SS Louisiana
Package Freighter · United States · Lost 1913 · Door County & Lake Michigan
A wooden steamer that caught fire while anchored off Washington Island during a violent 1913 storm, leaving a broken hull scattered across the shallows.
Become Captain of RecordSee Shipwreck on Map
The Vessel and Her Loss
Louisiana was a wooden steam freighter built in 1887 for general package freight service on the Great Lakes. In November 1913 she caught fire while anchored off Washington Island in Door County, likely during the same storm system that devastated Great Lakes shipping that season. The wreck broke apart in shallow water and is now a popular snorkeling site. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992.
Vessel
- 1887
- Not established
- Not established
- Wood
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
- Steam, single screw
- Not established
Loss
- November 1, 1913
- Fire
- Lake Michigan off Washington Island, Door County, Wisconsin
- Lake Michigan
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
The Wreck Today
- Not established
- Broken hull remains with iron cross-bracing and engine mount visible
- Not established
- Not established
- Listed on the National Register of Historic Places (1992)
Position
- 45.400° N 86.923° W
- Surveyed position
- Washington Island, Door County, Wisconsin
Evidence
Overall confidence: Partially documented (65/100)
The precise sequence linking the fire to the wider November 1913 storm, along with casualty details, is not firmly established in the sources reviewed.
Wisconsin Historical Society / Wisconsin Shipwrecks
Build date, loss cause, wreck condition
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places
Listing details, location
