The Joan of Arc was built in 1921 in part from
the salvage of a steamship by that name. The ship was built in 1918
by the Rolph shipbuilders of San Pedro, California. She was a three
masted, wooden steamship that carried lumber from Portland, Oregon to San
Pedro. In November 1920 she went off course and hit Northwest rock,
part of the Rogue River reef. Damaged and abandoned, she drifted northward
and went aground in Port Orford harbor, just south of Battle Rock. Eventually
the ship's lumber and other items were salvaged and used in several buildings
here.
George Robert Forty, whose family came to Port Orford in 1877 and Myrtle
Selena McGill-Forty, whose family came in 1896, lived in the home until 1980
and raised two daughters, Shirley and Dorris. The house was used as
a restaurant for a short time. Then in 1986 she gained her third owner who
operated it as a Bed & Breakfast. The house, now owned by Grace Lee Bonnell,
operating as a Vacation Rental. Eventually the grounds will be
designed as a Special Events garden.
just south of Battle Rock. Eventually
the ship's lumber and other items were salvaged and used in several buildings
here.