Preserving Ontario's Marine Heritage

By OTTAVIO CICCONI

The ship called the City of Sheboygan was built in Sheboygan, Wisconsin in 1871. Loaded with 500 tons of feldspar, a type of rock-forming mineral, it sank during a violent storm on Lake Ontario on September 1, 1915. Five lives were lost. The largely intact 135-foot long shipwreck now rests in 95 feet of water.

Fast-forward 86 years. I'm scuba diving in Kingston on the Simcoe Day weekend in August. It's Sunday, and the charter boat is heading out to the wreck of the Sheboygan for the first dive of the day.

The water is as flat and calm as a sheet of shining glass. One after another the divers crash through the surface as they leap into the water. I jump in as well, and taking hold of the mooring line that runs down to the wreck, my partner and I sink beneath the surface.

Slowly we slide down the line, falling deeper and deeper as the bubbles explode from our regulators in a constant rhythm. My breath quickens as a dim silhouette gradually begins to emerge from the shadows. The wreck drifts into our consciousness from the mists of time.

The masts and the bow are the first things to appear on the wreck that is lying upright in the water. Although broken, the masts make me think of the great columns that are found in old cathedrals.

Aside from some damage to the its planks, the deck of the Sheboygan is largely intact. Her rails are also in good shape. Scattered across the deck are the original kettle, cups, and pots that the sailors would have used for their tea and their meals. The Sheboygan is lucky to be so well preserved. It is a beautiful place.

The wreck of the Kinghorn in nearby Rockport wasn't nearly as lucky. Discovered in 1995, the Kinghorn was very fragile when it was found. This problem became worse when dive boats and divers started visiting the site.

An anchor was dropped on the deck, tearing out floorboards and causing other structural damage. The ship's anchor was stolen, along with the handles on the ship's wheel. This loss was even more significant because archaeologists had not yet been able to survey the wreck.

Ontario's marine heritage dates back to before the arrival of the Europeans. The modern system of roads and highways didn't come into effect until after the Second World War. Prior to that there was no way of traveling around the province except by water.

Historians estimate that 5,000 shipwrecks lie at the bottom of Ontario's lakes and rivers. They are the legacy of this heritage. Scuba divers enjoy this legacy the most, but unfortunately they can also be its worst enemy. A small group of people hopes to change that.

Peter Engelbert has been a marine archaeologist for the province of Ontario since 1983. Over the years he has logged thousands of dives, and spent hundreds of hours working on underwater archaeological sites.

Most of this time has been spent working on shipwrecks, but he has also worked on underwater native settlement sites dating back to 300 B.C. He thinks more has to be done to protect this heritage.

Engelbert says that the diving population falls into three camps. "In the first group you have the people who really care. In the second group you have people who are not going to get involved, but will support the efforts of the few. In the last group you have the divers who will grab anything they can get their hands on."

He is referring to the small group of divers who will strip wrecks of anything that they can carry. The big-ticket items are the ship anchors, portholes, whistles, and cutlery. The anchors usually end up as lawn ornaments. When these items are gone some people start pulling away at the very nails and boards that hold the ship together. This causes tremendous damage to the already fragile wrecks.

Not only is removing these artifacts against the law, but if caught the authorities can confiscate boats, cars or any other vehicles used to arrive at the site. In one case some people were caught trying to load three anchors onto a flatbed truck with a front-end loader.

"What these people don't realize is that unless these artifacts are properly treated with special chemicals when they reach the surface, they rapidly disintegrate and become useless. They are lost forever."

Education is the key to preserving this heritage. Engelbert believes that the earlier this starts the better. He is currently developing a course with dive instructors in Ottawa that will teach people how to be responsible divers. "Sport divers have a tremendous impact on these sites, but the only way that things are going to change is if we educate people. Groups like SOS have helped a lot in this regard."

SOS stands for Save Ontario Shipwrecks. It's a provincial heritage organization dedicated to "the study, preservation and promotion of an appreciation of Ontario's marine heritage." Founded in 1981 and run entirely by volunteers, SOS has developed a number of initiatives to protect Ontario's marine heritage.

The mooring program is one of these initiatives. Mooring blocks are large cement blocks placed near wrecks with a polypropylene line attached to a simple buoy. With mooring blocks in place, dive boats can now tie off to the mooring line rather than risk dropping their anchors on the vulnerable wrecks below.

Brian Prince is the president of the SOS Ottawa chapter. He explained the grassroots approach of SOS. "SOS has chapters all across Ontario, and members of the board are from all parts of Ontario. Each chapter is responsible for working on projects in their local area. This can include such things as a mooring program, making presentations to scuba clubs or offering courses in underwater archaeology."

Englebert teaches the courses in underwater archaeology. He says that the SOS volunteers play a crucial role in helping him to document and study these underwater sites.

Dive instructors have an important role to play because they are the ones who usually influence new divers the most. Not only can they teach new divers to respect the shipwrecks, but they can also teach them proper dive techniques for shipwreck diving. This includes the new diver learning not to pull themselves along the deck and rails of boats, and trying to avoid brushing up against anything.

It's never too late to learn how to be a great diver. Just ask Bob Lighthart, president of the SOS chapter in the Thousand Islands. Bob has been diving for the last 20 years. He is 77 years-old. Bob's philosophy is simple. "Respect the wrecks and we will all be able to enjoy them. Disrespect what we have, and we all lose."

It's advice that all of us should be taking to heart.

 

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