Researchers Discover 139-Year-Old Cargo Ship Wreck In Lake Michigan

The Wisconsin Historical Society and Wisconsin Underwater Archeology Association announced Monday that researcher Brandon Baillod’s team found the wreck of the FJ King off Bailey’s Harbor. The 144-foot three-masted cargo schooner, built in 1867 in Toledo, Ohio, sank September 15, 1886 during a storm while carrying iron ore from Escanaba, Michigan to Chicago. Eight to ten-foot waves ruptured the ship’s seams, forcing Captain William Griffin and crew into a lifeboat around 2am as the vessel sank bow-first. Searchers had hunted for the wreck since the 1970s, but conflicting location reports stymied efforts. Baillod used side-scan radar in a 2-square-mile grid near the lighthouse keeper’s reported location, finding the 140-foot object less than half a mile away. “A few of us had to pinch each other,” Baillod said. “After all the previous searches, we couldn’t believe we had actually found it, and so quickly.” (Story URL)