Field Seasons

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2008 Field Season

The first field season commenced in the summer of 2008 and much was accomplished during the four week period. The first phase of the project consisted of detailed recording of all structural components protruding up from the soft, muddy bottom of Lake Erie. These components include the remains of the port-and starboard-side paddlewheels, the connecting drive shaft, pitman arm, engine linkages, feed-water heater, the remnants of the wooden hogging-truss, and the steamer’s bow.

Once measurements were taken and detailed sketches completed, work then began on the second phase of the project, subsurface probing of the lake bottom. The goal of this was to determine how much of Wayne lies buried beneath the soft mud. The wreck is situated in two sections, the two large paddlewheels at mid-ships and the remnants of the bow, separated by 80 feet. Methodical probing determined that there are significant structural remains between the two sections, but are buried under five to ten feet of mud and sediment.

2009 Field Season

The data gathered from the 2008 season yielded exciting results, but ultimately left more questions than answers. Therefore, the Anthony Wayne Shipwreck Survey resumed investigations in summer 2009. Three principal objectives guided this year’s operations: first, locate and uncover elements of the vessel’s hull; secondly, locate and uncover the steamer’s horizontal engine; finally, investigate the stern section of the site, where no visible remains are present.

Working closely with the State of Ohio and the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, underwater excavations were carried out over the six week field season, the first of their kind in Ohio’s waters. Two exploratory test units were excavated in order to see what lies beneath the soft lake bottom. Unfortunately, evidence of hull remains proved to be elusive, but probing did confirm that significant structure does exist on the site (at a depth of 13 feet beneath the bottom!). The second test unit proved to be much more exciting than the first. The crew was successful in locating and exposing the Wayne’s horizontal direct-acting steam engine, possibly one of the earliest extant examples of a marine engine on the Great Lakes. The engine and associated machinery were carefully sketched, measured, and photographed before being reburied to ensure preservation of this unique mechanical artifact.

Time restraints did not allow for the thorough investigation of the aft-end of the wreck as initially planned. The crew was, however, allowed access to a sub-bottom profiler, a device that ends emits an acoustic signal powerful enough to penetrate the lake bottom substrate. Initial tests did indicate that substantial material does lie buried at least fifty feet abaft the paddlewheels. Further testing must be conducted in order to get more definitive dimensions of the vessel and the site.