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What are the most famous Lake Michigan shipwrecks? I'm particularly interested in learning about any near Chicago. Thank you!

I'm doing research on shipwrecks in Lake Michigan. I'd love to learn about any near Chicago that are coming up on an anniversary this Spring/Summer (2010). Thanks much.


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By far the most famous Lake Michigan shipwreck is the Lady Elgin which sank after a collision with the lumber-laden schooner Augusta in the wee hours of the morning on September 8, 1860. Approximately 300 of the 400 or so people on board perished soon after being forced into the water or in the crashing surf on shore after spending hours in the relatively warn late summer water. It is ranked as the worst disaster on the open waters of the Great Lakes, second only to the overturning of the Eastland in 1915 (in the Chicago River) in which about 875 people perished. The majority of the victims from the Lady Elgin were Irish from Wisconsin's third ward and the change in power from Irish to German is attributed to the numerous people lost in this accident. The wreck was found in 1989 in about 60 feet of water of Highland Park, IL by a marine salvor who spent 10 years in court battling for ownership of the wreck, which he eventually won in 1999. According to court documents, he recovered numerous artifacts from the wreck, including a large number of 1840 and 1850 coins that he got out of a safe found in an area of ships debris. The number of coins and face value is minimal until one considers that coins in that time period were solid silver and gold, making this one of the few cases where a diver ever recovered gold and silver from a wreck in the Great Lakes. September 8, 2010 represents the 150th anniversary of this tragic accident and is the subject of a book I am writing on this topic due to come out on the anniversary. It will be published by In-Depth Editions. www.in-deptheditions.com Check it out!
Feb 25th, 2010 at 3:46 PM
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Famous how? Among Divers, it was the Material Service Barge. Now it's the Straits of Mackinac.

Take a look at Digitaldivemaster.com and divethebuccaneer.com for underwater virtual tours of Lake Michigan Shipwrecks!
Jul 26th, 2010 at 4:43 AM
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Edmund Fitzgerald
Source(s):
www.cnn.com
Nov 10th, 2010 at 1:48 PM
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The Fitzgerald sank in Superior.
Nov 13th, 2010 at 2:52 PM
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in my mind the carl d bradly is the most famous as it has been one of the most resent the chicora and hennipen are also famous as is the anisdate a whaleback freighter owned by the clevaland and cliffs co.to this day the chicora owned by gramm and mortan steemship co. of benton harbor michigan and the anisdate have not been found and the anisdate is said to be off of grand havon michigan the chicora might be off of chicago or in the middle of the lake.
Dec 28th, 2010 at 5:29 AM
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SS Chicora lost January 21, 1895.
Oct 20th, 2018 at 3:25 PM
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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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