Lake Michigan

Discovery of the Historic Great Lakes Schooner Trinidad
Discovery of the Historic Great Lakes Schooner Trinidad On July 15th, 2023, Wisconsin Maritime Historians Brendon Baillod and Bob Jaeck located the intact remains of the 156 year old schooner Trinidad in nearly 300 feet of water off Algoma, Wisconsin as...  more »

The Tragic Loss of the Hippocampus
This rare, original woodcut engraving has been in my collection for about 20 years. It is an excerpt from Harper’s Weekly, a popular illustrated newspaper, dated September 26th, 1868. It shows an artist’s conception of the haunting final...  more »

Missing 162 Years off Little Sable Point: The Schooner Garden City
Missing 162 Years off Little Sable Point: The Schooner Garden City The wreck of the Garden City presents historians with some challenges. Numerous sources state that the Garden City went ashore at Little Sable Point in October of 1858 and was...  more »

The Harrowing Loss of the Schooner Jo Vilas
At one time the Great Lakes were the only major “freeway” in the midwest. Thousands of vessels once brought settlers, freight and merchandise through this vast inland waterway. It is consequently, not surprising that accidents were very...  more »

The Mysterious Disappearance of the brig Robert Willis
The Mystery of Captain McLean, the Mormons and the Medicine Man by Brendon Baillod [This article originally appeared in Inland Seas, the journal of the Great Lakes Historical Society] Captain Murdick McLean was one of Lake Superior’s best-known...  more »

Fathoms Deep but not Forgotten: The Schooner Hiawatha
Lost Ship of the Month for April Fathoms Deep but not Forgotten: The Schooner Hiawatha As people asked for stories of obscure and little-known vessels still missing on the Great Lakes, I thought I’d offer one. The schooner Hiawatha is largely...  more »

MV Jennifer: Still Missing on Lake Michigan
The Jennifer sank in 1974 with three other vessels and a USCG helicopter onsite. Yet, her remains have not been located on the bottom. Join maritime historian Brendon Baillod for a video Lost Ship of the Month to explore this interesting lost vessels and...  more »

Where is the Thomas H. Smith?
The wreck of the month for January is the lost steamer Thomas H. Smith, missing since November 11, 1893 when she was sunk by collision in a heavy fog of Racine, Wisconsin. The Smith was bound light from Chicago to Menomonee, Michigan, carry a crew of 12...  more »

A Case of Mistaken Identity: The Lost Schooner Sunny Side
Literally hundreds of handcrafted white oak artifacts bearing the inscription “Sunnyside, foundered N. Fox Island, 1883” grace the dens of maritime enthusiasts around the Lakes. Lamps, tables, clocks, letter openers and pen sets were...  more »

Wrecking the Wrecker: The loss of the barge Industry
The wrecking barge Industry lies on the bottom of Lake Michigan near Lansing Shoals where she has rested since October 5, 1953. Despite a concerted salvage attempt by her owners, she has never been located by divers. Her story is an interesting one,...  more »

The Kate Winslow
The Kate Winslow was one of “Davidson’s Goliaths,” a large wooden ship built at East Saginaw, Michigan by the innovative giant wooden ship builder James Davidson who was to become noteworthy for continuing to use wood for large vessels...  more »

Major Shipwreck Discovery in Lake Michigan
A group of maritime history enthusiasts have the announced the discovery of the schooners Peshtigo and St. Andrews, lost in 1878 in northern Lake Michigan.  more »

In-Depth Editions Dedicated to Publishing Quality Books on Shipwrecks and Maritime History.
Lost & Found: Legendary Lake Michigan Shipwrecks by V. O. Van Heest The many shipwrecks presented in Lost and Found became even more famous after their discoveries than at the time of their losses, gaining notoriety as historic attractions,...  more »

Shipwreck exposed in Grand Haven, Michigan Identified as Historic Steamer Aurora
Low lake levels in the fall of 2012 resulted in the exposure of at least five shipwreck hulks along the edges of Harbor Island in Grand Haven, Michigan. Michigan Shipwreck Research Associates was called in to survey and identify the vessels, in...  more »

Steamer L.R. Doty Found in Lake Michigan off Milwaukee
A group of Wisconsin marine historians and divers have announced the discovery of the missing steamship L.R. Doty, which vanished in a violent Lake Michigan storm 112 years ago, on October 25, 1898. The Doty was the largest wooden ship still missing on Lake Michigan, with an overall length of 300 feet.  more »

Steamship Redfern and three other shipwrecks discovered in Lake Michigan
The wooden bulk freighter Redfern sunk in 1937 has been discovered in deep water in northern Lake Michigan.  more »

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Shipwrecks of Lake Ontario - A Journey of Discovery Book

The National Museum of the Great Lakes is excited to announce the release of a new book titled Shipwrecks of Lake Ontario: A Journey of Discovery. This book contains stories of long lost shipwrecks and the journeys of the underwater explorers who found them, written by Jim Kennard with paintings by Roland Stevens and underwater imagery by Roger Pawlowski.

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Legend of the Lake - New Discovery Edition Book

The recent discovery of the wreck of the British warship Ontario, “the Holy Grail” of Great Lakes shipwrecks, solves several mysteries that have puzzled historians since the ship sank more than two centuries ago. Now, for the first time, the whole tragic story of the Ontario can finally be told.

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