Ontario (ship)

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The HMS Ontario was a British warship at the time of the American Revolutionary War and sank in Lake Ontario on October 31, 1780 . In 2008 the wreck was located and submerged at a depth of 150 meters.

The Ontario was launched on May 10, 1780 in Canada in Carleton Island as a two-masted brig and was almost 25 meters long and weighed 226 tons. Armed with 22 cannons, she was the flagship of British warships on the Great Lakes . She had about 130 people on board. The crew consisted of Canadians and British soldiers. In addition, American prisoners of war, women and children are said to have been transported on the ship. The captain of the Ontario was James Andrews , the commander of the fleet on the lakes.

Although no witnesses survived the sinking on October 31, 1780, its circumstances are considered clear. The Ontario ran from Fort Niagara to Oswego to transport the fortress commander Masson Bolton to England for medical treatment. A sudden tornado- force storm likely capsized the ship quickly. Six bodies of the crew were found washed ashore.

Find

The explorers took underwater photos that reveal a largely intact shipwreck. Identification is certain based on the masts and their viewing platforms. There are at least four cannons left on the deck. Its finders are Jim Kennard, retired engineer and diver, and Dan Scoville. They had started a systematic search with sonar . Kennard said of the site: “It is a tomb and we are its keepers. We don't want to lead others there. "

literature

  • Arthur Britton Smith: Legend of the Lake: The 22-gun Brig-sloop Ontario, 1780 . Quarry Press, 1997, ISBN 1-55082-186-5 .

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