David W. Mills
Ship stats
Depth: 16 feet
Coordinates: 43° 26.526'N/ 76° 35.012'W (Near propeller)
43° 26.549'N/ 76° 35.092'W (Boiler- Use caution as the boiler is a hazard to navigation with a least depth of 2 feet)
Vessel Type: Wooden bulk carrier, propeller
Length: 202.3 feet Breadth: 34 feet
Gross Tonnage: 1017.19 Cargo: None
Built: 1866 by Thomas Quayle & Sons at Cleveland, Ohio as Sparta
Former Names: Sparta (1874-1907)
Date Lost: August 11, 1919
Cause of Loss: Navigational Error Loss of Life: None
Wreck Site
David W. Mills is among Lake Ontario National Marine Sanctuary’s most accessible and popular shipwrecks, resting in only 16 feet of water, four miles west of Oswego. The wreck is accessible to snorkelers, scuba divers, and paddlers.
The remains of the hull are broken into large, intact sections and scattered over a wide area across the southern side of Ford Shoals. Among the major sections of wreckage are a 190-foot-long section of the bilge (bottom of the hull), the port bow, starboard, and port sides of the hull. Among the highlights of the site are the four-bladed propeller, the propeller shaft and reduction gear, steam engine, firebox boiler, rudder, a windlass, and two anchors.
Please note that when approaching the site, the boiler is a hazard to navigation, rising to within 2 feet of the surface. Approach the site slowly and maintain a careful lookout to identify and avoid the boiler.
Photo model of David W. Mill’s lower hull (bilge). Photo: Joe Hoyt/NOAA.
Photo model of David W. Mill’s steeple compound steam engine. Photo: Joe Hoyt/NOAA.
Photo model of David W. Mill’s firebox boiler. Photo: Joe Hoyt/NOAA.
Historical Background
David W. Mills was constructed in 1874 as Sparta by Thomas Quayle & Sons of Cleveland, Ohio, as a carrier of 1017 gross tons, and was 202.3 feet long with a 34-foot beam and 18.5-foot depth of hold.Sparta was built for the Cleveland Transportation Company of Cleveland, Ohio, and was registered at that port, being assigned U.S. official number 115242.
The Sparta was initially employed in the Lake Superior iron ore trade, operating alongside the consort schooner barge Sumatra, built by Quayle & Peck for the Cleveland Transportation Company the same year. In 1897, Sparta was rebuilt, being reduced to a single deck by having the intermediate deck planking removed. In 1904, Sparta suffered a fire while alongside a dock in Toledo, Ohio, with its stern burning to the waterline.Sparta was rebuilt over the winter of 1906-1907 and returned to service, being renamed David W. Mills in 1907.
While David W. Mills would end its career in the Lake Ontario and St. Lawrence River coal trade, before the enlargement of the Welland Canal locks in 1881, the David W. Mills was too large to transit the canal between Lakes Erie and Oswego. The dimensional limitations imposed by the Welland Canal resulted in bulk carriers being less common than smaller steam barges on Lake Ontario.
On August 11, 1919, David W. Mills was en route from Montreal to Sodus, New York, where it would take on a load of coal. There was low visibility on the lake due to forest fires in Canada. At 4:45 a.m., while sailing near shore in an attempt to sight either the Fairhaven or Oswego Lights, David W. Mills struck Ford Shoals, going hard aground. The vessel broke apart in subsequent storms.
In 2019 and 2025 NOAA divers visited David W. Mills, collecting photographs of the site. Documentation of the site by NOAA archaeologists is ongoing.