Elva
Passenger And Freight Steamer (Later Barge) · Lost 1954 · The Straits of Mackinac
Built as a preacher's steamer in 1889, Elva was burned off Arch Rock in 1954 to celebrate the start of the Mackinac Bridge.
Become Captain of RecordSee Shipwreck on Map
The Vessel and Her Loss
Thomas Miller built the steamer Glad Tidings at Chicago in 1889 for Captain Henry Bundy, who used his vessels to preach from port to port. Sold in 1896 and renamed Elva, she joined the Arnold Line in 1898 and served Straits of Mackinac ports and islands. Cut down to a deck barge in 1944, she left service in 1952. On May 16, 1954, she was set afire off Arch Rock to mark the start of Mackinac Bridge construction, then rammed until she sank.
Vessel
- 1889
- Thomas Miller
- Chicago, Illinois
- Wood
- 95.5 ft
- 18.5 ft
- Not established
- Steam (engine later removed)
- Not established
Loss
- May 16, 1954
- Intentional sinking
- Off Arch Rock, east of Mackinac Island, Michigan
- Lake Huron
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
The Wreck Today
- 120 ft
- Not established
- Not established
- Position recently confirmed by the NOAA high-resolution scanning project and by Thom Hadfield
- Within the Straits of Mackinac Underwater Preserve (Michigan)
Position
- 45.87° N 84.59° W
- Approximate position
- Mackinac Island, Michigan
Preserve-published dive-site position; displayed rounded.
Evidence
Overall confidence: Documented (80/100)
Straits of Mackinac Shipwreck Preserve — Shipwrecks: Elva
Specification block, history and present-condition text read; underlying newspapers and registries not independently inspected.
