http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/4 ... e-superior

A CP loco on the Ontario side. Lost 106 years ago.

How did they get the brand new chain on the wheel at about the four minute mark?
Al

Divers put it there for mooring to the wreck. When the wreck is found from the boat, a shot line is dropped which the divers descend. They locate the wreck and attach a mooring line to a sturdy part. Usually a float ball is left just below the surface. When they return the crew can just simply find the wreck by GPS and tie into the mooring.

Do you mean the cable? I don't see a chain. Possibly lost from a boat recently, or more likely it could be a tether for a marker buoy so the locomotive is easier to find in the future.

The old girl had a rough ride down the cliff, but Mother Nature has done surprisingly little damage over the years.

Steve Hunter

Notice how far the tire is off the lead driving wheel.

Kevin K.

Probably in reasonable condition, considering it's fresh water.

I once heard a story like this, involving a PRR 0-6-0 in a quarry!

That is an amazing lost locomotive story. In the realm of such legends, that one is about as pure as they get. It has a dramatic wreck with the locomotive never to be seen again until 106 years later. Then it is finally found fully exposed in the deep, clear water as a silent testament to its long remembered story.

There has been a lot of discussion about lost locomotive legends including whether or not they are true. I have researched several of them, and am always interested in hearing of more of them. With the clear historical record of this wreck in 1910, including the loss of the locomotive, I am surprised that it was never brought up in the many discussions.

I can relate to the comments in the article about not just finding the wreck, but also the emotional empathy of how the wreck conveys the feeling of what happened at that terrible moment so long ago.

The respect and professionalism of the people involved in this effort is very admirable. This is a neat find and it is interesting to see the condition the locomotive is in after its violent end and century-long rest underwater. It is inspiring that the group making these images possible keeps the fact that this wreckage came at the loss of three lives top of mind and treats it with the appropriate thoughtfulness.

Wow, interesting find. It's said that the waters of Lake Superior are so cold they can preserve bodies... if they keep looking, they may find the firemen. I note that in the photo of the boxcar, it's a wood truss rod boxcar, and it looks completely intact, at least as far as decay is concerned.

Lake Superior (and most of the Great Lakes in general) are cold enough that the wood boring microorganisms cannot survive. That is why wooden shipwrecks fare much better there. Cold water will delay decomposition but it will not stop it entirely. Very few intact human remains are found in shipwrecks-mostly they find bones.

Three comments -- these are not the only railroad artifacts in the lakes --

1) There was a rail ferry that sank and in an attempt to keep it a float, several railroad cars were pushed off

2) A wooden ship was recently found -- from 1805

3) The real risk to this type of wreck comes from Zebra muscles -- an invasive species
that is endangering water intake systems including those used for power plants

Bob H

In case anyone's confused, what he meant were zebra mussels, a shellfish species. (Blame spell-correct--everyone else does.)

I saw the cain as well. there have been WWll Navy planes recovered from the Great Lakes looking in very good condition.

There is a video that shows the locomotive is seriously wrecked. It looks as though the boiler exploded when it hit the cold lake water. Lots of unzipped rivet seams. Here's the link.
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=cpr+694

A couple other interesting items of note:

Wires. Likely the wire used to hold the lagging on prior to applying the jacket.

Bell Bracket. The bell is missing because the bracket is broken. The bell is likely further down the hill, deeper, but could be anywhere.

Cab. the cab is missing, likely torn loose as the engine rolled, but the front wall is intact and still attached to the boiler.