GPS location co-ordinates: latitude N44 35.358 longitude W75 40.625

— Brockville Historic Area: The Brock Trail —

Underwater explorers regularly gather about 500 yards offshore from the east-end park known as CENTEEN PARK and about a half-mile down stream from here. Below the water, about 65 feet down, lie the remains of the former two-masted wooden schooner, known as the ROBERT GASKIN. This ship was built by Charles W. Jenkings and launched in Kingston, Ont., on April 21, 1863. She was 132.6 ft. long, 26.3 ft. in beam, with an 11.3 ft. [d]raft and a cargo capacity of 20,000 bushels.
In the latter days of her life, in 1889, the GASKIN was serving as a barge and platform for the raising of another ship, the railway-car steam ferry the WILLIAM ARMSTRONG, which had sunk earlier on the American side of the international border, near Morristown, N.Y.
By accident on September 18, 1889, one of the steam-filled pontoons attached to the sunken ARMSTRONG accidentally broke away from the ship on the bottom and suddenly surged upwards like a torpedo. It struck and punctured the bow of the GASKIN. The salvage vessel sank to the bottom, coming to rest about 30 ft. from the ARMSTRONG. Work now focused on raising the Gaskin with pontoons. However, as it was towed toward shore, it slipped to the bottom two more times.
The WILLIAM ARMSTRONG was eventually raised, but the ROBERT GASKIN remained near shore, where it sank for the third time on November



23, 1889.
[Photo caption reads] A diver's view of one of the large holes on the outside of the ROBERT GASKIN

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