is however a very good correlation between bad visibility and storms, which is why a single hurricane can end the season.

Other factors which influence visibility are: algae blooms, spawning seasons of some invertebrates, which can fill the water with tiny swimmers, jellyfish ( yes, so many you can't see through them, luckily they don't sting, ) other divers churning up the bottom, and just plain gunk in the water. I don't know how to predict most of these, except to say that if you dive a lot, sooner or later you will see some good visibility. Sometimes in the ocean, the visibility will be different in different depth layers. I have seen the viz go from 3 ft on the way down the anchor line to 20 ft on the wreck.

More: Visibility ...

Disclaimer:

I make no claim as to the accuracy, validity, or appropriateness of any information found in this website. I will not be responsible for the consequences of any action that is based upon information found here. Scuba diving is an adventure sport, and as always, you alone are responsible for your own safety and well being.

Copyright © 1996-2024 Rich Galiano
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