31/08/2025
The J.H. Jones was a 107-foot coastal steamer built in 1888 at Goderich, Ontario. She served ports on Lake Huron and Georgian Bay, carrying both passengers and freight to isolated towns before roads were common. On November 22, 1906, while en route from Owen Sound to Lion’s Head with cargo that included coal oil, a sleigh, and machinery, she was struck by a violent storm off Cape Croker on the Bruce Peninsula. The ship sank quickly with all 30 aboard — 17 passengers and 13 crew — lost. The disaster devastated the small community of Wiarton, where the vessel was based, especially since four crew members left behind 16 children. Only one body, that of businessman Richard Addison, was ever recovered.
For over a century, the exact resting place of the J.H. Jones remained unknown. In July 2018, a search team including Windsor maritime historian Cris Kohl, Ken Merryman, and Jerry Eliason located the wreck in under 200 feet of water. They used sonar and later confirmed it with dives and remote cameras. The wreck lies tilted to port, largely intact but encrusted with mussels, with its stack toppled and features such as the boiler, rudder, capstan, and propeller still visible. The discovery was especially meaningful as the great-grandson of the lost captain, J.V. Crawford, was present during the search. For Kohl, who has studied Great Lakes shipwrecks for decades, this was one of the most historically significant finds of his career.
