132-year-old shipwreck find is latest in a series of jaw-dropping Great Lakes discoveries

Yahoo

12-03-2025

In just the last year, three shipwrecks have been found in the Great Lakes that each had remained hidden for 130 years or more.
The Margaret A. Muir was discovered by Wisconsin maritime historians Brendon Baillod and Bob Jaeck in May after its remains were undetected for 131 years. The 130-foot, three-masted schooner sank on Sept. 30, 1893, after taking on water from a massive wave near Algoma, in Kewaunee County. It was bound for Chicago with a cargo of bulk salt. The same historians discovered the John Evenson, a wooden steam tug built in Milwaukee, last September. The Evenson capsized and sank instantly after being struck by the steambarge I.W. Stephenson while assisting it into the Sturgeon Bay Ship Canal on June 5, 1895. The remains of the Evenson lie five miles northeast of Algoma.
And Monday, it was learned that perhaps the most sought-after shipwreck of the three, the Western Reserve, was discovered last summer off the shores of Lake Superior after remaining hidden 600-feet beneath the surface for 132 years. One of the first all-steel freighters on the Great Lakes, it was discovered by the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society.
More: Historic all-steel ship that went down in Lake Superior 132 years ago, killing 27, finally found
No one died in the Muir, although the captain's beloved dog was lost. When the Evenson went down, four members of the crew were rescued. Martin Boswell, the fireman, was below deck and was carried down with the tug.
The Western Reserve was a tragic event.
Twenty-seven people died when the 318-foot freighter broke in half and sank in a matter of minutes. Among the dead were the ship's owner and captain, Peter Minch, his wife Anna, their children, Charlie, 9, and Florence, 6, as well as Anna's sister, Mary Englebry, and her daughter, Bertha, 10. The ship's other captain, Albert Myers, and his 19-year-old son also perished.
The only survivor, wheelsman Harry W. Stewart, had to jump over a 3-foot crack in the freighter to reach the aft where the two lifeboats were stored. He joined the crew on the metal lifeboat, then made it to the second lifeboat, made of wood, when the metal one capsized. He finally swam a mile to shore when that boat capsized after floating for about 10 hours.
The Western Reserve began to break apart roughly 60 miles north of Whitefish Point in Lake Superior
The roughly 80-mile stretch of water between Munising and Whitefish Point in Michigan's Upper Peninsula is infamous for its dangerous conditions, so much so that it has become known as Lake Superior's Shipwreck Coast. Any ship traveling to or from the big lake, heading for the Soo Locks, had to pass this stretch. And with the lake's fetch stretching hundreds of miles, there is little to slow the waves.
It's estimated that more than 200 ships have sunk in Whitefish Bay, according to Lynn.
More: We know more about the surface of Mars than about the floor of Lake Michigan. But what we do know is remarkable.
Although the Western Reserve was found in Lake Superior, estimates suggest there are more than 1,700 ships resting just at the bottom of Lake Michigan, and most of those have not been discovered. In Wisconsin's portion of the lake, there are approximately 780 shipwrecks, but only 250 have been identified, according to the Wisconsin Historical Society.
Last year, 17 total shipwrecks were discovered off Wisconsin's Lake Michigan shores − a new record thanks to a federal mapping effort and maritime historians. Of those, 15 were confirmed off Milwaukee, Racine and Kenosha counties last summer. The previous record was set in 2023 with 13 shipwrecks found.
Though some individual researchers place the number much higher, the official estimate is that slightly more than 6,000 ships lie on the bottom of the Great Lakes. Roughly half of them fell victim during the legendary gales of November, like the well-known Edmund Fitzgerald.
In addition to shipwrecks, everything from an underwater forest to a shipload of cars to aircraft can be found on the bottom of Lake Michigan.
In August, scientists confirmed there also are more than 40 sinkholes at the bottom of Lake Michigan in the Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary.
Scientists say the sinkholes in Lake Michigan, ranging from 300 to 600 feet across, formed as water dissolved limestone bedrock, causing surface collapse. Groundwater erosion creates caverns beneath the lake, and ceiling collapses eventually form the circular depressions.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Locating ship after 132 years is third major Great Lakes find in a row