520 Sunken Vessels | Historical archives | Underwater images/video | Exploration updates

520 Sunken Vessels today:

Sunken Vessel #1 – Forest No. 15:

Sunken Vessel #1 is the remains of a wooden barge. The side scan sonar data from Golder Associates shows the barge to be approximately 60 feet long, 25 feet wide and 9 feet high. The bottom depth is 190 feet. A copy of the side scan image of the barge prepared by Golder Associates is set forth below.

Front

Stern

Sunken Vessel #1.

The barge is sitting upright on the bottom. It is made entirely of wood. The four sides of the barge are intact except for a small area near the stern on the port side, which is damaged. The damage is near the waterline and suggests that the barge hit a snag or other debris in the water and sank as a result of the accident. The top of the barge is covered with a wooden deck, except for the areas that appear as bright yellow in the side scan image above. The portions of the deck that appear as bright yellow in the side scan image are openings that allow access into the interior of the barge. The portions of the interior of the barge that are visible are empty except for one bag of gravel.

The barge is rectangular with blunt ends. The hull at both ends has roughly the same slope from the top of the hull to the bottom of the hull, making it difficult to determine which end of the barge is the front and which is the stern. We have assumed that the front end of the barge has the name on it (see side scan image above). On the starboard side of the barge near the front is the word “Aberdeen.” On the port side of the barge near the front is the name “Forest
No. 15”. The letters are carved crudely into the wooden sides of the barge and painted. The words are on the sides right below the top of the barge.

Underwater images of vessel #1 (click any image for a larger file):

Sunken Vessel #2 – 160 Foot Hull:

Sunken Vessel #2 is an empty wooden hull. The side scan data from Golder Associates shows the hull to be approximately 160 feet long, 30 feet wide and 10 feet high. The bottom depth is 200 feet. A copy of the side scan image of Sunken Vessel #2 prepared by Golder Associates is set forth below:

Sunken Vessel #2.

The wooden hull is sitting upright on the bottom. The hull was made with wooden cross beams running from the bow to the stern that have wooden planking on either side, forming an outer and inner hull. About five feet off the bottom, a wooden strake (fender) runs along the outside of the hull from the stern to about 15 feet aft of the bow. The bow has a square (straight up and down) profile with no slope. The hull is empty except for some beams, pieces of metal and automobile tires that are lying in the bow area. The beams lying inside the hull show evidence of having burned. There is no evidence of the hull itself having burned. The stern is missing. There is the remains of a small wooden mast that rises straight up from the floor in the center of the stern section of the hull.

We believe Sunken Vessel #2 is the remains of a wooden steamer. We base our opinion on the shape of the bow, the shallow draft of the hull and the wooden strake (fender) that runs along the outside of the hull from the stern to about 15 feet aft of the bow. At this time, we are only able to identify the type of vessel, and do not have a specific identification.

Underwater images of vessel #2 (click any image for a larger file):

The Fresno:

We believe Sunken Vessel #2 was mistakenly identified as The Fresno by the local news media in 2003. It is our conclusion that another sunken vessel in Lake Washington off Groat Point (close to Meydenbauer Bay) is the likely remains of the Fresno. Read more about SCRET's research on The Fresno »

Side scan sonar image of the Fresno hull provided by Inner Space Exploration Team.

Underwater images of The Fresno (click any image for a larger file):

Sunken Vessel #3 – Unnamed Scow:

Sunken Vessel #3 is the remains of a wooden scow. The side scan data from Golder Associates shows this vessel to be approximately 60 feet long, 20 feet wide and 7 feet high. The bottom depth is 170 feet. A copy of the side scan image of Sunken Vessel #3 prepared by Golder Associates is set forth below:

Sunken Vessel #3.

Sunken Vessel #3 is sitting upright on the bottom. It is made entirely of wood. The four sides of the hull are generally intact, although there are a number of damaged areas near the waterline, which suggest that the vessel may have hit a snag or other debris in the water and sank as a result of the accident. The top of the scow is covered with a wooden deck, except for small areas that are open and allow access into the interior. The wooden deck is covered with small gravel. The portions of the interior of the scow that are visible are empty, although some pipes and valves are visible.

The scow is rectangular with blunt ends. However, the scow has a distinctive bow and stern. The bow has a steeper slope from the top of the hull to the bottom of the hull than does the stern.

SCRET's research and discoveries about Sunken Vessel #3 »

Underwater images of vessel #3 (click any image for a larger file):

back to top »