- Lost Gilded Age Freighter Western Reserve Found After 132 Years.
- Historic Great Lakes Ship Western Reserve Found After a Century.
- Tragic 1892 Shipwreck Western Reserve Located in Lake Superior.
Researchers have found the wreckage of the Gilded Age historic ship Western Reserve, ending a 132-year-old mystery. The ship that vanished in Lake Superior in 1892 was finally found 600 feet below the surface of the Upper Peninsula coast of Michigan. The discovery was confirmed by the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society (GLSHS) at the Wisconsin Underwater Archaeological Association’s annual Ghost Ships event in Manitowoc, reports NY Post.
The Tragic Sinking of the Western Reserve
The Western Reserve was a pioneering steel freighter that gained the nickname the “Inland Greyhound” due to its speed. Constructed to shatter cargo records, it was a representation of the Gilded Age’s optimism. In August 1892, millionaire and ship owner Captain Peter G. Minch took a summer cruise on his ship with his family and crew. The ship was considered the “safest ship in the world.” But on August 30 night, strong gusts swept across Lake Superior’s Whitefish Bay, snapping the ship’s steel framework apart.
Lifeboats Fail to Save Western Reserve Passengers
As the ship went down, every one of the 27 passengers and crew made it out to two lifeboats—a wooden and a metal boat. The metal lifeboat tipped over the moment it hit the water, and everyone inside perished. The wooden lifeboat, with Minch aboard along with his family and a couple of crewmen, drifted ten hours before overturning along the shoreline. The sole survivor was wheelsman Harry W. Stewart.
Reflecting on the tragedy, GLSHS Executive Director Bruce Lynn remarked: “It is hard to imagine that Peter 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 year.”
The Quest for the Wreckage
Following a two-year, all-out search, GLSHS Marine Operations Director Darryl Ertel and his brother Dan found the remains of the ship in the summer of 2024. Scanning the depths of Lake Superior with Marine Sonic Technology side-scan sonar on their research vessel David Boyd, they picked up an unusual shadow. “We side-scan looking out a half mile per side and caught an image on our port side,” Darryl explained. “It was very small, looking out that far, but I measured the shadow, and it came up about 40 feet.”
Upon closer examination, they found broken cargo hatches and the ship split into two, with one half resting atop the other. The wreckage measured 150 feet per section—exactly half the length of the Western Reserve. Their findings were confirmed when two remote-controlled submersibles descended to capture images of the fragmented remains.
A Sobering Reminder of the Great Lakes’ Dangers
The discovery of the Western Reserve sheds light on the treacherous conditions of the Great Lakes, which have claimed around 6,000 shipwrecks and 30,000 lives. “Every shipwreck has its own story, but some are just that much more tragic,” said Lynn.
Reflecting on the momentous find, Darryl Ertel noted: “Knowing how the 300-footWestern Reserve was caught in a storm this far from shore made an uneasy feeling in the back of my neck. A squall can come up unexpectedly… anywhere, and anytime.” The discovery finally brings closure to a mystery that has endured for over a century, while also serving as a stark reminder of the Great Lakes’ unforgiving waters.
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Source: NY Post
