City of Hawkinsville (shipwreck)

City of Hawkinsville was a paddle steamer constructed in Georgia in 1886. Sold in 1900 to a Tampa, Florida company, it delivered cargo and lumber along the Suwannee River. Eventually rendered obsolete by the advent of railroads in the region, it was abandoned in the middle of the Suwannee in 1922.

City of Hawkinsville (shipwreck)
Suwannee River, looking in the direction of City of Hawkinsville
LocationDixie County, Florida, United States
Nearest cityOld Town, Florida
Coordinates29°36′26″N 82°58′15″W
Arealess than 1 acre (0.40 ha)
Architectural style19th-century paddlewheel steamboat
NRHP reference No.01000533
FUAP No.3
Significant dates
Added to NRHP31 May 2001[1]
Designated FUAP1992

It became the third Florida Underwater Archaeological Preserve when it opened to the public in 1992. This was followed on May 31, 2001 by its addition to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places as City of Hawkinsville (shipwreck).[2] It is located in Dixie County, 100 yards south of the Old Town railroad trestle (which is part of the Nature Coast State Trail).

History

Georgia

In 1886, the Hawkinsville (Georgia) Deepwater Boat Lines had the wooden-hulled City of Hawkinsville built for them in Abbeville, Georgia.

After 14 years of service, they sold it to the Gulf Transportation Company of Tampa.

Florida

The largest (141 ft, 43 m long by 30 ft, 9.1 m wide) steamboat stationed on the Suwannee, City of Hawkinsville transported lumber and supplies from Branford to Cedar Key for the next two decades. Some of the supplies would include construction materials for the railroads that would end the need for the steamboat itself.

In 1922, the steamboat was abandoned in the Suwanee near what is now the railroad trestle built across the river, reducing the need for a boat to cross the river at that point. It still resides at this location, preserved as one of the Florida Underwater Archaeological Preserves.[3]

Today

The wreck of the steamboat has become part of the river's ecosystem, and was added to the Florida Underwater Archaeological Preserve system in 1992. Most of it is remarkably intact, and rests on a ledge in the middle of the Suwannee, able to be seen from the river's surface. However, diving is only allowed for those with advanced open water certification, and venturing within the wreck itself is not permitted.

Admission and hours

There is no entrance fee to view City of Hawkinsville above or below the water, and it is open year-round.

References
  1. "National Register Information System – City of Hawkinsville (shipwreck) (#01000533)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  2. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
  3. "City of Hawkinsville Preserve — Suwannee River, Florida". Explore Southern History. Retrieved June 16, 2012.
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