AH-WR-1511

Pere Marquette 18

Railroad Car Ferry · United States · Lost 1910 · Door County & Lake Michigan

A railroad car ferry that sank mid-lake in 1910; her wreck was found in 2020.

Become Captain of Record See Shipwreck on Map

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents. See the documented evidence.

Historically Reconstructed. Drawn from partial documentation of this vessel together with her known class and configuration. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

Pere Marquette 18 was a steel railroad car ferry built in 1902 to carry rail cars across Lake Michigan. On 9 September 1910 she began taking on water mid-lake and sank. About 29 people were lost, including crew of the sister ship Pere Marquette 17 lost during the rescue. The cause was never settled. Her wreck was found in 2020.

Vessel

Built: 1902
Builder: Not established
Yard: Not established
Material: Steel
Length: Not established
Beam: Not established
Tonnage: Not established
Propulsion: Steam, twin screw
Owners: Not established

Loss

Date: September 9, 1910
Cause: Mechanical failure
Location: Lake Michigan, off Sheboygan, Wisconsin
Water: Lake Michigan
Voyage: Not established
Cargo: Not established
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: Not established
Master: Not established

The Wreck Today

Depth: Not established
Condition: Not established
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: 2020
Protection: Not established

Position

Coordinates: 43.75° N 87.25° W
Accuracy: General area only
Nearest: Sheboygan, Wisconsin
Region: Door County & Lake Michigan

Pin marks the named place of loss, not a surveyed wreck position.

Evidence

Overall confidence: Partially documented (65/100)

Exact wreck position, depth and present condition are not established in the sources reviewed.

Wisconsin Historical Society, Maritime Preservation and Archaeology Program
Vessel history, loss and site documentation.
Historical Collections of the Great Lakes, Bowling Green State University
Vessel particulars and career.