Stuff We Love: Found, The Remains of the Atlanta Shipwreck

By Lynda Wheatley | March 12, 2022

The 130-year mystery of the Atlanta schooner’s underwater burial site has been solved. The barge, which sank in a Lake Superior storm on May 4, 1891, lies in 650 feet of water 35 miles from the coast of Deer Park. Credit for the find goes to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society and Marine Sonic Technology, which partnered to map more than 2,500 miles of Lake Superior’s bottomlands last summer. The Atlanta (whose sister ship, Nirvana, is pictured above) met its fate while carrying a load of coal in tow of the steamer Wilhelm. According to the two survivors, the vessels got caught in a northwest gale so fierce that it broke all three masts off the Atlanta and snapped the towline between the two boats. The crew took to a lifeboat, coming just within sight of the Crisp Point Life-Saving Station—but overturning before they could reach it. To see a video of the wreck and underwater images, visit shipwreckmuseum.com. Love tales of things lost and found? The North’s own shipwreck hunter Ross Richardson will offer a free presentation for all ages about some of the biggest Michigan Mysteries from 2pm to 3:30pm March 20 at the Traverse Area District Library. tadl.org.