Maple Leaf Shipwreck - Jacksonville, Florida
Posted by: 
macleod1
N 30° 09.912 W 081° 38.786
17R E 437755 N 3337267
The Maple Leaf is probably the best preserved site in Florida. The Wreck of the Maple Leaf is unsurpassed as a source for Civil War material culture.
Waymark Code: WM4CX9
Location: Florida, United States
Date Posted: 08/07/2008
Views: 68
we had the fantastic opportunity this past weekend to meet the great, great granddaughter of Union Army Private Joseph Boys,one of the men who were actually on the Maple Leaf. Due to illness he only traveled on the Maple Leaf until it arrived in Jacksonville, after helping load the belongings of his fellow soldiers. Fortunhately he was not on board the ill-fated steamer when a Confederate mine sank if off Mandarin Point on April 1, 1864. His family has already donated items to the Fenton Museum in Jamestown, New York.
Visiting the Mandarin Museum and Historical Society you will now find actual items that belonged to this soldier and from the others that lost their lives aboard the Maple Leaf. The exhibits are wonderful. They make you feel as if you have stepped back in time.
His family even showed reenactments of tatting and recipes for textile dyes as well as show clothing worn during that time period. They are also donating at least three copies of actual letters written between Private Boys and his wife. These are some very memorable donations and to actually meet the family involved was very exciting.
The steamer Maple Leaf arrived at Jacksonville from Folly Island on March 30, 1864, with Captain Nahum S. Scott and sixty men of Company C of the 112th. Before the freight and baggage of the regiment could be removed, the Maple Leaf was ordered to Palatka, about 70 miles up the St. Johns River, with a detachment of cavalry and l0 men of the 112th to guard the regiment's property. On the return trip, the steamer struck a mine and sank quickly in 20 feet of water. Four lives were lost. Regimental records, tents, camp gear and personal property settled to the bottom of the St. Johns River. Many of the officers who departed Folly Island were left with only the uniforms they were wearing at Jacksonville.
Above information from website:http://www.mapleleafshipwreck.com/Book/other/contents.htm
Type of Boat: Other
Military or Civilian: Military
Cause of Shipwreck: One report says a torpedo and another says a mine.
Accessibility:
The disaster occurred about twelve miles from Jacksonville, and off Mandarin Point, about three quarters of a mile from the east bank of the river and perhaps a mile or a mile and a half from the west bank.
Markers are located along the St. John's River at a monument.
Date of Shipwreck: Not listed
Diving Permitted: Not Listed
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Visit Instructions:
Only log the site if you have visited it personally.
Floating over a site does not qualify as a find if it is a wreck that requires diving - you must have actually visited the site - therefore photos of the site are good.