A decommissioned freighter that was launched more than a century ago caught fire in the Duluth harbor, authorities said.
The J.B. Ford was in the process of being scrapped Monday afternoon, when the fire broke out while the steamer was docked at Rice's Point near the Blatnik Bridge, the Fire Department said.
Fire crews had the flames knocked down within an hour. Fire officials said a portion of the ship began to burn after a spark hit original wood in the captain's area. No injuries were reported.
Bought for scrap by Duluth-based Azcon Metals in 2015, the ship was launched in 1903 in Lorain, Ohio, under the original name of Edwin F. Holmes.
The ship, which has not sailed since the mid-1980s, is known for surviving a large storm on Lake Huron in 1905 and completing its delivery of coal to Duluth.
Paul Walsh
