John M. Osborn
Bulk Freighter · United States · Lost 1884 · Whitefish Point & Eastern Lake Superior
A young ore-carrying steam barge rammed and sunk by the steel steamer Alberta in fog, with the captain's family aboard for a Sunday outing.
Mathew Nolan
See Shipwreck on Map
The Vessel and Her Loss
John M. Osborn was only two years old when the larger steel-hulled Alberta struck her in dense fog near Whitefish Point in July 1884. She sank quickly with the loss of four of her crew and one rescuer from the Alberta. The wreck went undiscovered for a century until it was found in 1984, though later illegally salvaged.
Vessel
- 1882
- US 76307
- Morley & Hill
- Marine City, Michigan
- Wood
- 178 ft
- 32 ft
- 891
- Steam, propeller
- George F. Cleveland and the Cleveland Iron Mining Company
Loss
- July 27, 1884
- Collision
- About 6 miles northwest of Whitefish Point, Lake Superior
- Lake Superior
- Marquette, Michigan → Ashtabula, Ohio
- Iron ore
- Not established
- 4
- Captain Thomas Wilford
The Wreck Today
- 160-170
- Bow intact with anchors in place; stern collapsed
- Not established
- 1984
- Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve
Position
- 46.87° N 85.09° W
- Reported, unconfirmed
- Whitefish Point, Michigan
Dive-survey GPS coordinates (N46°51.974' W085°05.210') for the wreck, about six miles northwest of Whitefish Point in Lake Superior, are published by a dive-documentation site (3DShipwrecks.org); this is a diver-recorded position rather than a government or academic survey record.
Evidence
Overall confidence: Documented (82/100)
Build details, loss narrative, casualty count.
Wreck condition and site description.
3DShipwrecks.org - Shipwreck John M Osborn
wreck position
Great Lakes Underwater - John M. Osborne
wreck position
