Three more shipwrecks discovered in Lake Superior

The Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society says it has located three more shipwrecks off the shore of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

The shipwrecks are the Dot, a schooner which sank in 1883; the Frank W. Wheeler, a schooner-barge which sank in 1885; and the Michigan, a schooner-barge which sank in 1901. They are in the vicinity of Grand Marais, Mich.

The discoveries were made after the society’s underwater research team mapped areas where ships were reported lost and then searched the areas using the group’s 50-foot research vessel, David Boyd. The ship uses a side-scan sonar by Marine Sonic Technology to locate the wrecks.

Bruce Lynn, the executive director of the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum, says they have never located so many wrecks in one season.

"Each shipwreck has its own story…and the drama of the Drake and the Michigan, and the rescue of both crews…these are fantastic, true stories that we can tell in the museum someday," he said in a news release.

Darryl Ertel, the society’s director of marine operations, says much of the success came because they can search more quickly this year.

"We have well over 2500 miles of searching this year alone. We’re searching 100 miles a day. We’re travelling at over 9 miles an hour as we’re searching and we’re seeing great detail on the bottom, it’s amazing," he said.

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The society provided these summaries of the newly-discovered shipwrecks:

Shipwreck 1: The schooner, Dot

August 25, 1883- The steamship M.M. Drake was towing the schooner Dot, downbound from Marquette with a load of iron ore, when the Dot started taking on water. The Captain Jones of the Dot, hailed the M.M. Drake, which came alongside his sinking ship and took his crew off before it dove for the bottom. All crew rescued. The Dot, formerly the Canadian schooner, Mary Merritt, was built in St. Catharines, Ontario in 1865. Her remains rest in over 350’ of water.

Shipwreck 2: The schooner-barge, Frank W. Wheeler

September 29, 1885- The relatively new schooner-barge, Frank W. Wheeler, was being towed by the steamer Kittie M. Forbes, when a gale swept across the lake. The ships struggled in the worsening conditions for hours and soon the Wheeler’s crew realized that their ship was sinking. Captain William Forbes, owner and captain of the Frank W. Wheeler, signaled his predicament to the Kittie M. Forbes, and the pair of vessels then tried to reach the safety of Grand Island, near present day Munising, MI. Captain Forbes soon ordered his men into the lifeboat, and 15 minutes later his ship sank, bow first. A number of explosions were heard as the ship slipped beneath the waves. The Frank W. Wheeler was built in West Bay City, MI (West Bay City Shipbuilding Co.) and today her wreckage lies in over 600’ of water.

Shipwreck 3: The schooner-barge, Michigan

October 2, 1901- The steamer M.M. Drake (same vessel which towed the Dot, as noted above) was towing the schooner-barge Michigan in the vicinity of Vermilion Point, 12 miles west of Whitefish Point. Both vessels were struggling in rough weather, when suddenly the Michigan’s hold begins filling with water. Captain J.W. Nicholson maneuvered the M.M. Drake alongside the Michigan, with the latter ship’s crew jumping from their sinking ship onto the Drake. Within minutes, a massive wave smashes the two vessels together, destroying the M.M. Drake’s smokestack, leaving the ship without steam-pressure. Without power, the Drake soon lost headway and waves swept over her decks. Both ship’s crews were now in danger, but two large steel steamers, the Crescent City and Northern Wave, were close by and maneuvered-in to rescue the combined crews. Mr. Harry Brown, the Michigan’s cook, was the only casualty in this unusual double sinking. The remains of the M.M. Drake were discovered in 1978 by the Shipwreck Society, and her rudder is on exhibit at Whitefish Point. The Michigan’s hull is in 650’ of water.