William H. Craig (1857)

Shotline Diving Wreck Profile

• Name: William H. Craig
• Type: Three-masted schooner
• Year Built: 1857
• Builder: Ebenezer Merry & James Gay
• Dimensions: 140 ft (42.67 m); Beam; Depth of hold
• Registered Tonnage: 468 tons
• Depth at Wreck Site: 3 m / 10 ft
• Location: South of Peninsula Point Lighthouse, Michigan, USA
• Coordinates: 45° 39.301′ N / 86° 58.199′ W
• Original Owners: J.W. Pomeroy
• Number of Masts: Three

Wreck Location Map

Vessel Type

The William H. Craig was a wooden, three-masted schooner built to Welland Canal dimensions in 1857 for the grain trade of the upper Great Lakes. She measured 140 feet overall and was typical of mid-19th-century cargo carriers—broad-beamed, shallow-draft, and rigged for efficient handling under sail. Following the Civil War she shifted into the lucrative iron-ore trade from Escanaba, Michigan.

Description

The William H. Craig was a wooden, three-masted schooner built to Welland Canal dimensions in 1857 for the grain trade of the upper Great Lakes. She measured 140 feet overall and was typical of mid-19th-century cargo carriers—broad-beamed, shallow-draft, and rigged for efficient handling under sail. Following the Civil War she shifted into the lucrative iron-ore trade from Escanaba, Michigan.

History

Constructed at Milan, Ohio by shipwrights Ebenezer Merry and James Gay, the vessel entered service out of Chicago under the ownership of J.W. Pomeroy. For several seasons she ran grain cargoes between Lake Erie and upper-lake ports before being reassigned to ore transport from Escanaba to Cleveland.

Significant Incidents

In November 1869, under Captain Alexander McGraw, the William H. Craig departed Escanaba after sunset carrying 468 tons of iron ore bound for Cleveland. Although the Peninsula Point Light was lit, the captain misjudged the extent of the reef and the vessel struck hard aground with her bow high on the shallows. Efforts to lighten her by jettisoning cargo failed, and she remained fast. The Escanaba Tribune (9 December 1869) reported hopes for salvage if Bay de Noc froze early, but she was eventually declared a total loss. Her enrollment was surrendered on 23 November 1869 annotated “Vessel Lost.”

Final Disposition

The wreck lay forgotten for more than 150 years until a private survey team rediscovered it on 4 August 2025 during side-scan sonar operations off Peninsula Point Reef. The flattened hull lies bow to the southeast in shallow water, with the forward section missing and a debris field of iron ore spread down-slope into slightly deeper water.

Current Condition & Accessibility

Located 4 August 2025 by private surveyors using side-scan sonar on the western edge of Peninsula Point Reef, Lake Michigan. Shallow-reef hazard: vessels should approach from the west only. The wreck is visible from the surface in clear conditions. No active NOTMARs specific to the site are listed.

Resources & Links

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No loss of life recorded.