The Margaret Muir shipwreck off the coast of Algoma (Photo: Wisconsin Historical Society)
ALGOMA, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Underneath the surface of Lake Michigan, off the coast of Algoma, lies a previously held secret.
The Margaret Muir, a schooner built in Manitowoc in 1872, sank during a violent storm in September 1893. It was en route from Bay City, Michigan to Chicago with a cargo of salt. Six crew members abandoned the sailing ship, with the only casualty being the captain’s dog.
It took nearly 131 years for remains of the ship to be found.
“We launched, and you know, we’re at the docks, and sometimes we’re like, ‘Alright, we’re going to find a wreck today.’ But, really in our hearts, we’re all like, ‘Probably not.’ But, we try to be positive,” said Robert Jaeck.
Jaeck, Brendon Baillod and Kevin Cullen all went out May 12 in search of the Margaret Muir. After roughly four hours of searching, the crew located the ship just in the nick of time.
“I hadn’t shut the sonar off. We still had it running, but we were retrieving it. As we were pulling up the cable, we ran over the wreck,” said Baillod.
“I would say we knew immediately that we had it. And just, I couldn’t believe it. I mean, we really did it, so that’s exciting, you know? After months and months and months of preparations,” said Jaeck.
Their work began this past winter, gathering statements and information related to the day of the wreck. Baillod was able to narrow down their search to a four square mile-area.
“I knew that she was going to be in about 50 feet of water. I knew that her sides had opened up. I knew she was laying flat, and I knew she’d be harder to find and, you know, would really take more of an archeological search than a deep water shipwreck search,” said Baillod.
Baillod and the group immediately notified the state historical society of their findings. Divers with the historical society went to the site of the wreck to get a closer look.
Now, work is underway to designate the shipwreck as a national historic site.
“All of the pieces of the shipwreck are represented as well. So, it sort of fileted open at the bow with the sides spreading out almost like an eagle,” said Tamara Thomsen with the Wisconsin Historical Society. “But everything is there. Even items that were taken aboard by the sailors can be found on the bottom.”
For all parties involved, they want to help complete the stories of similar wrecks to tell Wisconsin’s maritime history.
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