AH-WR-1905

City of Madison

Steam Propeller · Lost 1877 · Chicago & Southern Lake Michigan

A Buffalo-built steam propeller burned to the waterline off Kenosha in August 1877 while running light to Ludington.

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Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents.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

C.A. Van Slyke and Notter built the steam propeller City of Madison at Buffalo, New York, in 1857. She often carried lumber and was owned at loss by Milwaukee interests. On August 17, 1877, running light from Chicago toward Ludington, she caught fire off Kenosha and burned to the waterline, sinking hours later. Inspectors blamed the second engineer's drunkenness; the uninsured loss was estimated at $10,000.

Vessel

Built: 1857
Registry: US registry no. 4350
Builder: C.A. Van Slyke and Notter
Yard: Buffalo, New York
Material: Not established
Length: 134.25 ft
Beam: 26.17 ft
Tonnage: 487 gross tons
Propulsion: Steam, screw
Owners: Not established

Loss

Date: August 17, 1877
Cause: Fire
Location: Lake Michigan off Kenosha, Wisconsin, roughly 65 miles northeast of Chicago
Water: Lake Michigan
Voyage: Chicago, Illinois → Ludington, Michigan
Cargo: None (running light)
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: Not established
Master: Not established