On the afternoon of October 22, 1929, the steam-powered, steel hull rail car ferry S.S. Milwaukee left for its return trip to Michigan in a northeaster gale carrying 28 train cars loaded with lumber, food, bathtubs, and Nash automobiles, a route that avoided the crowded rail yards of Chicago. After passing U.S. Lightship 95, anchored 3 miles offshore from Milwaukee, the vessel was reported to be pitching and rolling heavily as it disappeared into the storm, where waves broke over the seagate and bent it inward. After turning back toward Milwaukee, the ferry began taking on water below deck, lifting the railroad cars off their wheels and moving them around the hull. The Milwaukee never returned to port, and there were no survivors. Several days later, a lifeboat was found near Holland, Michigan, containing the bodies of four S.S. Milwaukee crew members who had died overnight from exposure. In 1972, the wreck of the Milwaukee was found 20 miles south of Port Washington, 3 miles offshore, resting upright in 120 feet of water.