Moonlight (ship)

46°49.939′N 90°22.703′W / 46.832317°N 90.378383°W / 46.832317; -90.378383

The Moonlight, ashore near Marquette, Michigan.
History
NameMoonlight
OwnerWilliam Mack (first owner) Joseph C. Gilchrest Company (second owner)
Port of registry United States
BuilderWolf and Davidson Company
Laid downSeptember 13, 1903
Launched1874
FateShipwrecked on September 13, 1903
NotesAdded to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991 Location: 46°49.939′N 90°22.703′W / 46.832317°N 90.378383°W / 46.832317; -90.378383[1]
General characteristics
TypeSchooner, later converted to a tow barge
Tonnage777 gross tons (738 net tons)
Length206 feet (63 m) long, 35 feet (11 m) wide

The Moonlight was a schooner that sank in Lake Superior off the coast of Michigan Island. The wreckage site was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2008.[2]

History

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Moonlight was built in 1874. In addition to service in the Great Lakes, Moonlight also sailed in the Atlantic Ocean.[3] In 1894 she was involved in an accident with SS Ohio which was sunk. She sank in September 1903 in a storm while hauling iron ore from Ashland, Wisconsin. In use as a tow barge, Moonlight was under tow by the steamer Volunteer. Both ships were loaded with iron ore in Ashland and were headed for their destination when a violent storm erupted and ruptured the seams of Moonlight's hull.[4]

References

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  1. ^ "Apostle Islands Deep Shipwrecks". Retrieved July 22, 2013.
  2. ^ "Wisconsin - Ashland County - Vacant / Not In Use". National Register of Historic Places.com. Retrieved January 22, 2012.
  3. ^ "Moonlight Shipwreck". Wisconsin Historical Society. Retrieved January 22, 2012.
  4. ^ Keller, James M. The Unholy Apostles. pp. 77–83. ISBN 0-933577-001.
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Media related to Moonlight (ship, 1874) at Wikimedia Commons