WHITE FISH POINT (WWJ) — Shipwreck hunters in the Upper Peninsula announced the stunning discovery of a 130-year-old shipping vessel at the bottom Lake Superior on Thursday.
Professionals with The Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society (GLSHS) said the 172-foot schooner-barge named Atlanta was found 35 miles off the coast of Deer Park, Mich. in under 650 feet of water.
The Atlanta sank on May 4, 1891 after getting caught in one of Lake Superior's infamous storms. It was loaded with coal and — being without sails — was towed by a steamer when a northwest gale blew in, according to GLSHS. The storm snapped the towline and destroyed all three of the Atlanta's masts before sinking the vessel.
The GLSHS said the Atlanta's crew was able to make it off the ship and into a lifeboat. After rowing for several hours, the sailors attempted to land near the Crisp Point Life-Saving Station, but the lifeboat overturned and only two crew members survived.
Bruce Lynn, Executive Director of the GLSHS, said the ship is a perfectly preserved find due to the bitter cold waters of Lake Superior, making it easy for the society to identify.
"It is rare that we find a shipwreck that so clearly announces what it is and the name-board of the Atlanta really stands out,” said Lynn.
“It is truly ornate, and still beautiful after 130 years on the bottom of Lake Superior."
The GLSHS also discovered the ship had three missing masts that appeared to have been ripped off at the deck and were nowhere to be found; this matched eyewitnesses who said the ship had lost all three masts in the storm over 130 years ago.
Director of Marine Operations, Darryl Ertel for the GLSHS said, “No one has to ask where the Atlanta is anymore.”
According to the GLSHS, hunting for shipwrecks in Lake Superior can prove difficult and time-consuming. Researchers and professionals were assisted in their efforts to map more than than 2,500 miles of Lake Superior by Marine Sonic Technology in partnership with the GLSHS using Side Scan Sonar - Marine Sonic Technology.
Pictures and video from the Atlanta shipwreck was taken by an ROV (Remote Operated Vehicle).
The GLSHS was first founded in 1978 by divers, teachers and educators in their efforts to explore historic shipwrecks in eastern Lake Superior, near Whitefish Point in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
For more information, visit www.shipwreckmuseum.com