M. Stalker
Schooner · Lost 1886 · The Straits of Mackinac
Anchored off Mackinaw City in an 1886 gale, the ore schooner M. Stalker was rammed by a towed barge in the night.
Become Captain of RecordSee Shipwreck on Map
The Vessel and Her Loss
Henry Kelley built the two-masted schooner M. Stalker at Milan, Ohio, in 1863, naming her for her first captain, Malcolm Stalker. On November 5, 1886, carrying iron ore from Escanaba for Cleveland, she anchored off Mackinaw City to ride out a severe gale. About 2 a.m. the barge Muskoka, towed by the propeller Isaac May, struck her bow. Her crew escaped in the yawl to Mackinaw City without loss. Divers rediscovered her in 1967.
Vessel
- 1863
- Henry Kelley
- Milan, Ohio
- Wood
- 135 ft
- 25 ft
- Not established
- Sail
- Not established
Loss
- November 5, 1886
- Collision
- At anchor off Mackinaw City, Straits of Mackinac, Michigan
- Lake Huron
- Escanaba, Michigan → Cleveland, Ohio
- Iron ore
- Not established
- 0
- Not established
The Wreck Today
- 100 ft
- Not established
- Not established
- 1967 (Fred Leete, Dick Campbell, Dick Race and John Steele); name-board recovered
- Within the Straits of Mackinac Underwater Preserve (Michigan)
Position
- 45.79° N 84.68° W
- Approximate position
- Mackinaw City, Michigan
Preserve-published dive-site position; displayed rounded.
Evidence
Overall confidence: Documented (80/100)
Crew numbers are not established in the source reviewed.
Straits of Mackinac Shipwreck Preserve — Shipwrecks: M. Stalker
Specification block, history and present-condition text read; underlying newspapers and registries not independently inspected.
