S. S. Tarpon
UNDERWATER ARCHAEOLOGICAL PRESERVE
PANAMA CITY , FL

Two years after she was built , Naugatucks's owners sold her to Henry Plant, whose railroad empire terminating in Tampa, Fl was one of the largest conglomerates in the United States. In 1891, she was sent back to her builders, who lengthened the vessel by 30 ft. Renamed Tarpon, she returned to her Florida career, and may have been one of the dozens of Plant vessels used to transport troops and supplies to and from Cuba during the Spanish-American war. In 1902, the vessel was sold to the newly-incorporated Pensacola, St. Andrews & Gulf Steamship Co., and put in the charge of Captain Willis Barrow.

Beginning in 1903, Tarpon and her master became famous along the northern Gulf Coast, making weekly runs between the ports of Mobile, Pensacola, St. Andrews Bay ( Panama City), Apalachicola , and Carrabelle. With few paved roads or bridges, commerce and communication between coastal communities was almost totally dependent on water-borne traffic. Barrow and Tarpon developed a reputation for reliability and dependability, transporting passengers and essential supplies while maintaining a strict schedule regardless of the weather. The captain was quoted as claiming that "God made the weather, and I make the trip." Despite storms, hurricanes, groundings and fires, Tarpon continued her weekly schedule between 6 ports year in and year out. In December 1922, Barrow celebrated 20 years as master of the Tarpon by complimenting their 1000th voyage to St. Andrews Bay, having missed only one trip on account of bad weather. An admiring local press estimated that the steamer had traveled a distance of 700,000 miles - equal to 28 times around the earth. By January 1933, Barrow marked his 30th year as Tarpon's skipper, having completed 1,500 voyages.

On August 30, 1937, five weeks short of her 50th birthday, Tarpon was loaded as usual at Mobile for the next trip east.. She had just passed her annual inspection, and an official dry-dock survey. As was his custom, her captain loaded as much cargo as he could fit into the steamer. Despite repeated reminders by Mobile inspecters, he had neglected to paint the legally required load line on the hull of the ship. Tarpon often left port with her decks awash, but she always managed to reach her destination. As she left Mobile, she had over 200 tons of general cargo aboard, and although she was licensed to carry a crew of 20 and an additional five "Roustabouts" to help with cargo, on this voyage there were 31 people on board. The ship made port in Pensacola and departed for Panama City the evening of August 31. In addition to flour, sugar, canned goods and beer, she had loaded a quantity of iron for the paper mills. Almost 200 barels of fuel oil were in her tanks, as well as some 15 tons of fresh water. As Tarpon rounded the Pensacola sea buoy, her freeboard was less than five inches.

Although weather forecasters had predicted calm seas, the wind had freshend by the time Barrow had retired for the night to his cabin, placing second mate William Russel at the helm. At 2 A.M., chief engineer Willaim McKnight began to have difficulties keeping water pumped from the bilges due to a leek in the bow that was steadily increasing in rough seas. The ship began to list to port as the men worked the pumps. First mate L. E. Danford ordered the helm into oncoming seas, and ordered barrels of flour jettisoned from the portside to counter the list. When the steamer returned to an even keel, she was put back on coarse. In his cabin, Capt. Barrow remained confident of his ship despite the increasing weather. Just before dawn the wind had reached gale force, and the pounding seas began to pour through Tarpons wooden bulkheads, causing her to list to starboard. Roustabouts were sent below again to jettison more cargo, but the crew realized the ship could not be righted. Danford turned Tarpon toward shore, intending to try to beach her before she sank. Barrow finally emerged from his cabin to order more cargo overboard, and then told Danford to put the vessel back on coarse. But Tarpon had begun to sink. When Barrow finally gave the order to abandon ship, the vessel had already settled into the sea by the stern. Less then 10 miles from shore, Tarpon had no radio, and no distress flares were fired.

The crew frantictlly donned life jackets and tried to launch the four lifeboats. Most of those below remained trapped as the ship plunged beneath the waves. Only one boat was freed, but it capsized, drowning the cooks wife. Those on deck were washed away, including Tarpon's 81-year old captain, who succumbed around noon that day. Amidst debris in the water, survivors floated among thier drowned shipmates. As the weather cleared,oiler Adley Baker sighted land in the distance and decided to swim toward it. He finally staggered ashore west of Panama City, where news of Tarpon's sinking quickly spread by word of mouth and by telegraph. The coast gaurd dispatched a search plane and two cutters to the scene to look for survivors; of those rescued, some had been in the water over 30 hours. Eighteen people are believed to have lost their lives; some, including the roustabouts trapped in the cargo hold, were never identified.

On Spetember 9, a Marine Investigation Board hearing was convened at Pensacola. All 13 survivors testified, as did the Coast Guard and weather officials. The Board placed full blame on Capt. Barrow's "unwarranted determination to hold the vessel to her coarse in spite of the vessel's known peril and in the face of strenuous efforts being made to beach her." It suggested that the Mobile inspectors be admonished for failure to force Barrow to place a loadline on his vessel, and recomended that all vessels traveling out of sight of land required to have a radio.

Almost two years after Tarpon's sinking, fishermen reported seeing the mass of a sunken derelict 9 feet below the water 8 miles from shore; the Coast Guard quickly determined it was the Tarpon, and bouyed the site with a red flashing light. Fishermen of the 1940's added the site to their favorite locations. In the 1950's and 60's, scuba divers became familiar with the steamer's grave in 95 feet of water. The sunken remains of Tarpon still are a popular diving and fishing destination. The story of the old steamer and her captain fills a dramatic chapter in the marine history of Florida's Gulf Coast. Nominated by local Bay County citizens, Tarpon was designated as Florida's sixth State Underwater Archaeological Preserve in April 1997.

Tarpon came to rest on a sand and live-rock bottom in 95 feet of water. The sunken ship is situated almost parallel to the shoreline, her bow is on a bearing of 290º. The hard bottom terrain has prevented the wreck from sinking into the sand.

Over the years, Tarpon has become an oasis of marine life. On any given day, a visitor can see schools of spadefish and angel fish gathering around the ship's engines. Cruising above the wreckage are amberjacks, and a freindly remora or two. Groupers, moray eels, and spiny lobsters inhabit the sunken recesses of the steamer. Around the periphery of the site, flounder and numerous species of mollusks thrive on the bottom.

LORAN - coordinates are 13979.8 and 47001.8

GPS - coordinates are 30º 05.702' N and 85º 56.555' W

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Florida Department of State
Division of Historical Resources
Bureau of Archaeological Research
500 South Bronough St.
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0250

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