Shotline Diving Wreck Profile

• Name: Wave
• Type: Two-masted wooden schooner
• Year Built: 1849
• Builder: Detroit, Michigan
• Dimensions: Length X ft (Y m); Beam; Depth of hold
• Registered Tonnage: 100 tons
• Location: Lake Michigan
• Coordinates: precise location unknown
• Number of Masts: 2

Wreck Location Map

Vessel Type

Mid-19th-century two-masted wooden schooner, built for regional cargo transport on the Great Lakes.

Description

The Wave was a relatively new-build wooden schooner of about 100 tons, likely intended for general trade, carrying lumber, produce, and manufactured goods among Michigan, Wisconsin, and Illinois ports. Its broad beam and shallow draft would have allowed entry into rivers and smaller harbours.

History

Launched in 1849 from a Detroit shipyard, the Wave began trading that same season. However, she was lost on Lake Michigan before the year ended. Precise details on the wreck are extremely sparse, suggesting the incident did not leave survivors with detailed accounts, or that contemporary newspaper coverage was minimal. There is no mention of cargo, crew losses, or salvage, which was not unusual for small schooners lost quickly on the lakes in that era.

Significant Incidents

• Declared a total loss on Lake Michigan, 1849.

Final Disposition

No known survey has identified wreck remains. The hull is presumed lost and unrecovered in Lake Michigan.

Current Condition & Accessibility

None noted.

Resources & Links

References are being reviewed for this wreck.

The Wave (1849) was lost so soon after launching that little record survives beyond her enrollment and disappearance, illustrating the vulnerability of early wooden schooners on Lake Michigan to sudden storms or navigational hazards.