Throwback Thursday is sponsored by Dresden Meat Packers:
This week’s Throwback Thursday is from the Sombra Museum:
“The Azov schooner was built in 1866 for William Buntin. He was from Wellington Square, Ontario, which is now Burlington. For the first 18 years of her career, she operated solely on Lake Ontario. In 1884, the Azov switched hands to two local men from Port Lambton: John Shaw and John Forest, and they entered her into the salt and lumber trades. She would travel to Owen Sound and other Georgian Bay ports for salt, and to a North Channel port or Manitoulin Island for lumber.
Around the turn of the century, the Azov switched owners and eventually became owned by Captain John McDonald of Goderich. He sold his previous schooner, the John G. Kolfage, in order to pay for the Azov and have her rebuilt in Sarnia. John McDonald would turn the schooner into a family business, enlisting his son Dan to be the mate and his daughter Etta to be in charge of the gallery. They repainted the schooner white with green trim and set her out on Lake Huron.
No ships are without their incidents, and the Azov’s biggest one happened in 1911. She was heading southbound on Lake Huron towards Chatham when she encountered a storm and started to leak. The crew did their best to try and maintain the leak, but the ship became unsalvageable. They lowered the yawl boat that Captain John had built and abandoned the sinking Azov, which quickly capsized while they sailed away on their rescue boat. There were 5 crew members alongside the Captain, including his son and daughter. They rowed and bailed their way across the stormy waters, hitting large waves that would flood half of the boat. Exhaustion quickly set in, and Captain John had to occasionally poke someone with his steering oar in order to keep them awake. It took 18 hours for them to reach shore, six miles north of Goderich. They were taken in by a farmer who let them rest and recover.
The abandoned Azov drifted across the lake and was found by the McGaw tugboat near Kincardine. They tried to tow her ashore but she would not cooperate. She eventually washed ashore on Belcher Reef, near Port Elgin. She was broken to pieces and her career would sadly be put to an end.”
If you have an old photo, or video, that you would like to see on the Sydenham Current, let us know by sending us an email to sydenhamcurrent@gmail.com.
