Carferry SS Milwaukee

The steel-hulled railroad carferry SS Milwaukee was launched in 1903 as the Manistique Marquette and Northern #1, designed by marine architect Robert Logan and built in Cleveland by the American Shipbuilding Company. Acquired by the Grand Trunk Railroad in 1908, she carried freight cars between Milwaukee and Grand Haven, Michigan, helping railroads avoid the Chicago chokepoint and save time and expense. Built for year-round Great Lakes service and admired for rugged efficiency, she was powered by twin steam engines and could carry 25 to 30 loaded boxcars. On October 29, 1929, she left Milwaukee harbor in a ferocious nor’easter and never reached her destination, disappearing with her crew of 40 to 50. Five days later, a note from purser A.R. Sadon washed ashore near Grand Haven reporting that the ship was taking water fast, had turned back for Milwaukee, and faced tremendous seas. The wreck now lies in 125 feet of water four miles east of Whitefish Bay with its bow facing southwest, confirming the ship had turned back toward Milwaukee harbor; stripped of its upperworks, it is a tangle of exploded deck gear, hull plates, and rail cars, and its damaged sea gate hangs twisted from the stern.

Milwaukee, Wisconsin · United States