The Wreck Of The Tug Thomas H In Oneida Lake

Have you ever heard of the shipwreck of the Tug Thomas H that's located in Oneida Lake? You can actually dive down and see it.

On May 29th 1945 the tug Thomas H was towing six heavily loaded barges headed for Oswego when trouble hit:

The tug and its tow were caught in a gale with winds gusting up to 45 miles and per hour. The Thomas H battled the wind and waves for several hours before the hawsers broke and the six barges drifted off into the darkness of the night. The tug was leaking badly and the pumps could not keep up with the incoming flow of water. Twelve of the crew abandoned the tug just before it sank and boarded one of the barges which eventually grounded on a shallow area near mid channel."

ShipWreckWorld reports that crew members were rescued the next day. One crew member on one of the other barges was lost.

The shipwreck was discovered and documented 1987 by divers Jim Allen and Tim Caza. There are plenty of amazing photos of it online. Here's the coordinates if you ever wanted to find it:

Location:  N43°  12.252’   W75°  51.163'   Tug is laying in a NNE-SSW     Depth 44 ft

Thomas H - Barge #1:  Approximately 100 ft. in length with 7 segmented compartments.  The barge is at a bearing of 293 ° (True) and 620 ft. west from location of the Thomas H.  Laying in N-S direction.

Location:  N43°  12.295’   W75°  51.288’        Depth 44 ft

Thomas H - Barge #2:  Approximately 100 ft. in length with 7 segmented compartments.  The barge is at a bearing of 255 ° (True) and 900 ft. west from location of the Thomas H.  Laying in N-S direction."

Currently there are over 20 wrecks which range from tug boats, barges, canal boats, double decker tour boat, and many other style vessels in Oneida Lake.

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