M.C. Springer – Lake Michigan Schooner Shipwreck (1892)

Shotline Diving Wreck Profile

• Name: M.C. Springer
• Type: Schooner
• Year Built: 1887
• Builder: Capt. B.F. Tibbetts
• Dimensions: Length 32.00 ft (9.75 m); Beam 11.50 ft (3.51 m); Depth of hold 4.90 ft (1.49 m)
• Registered Tonnage: 10.38 tons
• Location: Milwaukee Harbor, near Oak Creek
• Official Number: 91 936
• Original Owners: Charles Tillmeyer and Knudt Lee
• Number of Masts: Two-masted

Wreck Location Map

Vessel Type

• Type: Small wood-built two-masted schooner (10 tons) intended for light local trading. Powered solely by sail, no auxiliary propulsion.

Description

• Construction: Oak and pine timber hull typical of local Red River schooners built in the late 19th century; minimal deck structure; small hold for light cargoes (grain, produce, sundries). Approximately 10 gross register tons.
• Cargo: Light during final voyage, likely local goods or minor freight; not heavily laden at time of sinking.

History

• Launch and service: Launched July 11, 1887, in Red River, WI; employed in local bay trading around Milwaukee and vicinity. Newspaper (Door County Advocate, August 1887) noted her trading activities between small ports around the western Lake Michigan basin.
• Ownership: Initially owned by Charles Tillmeyer and Knudt Lee of Milwaukee; records show final enrollment surrendered in Milwaukee on August 24, 1894, citing abandonment dating from October 8, 1892.

Significant Incidents

• Cause of loss: During moorage or transit, M.C. Springer drifted due to ice movement or struck drifting debris; collided with an old derelict hull off Oak Creek. Though the crew could bring her into Milwaukee Harbor, she sank in harbor waters on October 8, 1892. No injuries or loss of life reported.
• Registry outcome: Enrollment surrendered two years later; vessel listed as abandoned; no formal marine board case appears in current digital archives.

Final Disposition

• Wreck discovery: No known archaeological survey or public dive documentation has confirmed the remains. The vessel sank within Milwaukee Harbor near Oak Creek, but no sonar or dive records are publicly archived. Appears not formally located by marine archaeologists or recreational divers.

Current Condition & Accessibility

• Site status: Not confirmed. Likely resting in shallow harbor waters near modern Milwaukee shoreline. Water depth unknown, but likely moderate (10–30 ft).
• Dive access: Shore entry possible from harbor area near Oak Creek with local clearance. Permits may be required depending on local harbor authority rules.
• Emergency contacts: Milwaukee Fire Dept Dive Team; Coast Guard Sector Lake Michigan (Milwaukee).
• Local dive resources: Milwaukee dive shops such as Dive Inc., Discovery Dive Center could assist; consultation recommended due to uncertain site condition.

Resources & Links

[shotline_reference_links slug=”m-c-springer-us-91936″ title=”References & Links”]

The M.C. Springer represents a minor, yet illustrative example of 19th-century small-scale schooner trade vessels operating in the Milwaukee–Oak Creek region. Though her loss caused no casualties, it underscores risks posed by harbor ice movement and submerged debris to small craft. Her modest size and sinking within harbor waters likely contributed to her remaining archaeologically obscure. No formal site survey exists, and her remains, if extant, may lie buried or degraded.

To develop a more complete archaeological and archival profile, further research is recommended:

• Newspaper archives (e.g. Milwaukee Sentinel, Door County Advocate, Milwaukee Journal, Milwaukee News) around October 1892 for eyewitness or crew detail.
• Milwaukee Public Library / Wisconsin Historical Society enrollment and port authority records for formal abandonment documents.
• Harbor sonar surveys focusing near Oak Creek mouth and records of harbor dredging or debris removal that may have affected the wreck site.