Wreck of Atlanta ship discovered in Lake Superior, USA, 131 years after it sank

CAIRO – 13 March 2022: An American team from the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society has discovered the wreck of a ship that sank in 1891 in Lake Superior in the United States, reviving the story of the crew members’ struggle for their lives in the world's largest freshwater lake.

The story began on May 4, 1891, when the winds hit Lake Superior and the crew of a sailboat called Atlanta sank with six men and one woman on board. They remained on the lifeboat for 9 hours battling to guide it to a Michigan beach.

As they approached land, according to archival news reports, the lifeboat capsized within sight of a distant rescue patrol who mistakenly believed that what its men were seeing was a tree stump rolling in turbulent waters.

The mast of the Atlanta broke and then the ship sank to the bottom of Lake Superior. CC – GLSHS

Six crew members were able to board the boat again, but it capsized again, and in the end only two men survived.

This month, the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society said the wreck of Atlanta has been found after remaining undiscovered for more than a century.

The Atlanta was found at the bottom of Lake Superior. CC - GLSHS

“Suddenly, our cameras were on the wreckage of the sunken ship. We were the first human eyes to look at this trail since that dramatic moment. I just jumped out of my seat,” said Bruce Lane, executive director of the Great Lakes Museum of Shipwrecks in Paradise, Michigan, according to the New York Times.

Lake Superior, which is also bordered by Minnesota, Wisconsin and Ontario, Canada, intersects with shipping lanes across the lakes. The heavy traffic has led to collisions, sinking hundreds of ships and turning the lake's deepest terrain into a marine cemetery ready to be discovered.

In 2021, the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society, the nonprofit organization that runs the museum, had its best season for locating the wrecks, Lane said.  Good weather and sonar, which sends and receives acoustic pulses, helps in mapping any wreckage.

Daryl Ertel, the association's director of naval operations, said the association discovered nine shipwrecks, including the Atlanta, which is the largest number in any season.