132-Year-Old Shipwreck Discovered in Lake Superior

The Western Reserve, a pioneering all-steel cargo ship, sank in 1892 during a storm, taking 27 lives and leaving only one survivor.

The wreckage of the Western Reserve, a 300-foot all-steel cargo ship, was found 600 feet underwater near Michigan’s Upper Peninsula after a two-year search by the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society.
The ship, once hailed as a technological marvel and dubbed the 'Inland Greyhound,' sank in August 1892 during a gale in Lake Superior's Whitefish Bay.
The disaster claimed 27 lives, including the ship’s owner, Peter Minch, his family, and crew members; wheelsman Harry W. Stewart was the sole survivor.
Researchers used side-scan sonar and submersible drones to confirm the shipwreck, with its remains found broken in two but well-preserved in the frigid freshwater.
The sinking highlighted the dangers of the Great Lakes and the potential brittleness of early steel hulls, drawing comparisons to the Titanic, which used similar materials.