On April 30, 1909, the schooner GEORGE NESTER, a vessel of 790 tons gross, stranded on Huron Island in Lake Superior during a furious gale. The ship was owned by Detroit and tragically broke apart due to the violent storm, leading to the loss of all seven crew members aboard. In another incident on Lake Huron, the package freighter RUSSIA of Port Huron sank after her cargo shifted, but the 22 crew members managed to escape in small boats. On Lake Michigan, the steel freighter BATAVIA was found deserted and floating, with no evidence of her crew’s whereabouts. The schooner AURANIA experienced a crushing encounter with ice on Lake Superior, causing it to sink. The crew made a daring escape over nearly four miles of ice floe to reach the steamer J. H. BARLOW. These events made it one of the most disastrous days in the history of lake navigation.
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