Fannie White (1862)

Shotline Diving Wreck Profile

• Name: Fannie White
• Type: Wooden-hulled screw-propelled yacht (later used as tug)
• Year Built: 1862
• Builder: Hitchcock & Gibson
• Dimensions: 52.8 ft × 11.6 ft × 3.7 ft (16.1 m × 3.5 m × 1.1 m)
• Registered Tonnage: ~30 tons (old style)
• Location: Approximately 4 miles below Saginaw, Michigan, on the Saginaw River heading toward Lake Huron
• Original Owners: Capt. Johnson (Buffalo), George J. Morton (Erie, PA), Matt Stickney (East Saginaw, MI)

Wreck Location Map

Vessel Type

Originally a leisure yacht, Fannie White was built with a single-deck wooden hull and screw propulsion. She later transitioned to tug duties on the Saginaw River, used for small freight or tow tasks.

Description

Fannie White exemplifies 19th-century multipurpose wooden vessels in Great Lakes and riverine environments—starting as a yacht and ending her service as a tug before succumbing to a destructive fire in 1877. Though her physical remains have vanished, her historical footprint is preserved through registry records and archival fire-loss documentation.

History

• 1863: Owned and captained by early commercial operators; moved between Buffalo and Erie.
• 1865: Experienced a boiler explosion while stationary on the Saginaw River near Bay City—damage recorded, no major injuries noted.
• 1869: Abandoned, then rebuilt in East Saginaw by E.W. Wheeler; resumed service under Matt Stickney.
• 1870: Registered out of East Saginaw (52.8 × 11.6 × 3.7 ft; 30 gross tons).

Significant Incidents

• Boiler explosion in 1865 while stationary on the Saginaw River.

Final Disposition

• Date lost: 27 November 1877
• Location: Approximately 4 miles below Saginaw, Michigan, on the Saginaw River heading toward Lake Huron
• Cause: Fire — vessel burned to a total loss
• Enrollment surrendered: 29 June 1878 at Port Huron, officially certified “burned” (University of Michigan Finding Aids, Great Lakes Shipwreck Files)
• Casualties: None reported

Current Condition & Accessibility

Burned beyond repair and either sank or was dismantled on-site; no structural remnants remain.

Resources & Links

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No record of wreck discovery, archaeological investigation, or modern dive; her remains are considered lost and unrecoverable. The lower Saginaw River area remains routinely patrolled and monitored, with standard caution advised for fire and wreck hazards near old timber transport routes.