Cornelia B. Windiate
Schooner · United States · Lost 1875 · Thunder Bay & Lake Huron
A grain-laden schooner that vanished with all hands in late 1875 and was found more than a century later, still upright with masts standing.
Become Captain of RecordSee Shipwreck on Map
The Vessel and Her Loss
Cornelia B. Windiate was a three-masted wooden schooner built in 1874 at Manitowoc, Wisconsin. She left Milwaukee in late November 1875 loaded with wheat, bound for Buffalo, and disappeared with everyone aboard; no wreckage or bodies were ever recovered at the time. The cause of her loss was never established, though the lateness of the season and the risk of ice and storms are commonly cited. The wreck was located in the 1980s off Presque Isle, remarkably intact in the cold deep water of Lake Huron.
Vessel
- 1874
- Thomas Windiate
- Manitowoc, Wisconsin
- Wood
- 138 ft
- 26 ft
- 322
- Sail
- Thomas Windiate and James Butler
Loss
- November 27, 1875
- Not established
- Lake Huron off Presque Isle, Michigan
- Lake Huron
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin → Buffalo, New York
- 21,000 bushels of wheat
- Not established
- All hands were lost; the exact crew number is not firmly established.
- Not established
The Wreck Today
- 180 ft
- Remarkably intact, with masts and rigging still standing.
- Not established
- 1986
- Within Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary
Position
- 45.325° N 83.218° W
- Surveyed position
- Presque Isle, Michigan
Evidence
Overall confidence: Partially documented (65/100)
The cause of loss and the exact number of crew aboard are not established in the sources reviewed.
NOAA Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary
Build details, voyage, loss date, depth, position.
Wikipedia, Cornelia B. Windiate
General loss narrative.
