Shipwrecks

It's been hard to watch the local news lately without hearing about newly discovered Great Lakes shipwrecks. We, here at Great Lakes Clipper, would be re-miss if we didn't do our part to celebrate these local historic discoveries.

First off, Lake Superior recently uncovered her secret of where the Henry B. Smith freighter went down off the coast of Marquette almost 100 years ago. This freighter was discovered a little more than 500 feet from Marquette

Our other Great Lake, Lake Michigan also may have given up the mystery of an even older shipwreck, Le Griffin. Le Griffin was a 17th century ship which sank after leaving Washington Island with French explorer Rene Robert LaSalle aboard. A 19- foot beam was discovered in the early 2000's and after legal wrangling, including that with French authorities, shipwreck hunters finally got the chance this week to determine if it truly is part of the Le Griffin. This beam is just off the coast of the Garden Peninsula in Fairport, Mich.. Unfortunately, lake conditions and technical difficulties caused delays for the shipwreck hunters and they ran out of time before their state permit expired.

If you can't get enough of Great Lakes shipwrecks, the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum in Paradise, Mich. in the Eastern U.P. is the place for you. On Whitefish Point, it is the site of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald, the storied boat which sank in the early 1970's after a November gale.
Tonight at 7 p.m.,  the Museum is holding a special presentation called "Tragedy and Triumph on the Shipwreck Coast." Learn about vessels such as the Jupiter and Saturn which went down in Lake Superior in November 1872, leading to the creation of four Life-Saving Stations along the Superior coast. This is part of the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society's Maritime Speaker series. Museum Director Bruce Lynn will lead the discussion. Admission is FREE to members and just $5 for the general public.
Visit www.shipwreckmuseum.com for more information.