SS Hydrus

DATE OF LAUNCH: 1903

DATE AND LOCATION OF LOSS: November 9, 1913, Lake Huron, near the St. Clair River, Michigan

DATE LOCATED: July 2015

SHIP DETAILS: The SS Hydrus was an American steel-hulled Great Lakes bulk freighter, constructed in 1903 and launched as the R.E. Schuck.

CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE LOSS: The Hydrus was following the James C. Carruthers heading south on Lake Huron while carrying a load of iron ore when she and the James C. Carruthers were caught in the Great Lakes Storm of 1913.

The Hydrus foundered and sank with a crew of twenty-four aboard on or around November 9, 1913 while heading for the St. Clair River. During the storm, waves were said to be 35 feet high along with wind gusts of 90 miles per hour. Five of the crew were found frozen to death in a lifeboat that washed ashore in Canada. The James C. Carruthers was also lost in the storm as well as the Argus, which was the sister ship of the Hydrus.

DISCOVERY AND FINDINGS: The wreck of the Hydrus was located in the summer of 2015 by a team of shipwreck hunters led by David Trotter.

INTERESTING FACTS: The wreck is in over 160 feet of water, and is heavily encrusted with zebra mussels. It is upright and intact, though the hull has been damaged and the bow is twisted at a 45-degree angle from the rest of the ship. The holds still contain iron ore, and the pilothouse is intact, complete with the ship’s wheel and engine-room telegraph.