Philip D. Armour (Propeller), U150459, sunk by collision, 7 Sep 1889

The steambarges PHILIP D. AMOUR and MARION were in collision Saturday night at Southeast Bend. The ARMOUR is sunk and the MARION heavily damaged. It will take months to remove the wreck of the ARMOUR as she is in the deepest part of the river.
      Port Huron Daily Times
      Monday, September 9, 1889

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The sunken propeller ARMOUR has not been raised yet nor has an attempt been made to pump her out.
      Buffalo Evening News
      May 30, 1890
     
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      Schooner PHIL. D. ARMOUR which sunk in St. Clair River with 80,000 bushels of corn is nearly afloat. The man who is superintending the work was brought up near Sydenham. He will get $40,000 for the job.
      Daily British Whig, Kingston
      June 14, 1890

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      The sinking of the schooner ARMOUR, laden with corn, occurred about 9 months ago, and ever since the story of her raising has been of great interest. She sank in Canadian waters and was shortly afterwards shifted over to the American side. Every means has been tried to raise her, and at last the buoy plan has proven a success. Monday her decks appeared above the water. Now she is afloat. The pumps have been hard at work removing her cargo, four from decay.
      Daily British Whig, Kingston
      August 6, 1890

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The Reid Wrecking Co. Saturday raised the steambarge ARMOUR from the St. Clair River.
      Port Huron Daily Times
      Monday, August 11, 1890
     
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      Actions in Admiralty,
      Several Suits in Detroit Courts - Tug SAMPSON Libeled For $20,000.
June 14 last, while the tugs WALDO A. AVERY, D.W. RUNNELS and barge STAR OF THE NORTH were engaged in the raising of the P.D. ARMOUR, which was lying 150 feet from the American side of St. Clair river, stem out mid stern thirty feet below surface, the tug SAMSON heading up stream ran towards the wreck and after striking the hard onto the cofferdam which had been built up around the ARMOUR's stern. She could not release herself and had to be pulled off the next morning by the RUNNELS. Lights were displayed on all the craft of the wrecking outfit, and that there was 800 feet of navigable water on the Canadian side. are, with the above, claims made in the libel, which is for $20,000, filed by the Reid Towing and Wrecking Company, Bay City, against the tug SAMSON of Tonawanda,
before judge Brown. of Detroit.
      Marine Review
      September 25, 1890



      The PHILIP D. ARMOUR, which spent a year in 70 feet of water in St. Clair River, as the result to a collision, now lies at the wharf of the Detroit dry dock company in Detroit, looking as slick and neat as a brand new pin. The repairs will cost $30,000. The cost of raising her was $50,000, and it is stated that, even with these enormous expenses, at least $50,000 has been saved by raising her.
      Saginaw Courier-Herald
      Friday, October 31, 1890

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Stop on Cross Signals.
      The decision of judge Jenkins of Milwaukee in the famous ARMOUR-MARION collision case is further proof of the determination of the United States judges to enforce the rule that steamboat masters must check their boats and if necessary stop and back them in case of cross signals. His ruling that the ARMOUR, which was sunk, should bear half of the damages, was based entirely on the conclusion that the captain of the ARMOUR was in fault in not doing something to reverse his engine in the face of cross signals. The collision occurred in September, 1889. The ARMOUR was bound down and the Marion bound up, and the boats met at south-east bend in the St. Clair river. The ARMOUR was struck on her starboard bow and, after swinging around, sunk in 72 feet of water. The judge gave it as his opinion that the ARMOUR was running at ten mile an hour, to which was added two miles for the current, while the Marion was running at eight miles an hour. The main theory of the MARION that the ARMOUR put her helm hard to starboard just before the collision, the judge finds to be not according to the facts, and he decides that it was hard-to-port. He states that he finds it difficult to understand under the given facts how the collision could have occurred, but he concludes that the collision occurred on the American side, but that the ARMOUR was farther out in the channel than was claimed for her. He holds that the MARION, having mistaken the blasts of the steamer MT. CLEMENS for those of the ARMOUR, was moving under a starboard helm, intending to pass the ARMOUR to starboard. When half a mile apart the vessels understood each other's signals, he thinks, and the MARION ported intending to pass port to port. The ARMOUR was standing out into the stream, and the MARION coming up struck her on the starboard bow. He thinks the ARMOUR intended to follow the rule to pass port to port. The MARION had undertaken to go contrary to the rule, under the mistaken impression that the signal of the MT. CLEMENS came from the ARMOUR.


     
Steam barge PHILIP D. ARMOUR. U. S. No 150459. Of 1990.94 tons gross; 1452.71 tons net. Built Detroit, Mich., 1889. Home port, Milwaukee, Wis. 264.0 x 40.6 x 21.0
      Merchant Vessel List, U. S., 1891