Onoko
Bulk Freighter · United States · Lost 1915 · The Minnesota North Shore
The first iron-hulled bulk freighter on the Great Lakes, lost to a sudden leak and now resting upside down in 220 feet of water off Knife Island.
Become Captain of RecordSee Shipwreck on Map
The Vessel and Her Loss
Onoko was launched in 1882 as the first iron-hulled, iron-screw steam freighter on the Great Lakes, and the prototype for the modern bulk carrier. After 33 years of service, she developed a sudden leak near her engine room while carrying wheat from Duluth on September 15, 1915, and sank off Knife Island in about 35 minutes. All 17 aboard survived. The wreck was located by divers in 1988, lying inverted in 220 feet of water.
Vessel
- 1882
- U.S. Registry 155048
- Globe Iron Works
- Cleveland, Ohio
- Iron
- 302 ft
- Not established
- Not established
- Steam, single screw
- Kinsman Transit Company (at loss)
Loss
- September 15, 1915
- Mechanical failure
- Lake Superior off Knife Island, Minnesota
- Lake Superior
- Duluth, Minnesota → Toledo, Ohio
- 110,000 bushels of wheat
- 17
- 0
- Captain W.R. Dunn
The Wreck Today
- 220 ft
- Broken nearly in half forward of the boiler; both sections lie upside down on a mud bottom, stern partially buried.
- North-south axis, bow to the south
- 1988
- Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, 1992.
Position
- 46.87° N 91.83° W
- Approximate position
- Knife Island, Minnesota
Estimated from published description (roughly 6.5 nautical miles south of Knife Island); precise survey coordinates not confirmed in sources reviewed.
Evidence
Overall confidence: Documented (82/100)
Precise present-day coordinates are not confirmed in the sources reviewed; the general location off Knife Island is well established.
Minnesota Historical Society / State Historic Preservation Office
Loss narrative, cargo, casualty figures, discovery details.
Vessel service history and build details.
