Latest news with #PeterMinch
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Explorers Just Found a 130-Year-Old Shipwreck
"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links." The Western Reserve cargo ship was supposed to be a modern marvel in 1892, but it split in two during a storm and sank. The wreckage took the lives of 27 people, with one lone survivor able to swim a mile to shore and recount the tale. The ship, revered for its speed and technology, used the same steel as the Titanic did just 20 years later. The Western Reserve was designed as a new class of technological shipbuilding in the 1890s. Created by millionaire owner Peter Minch, it was intended to smash speed records on the Great Lakes as it sailed between Michigan and Canada. One of the first all-steel cargo ships built—using the same steel that the Titanic opted for 20 years later—Western Reserve was a 300-foot-long 'inland greyhound.' That all ended tragically on August 30, 1892. With 28 people aboard the cargo-less ship (including Minch, his wife, his children, and other members of his family), a storm whipped up on Lake Superior. Sitting higher in the water than usual because of the lack of cargo, Western Reserve split in half. Wheelsman Harry W. Stewart was the lone survivor, able to get onto a lifeboat with others and then swim a mile in the lake to shore after the lifeboat capsized 10 hours later. The ship wasn't seen again until diligent explorers with the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society found the wreckage off Michigan's Upper Peninsula. It took members Darryl and Dan Ertel over two years of searching for the ship to find it. 'We side-scan looking out a half mile per side and we caught an image on our port side,' said Darryl Ertel, according to a statement from the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum. 'It was very small looking out that far, but I measured the shadow, and it came up about 40 feet. So we went back over the top of the ship and saw that it had cargo hatches, and it looked like it was broken in two, one half on top of the other and each half measured with the side scan 150 feet long and then we measured the width and it was right on so we knew that we'd found the Western Reserve.' Crews then used a remotely operated vehicle to capture video of the broken ship, with the bow resting on top of the stern under approximately 600 feet of water. 'Every shipwreck has its own story, but some are just that much more tragic,' Bruce Lynn, Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society executive director, said in a statement. 'It is hard to imagine that Captain Peter G. Minch would have foreseen any trouble when he invited his wife, two young children and sister-in-law with her daughter aboard the Western Reserve for a summer cruise up the lakes. It just reinforces how dangerous the Great Lakes can be any time of the year.' Originally launched in Cleveland in 1890, the Western Reserve was the largest bulk carrier on the lakes at the time, and the first steel bulk carrier of the classic Great Lakes design, according to the Wisconsin Marine Historical Society. The tale of the tragic ending of the ship just two years later comes thanks to the lone survivor, who managed to find the U.S. Lifesaving Service station at Whitefish Point, Michigan. Stewart recounted sailing directly into a storm about 60 miles north of Whitefish Point, and after the ship broke in two 'halfway up the rigging,' it sank in just 10 minutes. Everyone on board was able to get into two lifeboats (one wooden and one metal), but the metal lifeboat capsized immediately. Stewart recounted that the wooden boat lasted 10 hours carrying 19 people, until it too capsized roughly a mile from shore. According to the historical society, Stewart said that he lost sight of the others, 'but the cries of the children, the screams of the women, and the moaning of the men were terrible for a few moments, when all became silent.' Stewart swam to shore, laid there for hours and then managed to make it another 10 miles to the lifesaving station. He attributed survival to a 'heavy knit close-fitting jacket.' While experts debated the stories and reasoning behind the Western Reserve failings, it was eventually accepted—especially following the rapid sinking of the Titanic—that the vulnerability of cheaper Bessemer steel contributed to the problem, and that the design (with the superstructure moved from the middle to the ends of the ship) added to the inherent fragility of the vessel. The new style of steel was determined to be relatively weak, and the pressure applied by the storm was too much for a metal that became more brittle in lower temperatures. The sinking of sister ship Gilcher just two months later (which had no survivors) helped substantiate the breakage theory. 'Knowing how the 300-foot Western Reserve was caught in a storm this far from shore made an uneasy feeling in the back of my neck,' Darryl Ertel said, 'a squall can come up unexpectedly anywhere and anytime.' You Might Also Like The Do's and Don'ts of Using Painter's Tape The Best Portable BBQ Grills for Cooking Anywhere Can a Smart Watch Prolong Your Life?
Washington Post
11-03-2025
- Washington Post
Explorers discover wreckage of cargo ship that sank in Lake Superior storm more than 130 years ago
MADISON, Wis. — Twenty years before the Titanic changed maritime history, another ship touted as the next great technological feat set sail on the Great Lakes. The Western Reserve was one of the first all-steel cargo ships to traverse the lakes. Built to break speed records, the 300-foot (91-meter) freighter dubbed 'the inland greyhound' by newspapers was supposed to be one of the safest ships afloat. Owner Peter Minch was so proud of her that he brought his wife and young children aboard for a summer joyride in August 1892.
