Has the SS North Pacific been found?

[rjack321]

In my experience side wheelers come apart on the surface and sink over a very large area. We found the Keystone State in 2013 and her debris trail stretched over a half mile in 160+ ft of water. The Lady Elgin is spread out over 5 square miles. In Salt water you'd be better dragging a magnetometer than a side scan or a camera sled.

View attachment 805423
View attachment 805424

Well the North Pacific has been down 120 years old now and if scattered, the wood tends to decay and get nom nomed by wood boring critters 100x faster. Ships less than half her age are completely gone here except for the largest dense-est timbers and whatever metal was present.

 

[Jared0425]

Well the North Pacific has been down 120 years old now and if scattered, the wood tends to decay and get nom nomed by wood boring critters 100x faster. Ships less than half her age are completely gone here except for the largest dense-est timbers and whatever metal was present.

Yup, so your best bet is to try and locate her engine and boilers. So tow a mag or a camera sled if you can ID man-made objects despite encrustation.

 

[rjack321]

Yup, so your best bet is to try and locate her engine and boilers. So tow a mag or a camera sled if you can ID man-made objects despite encrustation.

Yeah sadly that takes enormous dedication and passion that I don't have to devote to this particular mystery - plus a magnetometer is way out of my budget.

 

[Jared0425]

Yeah sadly that takes enormous dedication and passion that I don't have to devote to this particular mystery - plus a magnetometer is way out of my budget.

We rented one for about $300 a day for a 4 day weekend. It takes a few guys and a few tries.

 

[Cthippo]

Be nice if we could narrow the search area down some.

Anyone know who keeps old Maritime Court of Inquiry records?

 

[rjack321]

Be nice if we could narrow the search area down some.

Anyone know who keeps old Maritime Court of Inquiry records?

UW Archives, but seriously people have been looking for this one for decades. You'll need a fresh trick lol

 

[Cthippo]

Looks like NARA might have some of it...


41.3.1 Records of the First Supervising District (San Francisco,
CA)

Textual Records: Letters sent and received by local boards at Juneau and Sitka, AK, 1898-1910; and journal of George Whitney, local inspector for Alaska, May-October, 1898. Records of the local board at Seattle, WA, including case files of casualties and violations, 1887-1942; annual reports, 1907-23; inspections of hulls and boilers, 1898-1927; and selected docketed correspondence, 1908-33 (in Seattle).

Even if this goes nowhere, it is good experience for future projects, and I don't think I will be diving again this year after Friday, so got to do something over the long cold winter!

Besides, how many good, undiscovered wrecks are there in the sound? Gotta go after the ones you know about.