HENRY J. JOHNSON

The steamer HENRY J. JOHNSON sank in Lake Huron off Spectacle Reef on July 24, 1902, after colliding with the steamer FRED PABST in dense fog. The collision caused the JOHNSON to sink within five minutes, but all the crew members managed to get into lifeboats. They were later rescued by the tug PARKER and brought to Cheboygan. The HENRY J. JOHNSON was a wooden steamer of 1,713 gross tons and was built in 1888 in Cleveland, Ohio. It measured 260.0 feet in length, 40.2 feet in beam, and 19.6 feet in depth. The wreck of the HENRY J. JOHNSON was rediscovered by Captain Ed Ellison in 1992, lying upright in 162 feet of water with much of its teal paint remaining.