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Explorers discover wreckage of cargo ship that sank in Lake Superior storm more than 130 years ago
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Twenty years before the Titanic changed maritime history, another ship touted as the next great technological feat set sail on the Great Lakes. The Western Reserve was one of the first all-steel cargo ships to traverse the lakes. Built to break speed records, the 300-foot (91.4-meter) freighter dubbed 'the inland greyhound' by newspapers was supposed to be one of the safest ships afloat. Owner Peter Minch was so proud of her that he brought his wife and young children aboard for a summer joyride in August 1892. Then tragedy struck. As the ship entered Lake Superior's Whitefish Bay between Michigan and Canada on Aug. 30, a gale came up. With no cargo aboard, the ship was light and floating high in the water. The storm battered it until it cracked in half. Twenty-seven people perished that night, including the Minch family. The only survivor was wheelsman Harry W. Stewart, who swam a mile (1.6 kilometers) to shore after his lifeboat capsized. See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. For almost 132 years the lake hid the wreckage. In July, explorers from the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society pinpointed the Western Reserve off Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The society announced the discovery Saturday at the annual Ghost Ships Festival in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. Executive Director Bruce Lynn called the discovery one of the society's most significant finds. 'There's a number of concurrent stories that make this important,' Lynn said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. 'Most ships were still wooden. It was a technologically advanced ship. They were kind of a famous family at the time. You have this new ship, considered one of the safest on the lake, new tech, a big, big ship. (The discovery) is another way for us to keep this history alive.' Darryl Ertel, the society's marine operations director, and his brother, Dan Ertel, spent more than two years looking for the Western Reserve. Lynn said this winter the brothers outlined a search grid. On July 22 they set out on the David Boyd, the society's research vessel. Heavy ship traffic that day forced them to alter their course, though, and search an area adjacent to their original grid, Lynn said. The brothers towed a side-scanning sonar array behind their ship. Side sonar scans to starboard and port, providing a more expansive picture of the bottom than traditional sonar mounted beneath a ship. About 60 miles (97 kilometers) northwest of Whitefish Point on the Upper Peninsula, they picked up a line with a shadow behind it in 600 feet of water. They dialed up the resolution and spotted a ship broken in two with the bow resting on the stern. Each section was 150 feet (45.2 meters) long, suggesting they'd found the Western Reserve. Eight days later, the brothers returned to the site along with Lynn. They deployed a submersible drone equipped with high-intensity lighting and a high-resolution camera. The drone returned clear images of a portside running light that match the Western Reserve's starboard running light, which had washed ashore in Canada after the ship went down. That light was the only artifact recovered from the ship. 'That was confirmation day,' Lynn said. 'It's pretty exciting.' Darryl Ertel said that discovery gave him chills — and not in a good way. 'Knowing how the 300-foot Western Reserve was caught in a storm this far from shore made a uneasy feeling in the back of my neck," he said in a society news release. "A squall can come up unexpectedly…anywhere, and anytime.' The Edmund Fitzgerald, a freighter that went down in a November 1975 storm that was immortalized in the Gordon Lightfoot song, 'The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald," sank off Whitefish Point within 100 miles of the Western Reserve. There were no survivors.
The Independent
11-03-2025
- General
- The Independent
Explorers discover wreckage of cargo ship that sank in Lake Superior storm more than 130 years ago
Twenty years before the Titanic changed maritime history, another ship touted as the next great technological feat set sail on the Great Lakes. The Western Reserve was one of the first all-steel cargo ships to traverse the lakes. Built to break speed records, the 300-foot (91.4-meter) freighter dubbed 'the inland greyhound' by newspapers was supposed to be one of the safest ships afloat. Owner Peter Minch was so proud of her that he brought his wife and young children aboard for a summer joyride in August 1892. Then tragedy struck. As the ship entered Lake Superior 's Whitefish Bay between Michigan and Canada on Aug. 30, a gale came up. With no cargo aboard, the ship was light and floating high in the water. The storm battered it until it cracked in half. Twenty-seven people perished that night, including the Minch family. The only survivor was wheelsman Harry W. Stewart, who swam a mile (1.6 kilometers) to shore after his lifeboat capsized. For almost 132 years the lake hid the wreckage. In July, explorers from the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society pinpointed the Western Reserve off Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The society announced the discovery Saturday at the annual Ghost Ships Festival in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. Executive Director Bruce Lynn called the discovery one of the society's most significant finds. 'There's a number of concurrent stories that make this important,' Lynn said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. 'Most ships were still wooden. It was a technologically advanced ship. They were kind of a famous family at the time. You have this new ship, considered one of the safest on the lake, new tech, a big, big ship. (The discovery) is another way for us to keep this history alive.' Darryl Ertel, the society's marine operations director, and his brother, Dan Ertel, spent more than two years looking for the Western Reserve. Lynn said this winter the brothers outlined a search grid. On July 22 they set out on the David Boyd, the society's research vessel. Heavy ship traffic that day forced them to alter their course, though, and search an area adjacent to their original grid, Lynn said. The brothers towed a side-scanning sonar array behind their ship. Side sonar scans to starboard and port, providing a more expansive picture of the bottom than traditional sonar mounted beneath a ship. About 60 miles (97 kilometers) northwest of Whitefish Point on the Upper Peninsula, they picked up a line with a shadow behind it in 600 feet of water. They dialed up the resolution and spotted a ship broken in two with the bow resting on the stern. Each section was 150 feet (45.2 meters) long, suggesting they'd found the Western Reserve. Eight days later, the brothers returned to the site along with Lynn. They deployed a submersible drone equipped with high-intensity lighting and a high-resolution camera. The drone returned clear images of a portside running light that match the Western Reserve's starboard running light, which had washed ashore in Canada after the ship went down. That light was the only artifact recovered from the ship. 'That was confirmation day,' Lynn said. 'It's pretty exciting.' Darryl Ertel said that discovery gave him chills — and not in a good way. 'Knowing how the 300-foot Western Reserve was caught in a storm this far from shore made a uneasy feeling in the back of my neck," he said in a society news release. "A squall can come up unexpectedly…anywhere, and anytime.' The Edmund Fitzgerald, a freighter that went down in a November 1975 storm that was immortalized in the Gordon Lightfoot song, 'The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald," sank off Whitefish Point within 100 miles of the Western Reserve. There were no survivors.
Associated Press
11-03-2025
- General
- Associated Press
Explorers discover wreckage of cargo ship that sank in Lake Superior storm more than 130 years ago
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Twenty years before the Titanic changed maritime history, another ship touted as the next great technological feat set sail on the Great Lakes. The Western Reserve was one of the first all-steel cargo ships to traverse the lakes. Built to break speed records, the 300-foot (91.4-meter) freighter dubbed 'the inland greyhound' by newspapers was supposed to be one of the safest ships afloat. Owner Peter Minch was so proud of her that he brought his wife and young children aboard for a summer joyride in August 1892. Then tragedy struck. As the ship entered Lake Superior's Whitefish Bay between Michigan and Canada on Aug. 30, a gale came up. With no cargo aboard, the ship was light and floating high in the water. The storm battered it until it cracked in half. Twenty-seven people perished that night, including the Minch family. The only survivor was wheelsman Harry W. Stewart, who swam a mile (1.6 kilometers) to shore after his lifeboat capsized. For almost 132 years the lake hid the wreckage. In July, explorers from the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society pinpointed the Western Reserve off Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The society announced the discovery Saturday at the annual Ghost Ships Festival in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. Executive Director Bruce Lynn called the discovery one of the society's most significant finds. 'There's a number of concurrent stories that make this important,' Lynn said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. 'Most ships were still wooden. It was a technologically advanced ship. They were kind of a famous family at the time. You have this new ship, considered one of the safest on the lake, new tech, a big, big ship. (The discovery) is another way for us to keep this history alive.' Darryl Ertel, the society's marine operations director, and his brother, Dan Ertel, spent more than two years looking for the Western Reserve. Lynn said this winter the brothers outlined a search grid. On July 22 they set out on the David Boyd, the society's research vessel. Heavy ship traffic that day forced them to alter their course, though, and search an area adjacent to their original grid, Lynn said. The brothers towed a side-scanning sonar array behind their ship. Side sonar scans to starboard and port, providing a more expansive picture of the bottom than traditional sonar mounted beneath a ship. About 60 miles (97 kilometers) northwest of Whitefish Point on the Upper Peninsula, they picked up a line with a shadow behind it in 600 feet of water. They dialed up the resolution and spotted a ship broken in two with the bow resting on the stern. Each section was 150 feet (45.2 meters) long, suggesting they'd found the Western Reserve. Eight days later, the brothers returned to the site along with Lynn. They deployed a submersible drone equipped with high-intensity lighting and a high-resolution camera. The drone returned clear images of a portside running light that match the Western Reserve's starboard running light, which had washed ashore in Canada after the ship went down. That light was the only artifact recovered from the ship. 'That was confirmation day,' Lynn said. 'It's pretty exciting.' Darryl Ertel said that discovery gave him chills — and not in a good way. 'Knowing how the 300-foot Western Reserve was caught in a storm this far from shore made a uneasy feeling in the back of my neck,' he said in a society news release. 'A squall can come up unexpectedly…anywhere, and anytime.' The Edmund Fitzgerald, a freighter that went down in a November 1975 storm that was immortalized in the Gordon Lightfoot song, 'The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,'
