USLHT Warrington
Encyclopedia
The United States Lighthouse Tender Warrington was a lighthouse tender
which served on the Great Lakes
. She was built as a steam barge
in 1868, and began life under the name Henry Warrington. Rechristened simply Warrington, she began government service late in 1870, and was soon pressed into service supporting the construction of the Spectacle Reef Light
on Lake Huron
. On one of her trips across the lake, during a late-fall storm, she encountered the schooner
Darien, which was breaking up on the shore; the Warringtons crew managed to turn towards the wounded vessel and rescued her entire crew.
The Warrington received a new boiler in 1871, and was replanked in 1878. She continued service into 1890s, being completely rebuilt in 1897. She was decommissioned and sold in 1910, when she was purchased by a Chicago
lumber company. She served to carry lumber around the lakes until running aground near Charlevoix
in a storm on August 21, 1911; so battered was the ship by the waves that she was considered a complete loss.
Lighthouse tender
A lighthouse tender is a ship specifically designed to maintain, support, or tend to lighthouses, or lightvessels, providing supplies, fuel, mail and transportation....
which served on the Great Lakes
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
. She was built as a steam barge
Barge
A barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Some barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats...
in 1868, and began life under the name Henry Warrington. Rechristened simply Warrington, she began government service late in 1870, and was soon pressed into service supporting the construction of the Spectacle Reef Light
Spectacle Reef Light
Spectacle Reef Light is a lighthouse eleven miles east of the Straits of Mackinac and is located at the northern end of Lake Huron, Michigan. It was designed and built by Colonel Orlando Metcalfe Poe and Major Godfrey Weitzel, and was the most expensive lighthouse ever built on the Great Lakes...
on Lake Huron
Lake Huron
Lake Huron is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. Hydrologically, it comprises the larger portion of Lake Michigan-Huron. It is bounded on the east by the Canadian province of Ontario and on the west by the state of Michigan in the United States...
. On one of her trips across the lake, during a late-fall storm, she encountered the schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
Darien, which was breaking up on the shore; the Warringtons crew managed to turn towards the wounded vessel and rescued her entire crew.
The Warrington received a new boiler in 1871, and was replanked in 1878. She continued service into 1890s, being completely rebuilt in 1897. She was decommissioned and sold in 1910, when she was purchased by a Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
lumber company. She served to carry lumber around the lakes until running aground near Charlevoix
Charlevoix
The Charlevoix region, located in Quebec, includes parts of the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River and the Laurentian Mountains region of the Canadian Shield...
in a storm on August 21, 1911; so battered was the ship by the waves that she was considered a complete loss.