Engineering:Michipicoten (1952 ship)
 Michipicoten docked in Marquette, Michigan.
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| History | |
|---|---|
| Owner: |
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| Operator: | Lower Lakes Towing |
| Laid down: | as Elton Hoyt II |
| Christened: | May 24, 2003 (as Michipicoten) |
| Completed: | 1952 |
| Maiden voyage: | August 15, 1952 |
| Renamed: | 2003 (Michipicoten by Lower Lakes Towing) |
| Homeport: | Port Dover |
| Identification: |
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| General characteristics | |
| Length: | 689 ft 6 in (210.2 m) |
| Beam: | 70 ft (21.3 m) |
| Draught: | 22 ft (6.7 m)[2] |
| Draft: | 27 ft (8.1 m)[3] |
| Depth: | 37 ft (11.3 m) |
| Propulsion: | MaK 6M32C 6-cylinder 8,160 BHP diesel engine |
| Speed: | 12 knots (14 mph) |
| Capacity: | 22,300 tons |
Michipicoten (named Elton Hoyt II when it entered service in 1952) is a self-discharging lake freighter owned and operated by Canadian shipping firm Lower Lakes Towing.[4] Michipicoten primarily hauls taconite from Marquette, Michigan to the Algoma Steel Mill in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.[5] It has a capacity of 22,300 tons[6], a speed of 12 knots (14 mph), and a length of 689 feet 6 inches (210.2 m).[7]
Construction
Michipicoten was built in 1952 by Massachusetts Heavy Industries in Quincy, Massachusetts.[8] It was one of three vessels built to similar plans for the Interlake Steamship Company. It was launched as Elton Hoyt II. The other two vessels, Johnstown and Sparrows Point, were built for the Bethlehem Steel Corporation.
All three ships were brought to the Great Lakes via the Mississippi and Illinois rivers,[9] restricting their size. Specifically, Elton Hoyt II measured 626 feet 6 inches (191.0 m) long, with a capacity of around 20,000 tons. It was powered by a 7,700 shaft horsepower (5,700 kW) Bethlehem Steel cross compound steam turbine and two oil-fired Foster-Wheeler water tube boilers. As Elton Hoyt II was brought through the rivers, its cabins and pilothouse were cut off and carried on-deck. It was assembled in Chicago , and entered service on August 15, 1952.[7]
Service history
Over the course of the next nearly two decades, Elton Hoyt II entered a pattern of shipping iron ore from Duluth, Minnesota or Superior, Wisconsin to a number of ports in the lower Great Lakes.
Throughout the 1950s, Elton Hoyt II had an incident-free career. In 1957, a taconite pellet facility was built near the town of Hoyt Lakes, Minnesota. The ship became a regular visitor to the facility and began hauling taconite. In 1957, it was lengthened by 72 feet (22 m), increasing its total length to 698 feet 6 inches (212.90 m). The lengthening also increased its capacity to around 23,000 tons. In 1966, the Elton Hoyt II was sold to Pickands Mather and Co. It remained in their fleet until 1973.[10]
Conversion to a self-unloader
23 years later, in 1980, Elton Hoyt II was again upgraded, this time in a conversion to a self-unloading vessel. It was converted at the Toledo-based American Ship Building Co. In 1985, Johnstown, which had not been converted to a self unloader, was sold for scrap. The third ship, Sparrows Point, was converted in 1980 and sails as Buckeye.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the Elton Hoyt II saw varied use. For some seasons, it did not sail. In the 1990s, the vessel was certified to carry grain,[7][5] and made several trips to Buffalo, New York in addition to its regular loads of taconite.
Sale
On April 10, 2003, it was announced that Elton Hoyt II was sold to Lower Lakes Towing, a Canadian shipping company. It was renamed Michipicoten after the Canadian river of the same name. The name Michipicoten means "Big bluffs" in the Ojibwe language and refers to the hills near the river.[11] It was christened on May 24, 2003 in Sarnia, Ontario. The ship began supplying taconite to the Algoma Steel Mill in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.
In December 2010, Michipicoten was laid up in Sarnia. Over the course of several months, its steam turbine system was replaced with a MaK 6M32C 6-cylinder 8,160 brake horsepower (6,080 kW) diesel engine and a new pitch propeller. The cost of the upgrade was around United States dollar 15 million.[7]
References
- ↑ "Michipicoten: Cargo Ship". Vesseltracker. Archived from the original on 2019-05-09. https://web.archive.org/web/20190509153404/https://www.vesseltracker.com/en/Ships/Michipicoten-5102865.html. Retrieved 2019-05-10.
- ↑ "michipicoten". Fleetmon. https://www.fleetmon.com/vessels/michipicoten_5102865_21619/?language=en. Retrieved 2019-05-10.
- ↑ "Michipicoten (IMO 5102865) - Self Discharging Bulk Carrier". Vesseltracking. Archived from the original on 2019-05-09. https://web.archive.org/web/20190509153557/http://www.vesseltracking.net/ship/michipicoten-5102865. Retrieved 2019-05-10.
- ↑ "Vessel details for: MICHIPICOTEN (Self Discharging Bulk Carrier) - IMO 5102865, MMSI 316002501, Call Sign CFG8060 Registered in Canada | AIS Marine Traffic" (in en). http://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:380176/mmsi:316002501/imo:5102865/vessel:MICHIPICOTEN.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 eScapes. "Michipicoten at Soo Locks | Library of the eScapes Television Network". http://www.escapestv.com/library/2011/10/08/michipicoten-at-soo-locks/.
- ↑ "Lower Lakes Towing Ltd. | Our Fleet | Michipicoten". http://www.lowerlakes.com/michipicoten.html.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Jody L. Aho. "Michipicoten, Elton Hoyt 2nd". Boatnerd. http://www.boatnerd.com/pictures/fleet/Michipicoten.htm.
- ↑ BalticShipping.com. "BalticShipping.com" (in en). https://www.balticshipping.com/.
- ↑ "Hoyt 2nd, Elton - Great Lakes Vessel HistoryGreat Lakes Vessel History". https://www.greatlakesvesselhistory.com/histories-by-name/h/hoyt-2nd-elton.
- ↑ "Historical Collections of the Great Lakes :: Vessel Database :: View". http://greatlakes.bgsu.edu/vessel/view/002660.
- ↑ "Michipicoten arriving Duluth" (in en-US). 2007-08-01. http://duluthshippingnews.com/2007/08/01/08012007-michipicoten/.
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