Minerva Cook/Point Peninsula Wreck
Ship stats
Depth: 12 feet
Coordinates: 44° 0.506'N / 76° 17.011'W
Vessel Type: Wooden two-masted schooner
Length: 88.7 feet
Breadth: 18.5 feet
Tonnage (Old Style): 170
Cargo: Coal
Built: 1841 by Lewis Goler at the yard of H. Cook and D.D. Calvin at Garden Island, Ontario
Port of Registry: Kingston, Ontario
Owner at Loss: Folger Brothers, Kingston, Ontario
Date Lost: November 19, 1868
Cause of Loss: Stranded in storm
Loss of Life: 1
Historical Background
At present, no evidence has been identified that would allow a positive identification of the Point Peninsula Wreck; however, the wreck is believed to be the two-masted schooner Minerva Cook.
Minerva Cook was built in1841 by Lewis Goler at the shipyard of Calvin, Cook & Counter at Garden Island, opposite Kingston, Ontario at the mouth of the St. Lawrence River. Minerva Cook was 88.7 feet long, 18.1 feet in breadth, and had a 9.4-foot depth of hold, measuring 137 tons (builder’s old measure).
Between 1841 and 1865, Minerva Cook was owned and operated by Calvin, Cook & Counter (later Calvin & Cook and Calvin & Breck). It was the ninth vessel owned by the firm, supporting their lumber forwarding operations on Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, and the St. Lawrence River, and the fifth built by the firm’s shipyard on Garden Island. In 1865, the schooner was sold to John Frazer of Kingston. It was sold again to the Folger Brothers of Kingston in 1867.
On November 19 or 20, 1868, Minerva Cook was reportedly wrecked at Point Peninsula with the loss of one life. The loss location was alternately reported as off Point Traverse, Prince Edward County, Ontario. Without further archival or archaeological information it is presently impossible to confirm the proposed identification; however, the correlation of the wreck’s dimensions with Minerva Cook’s enrollment records, the wreck’s location, as well as the lack of other candidates in the immediate vicinity suggest that this identification may be correct.
Wreck Site
Site photo model of the Minerva Cook/Point Peninsula Wreck. Photo:Joe Hoyt/NOAA
The Point Peninsula Wreck lies in 12 feet of water, approximately 450 feet offshore of the isthmus to Point Peninsula. The wreck can be accessed from shore in calm conditions or by boat, and is an ideal site for both snorkelers, divers, and paddlers.
The wreck consists of the vessel’s hull, split apart but largely complete, laying flat on the bottom.The bow is oriented to the southwest and is partially buried. In 2024, NOAA divers documented the Point Peninsula Wreck, producing a three-dimensional photo model of the site. Documentation of the site by NOAA archaeologists is ongoing.