AH-WR-1765

Byron

Schooner · United States · Lost 1867 · Chicago & Southern Lake Michigan

A small Lake Michigan trading schooner sank after an 1867 collision; its fragile hull survives southeast of Sheboygan.

Become Captain of Record See Shipwreck on Map

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents. See the documented evidence.

Interpretive Reconstruction, drawn to convey the vessel's era, type and general form. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

Byron was a small wooden trading schooner apparently built around 1849 and operated by Captain William Burmeister of Manitowoc. Reports connect her with lumber traffic between Manistee and Milwaukee. On May 8, 1867, Canton struck her during a Milwaukee-to-Manitowoc voyage, causing her to capsize and sink. Burmeister, his son and a passenger escaped onto Canton. A commercial fisherman discovered the wreck in May 1977; its fragile hull survives in 135 feet of water.

Vessel

Built: Not established
Builder: Not established
Yard: Not established
Material: Wood
Length: Not established
Beam: 12 ft
Tonnage: Not established
Propulsion: Sail
Owners: Captain William Burmeister

Loss

Date: May 8, 1867
Cause: Collision
Location: Lake Michigan off Amsterdam, Wisconsin; wreck southeast of Sheboygan
Water: Lake Michigan
Voyage: Milwaukee, Wisconsin → Manitowoc, Wisconsin
Cargo: Salt and freight
Aboard: 3
Lives lost: 0
Master: William Burmeister

The Wreck Today

Depth: 135 ft
Condition: Most outer hull planks survive, with missing planks at the starboard bilge. Fragile hull is mussel-covered and contains approximately one foot of silt; cabin roof displaced.
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: May 1977
Protection: National Register of Historic Places listed (institutional entry)

Position

Coordinates: 43.61° N 87.69° W
Accuracy: Reported, unconfirmed
Nearest: Amsterdam, Wisconsin
Region: Chicago & Southern Lake Michigan

Position converted from degrees and decimal minutes in Wisconsin Shipwrecks institutional inventory; archaeological documentation accompanies the entry, but position accuracy is not stated.

Evidence

Overall confidence: Documented (88/100)

Position is the published institutional inventory location; survey accuracy and unrecorded particulars are not asserted.

Wisconsin Historical Society and Wisconsin Sea Grant — Wisconsin Shipwrecks
Small trading-schooner type, uncertain circa 1849 build, conflicting 35/36-foot length and 12-foot beam, Burmeister service; May 8, 1867 collision/capsize/completed sinking and three survivors; May 1977 discovery, artifact salvage, 135-foot depth, inventory position and fragile hull archaeology.