Gallinipper Maritime Trails Marker
Gallery
img
Gallinipper Maritime Trails Maker at Sheboygan's North Point
 
Details
Attraction
Description
About 17 miles northeast of here lies the Gallinipper, the oldest commercial vessel found in Wisconsin waters. Built in 1833, the wooden schooner began her days in the Great Lakes fur trade and finished her career bringing waves of immigrants to the new state of Wisconsin. Despite her age, the historic vessel lies upright and intact on the bottom of Lake Michigan. She was commissioned by Michael...  Dousman, an agent of the American Fur Company at Mackinac Island. Originally named for Dousman’s daughter, the Nancy Dousman carried furs from trading posts along Lake Michigan and Lake Superior to Detroit, Cleveland, and Buffalo. She often returned westbound with passengers and provisions for Fort Michilimackinac. She later brought supplies to Dousman’s warehouse and store in the frontier village of Milwaukee. By 1846, she had been wrecked, stuck, raised, and rebuilt. Her length was increased by 26 feet, she was renamed the Gallinipper (a biting fly or mosquito), and she now worked in the booming Lake Michigan lumber trade. On July 5, 1851, the Galliniper sailed out of the Milwaukee harbor to pick up a cargo of lumber at Bay de Noque, near Escanaba, Mich. A sudden squall caught her between Sheboygan and Manitowoc. The tiny ship capsized, and the crew was forced to abandon her. All seven crew and two passengers were rescued by the schooner Cleopatra, which happened to be nearby.   Show more >
Attraction
Location
Body of Water: Lake Michigan
Trail Name: Mid Lake Michigan
Nearest Address: North Point
Nearest City: Sheboygan
County: Sheboygan
Zip Code: 53081
Latitude: N 43°45.88632'
Longitude: W -087°41.78388'
Attraction
Features
Open to public?: Yes
Mooring buoy?: No
Mooring buoy in place?: No
Snorkelable?: No
Dive guide?: No
Trails sign?: No
National Register?: No
 
Map
 
Nearby
Attractions (8)
Challenge Keel
Gallinipper Maritime Trails Marker
Hetty Taylor Buoy
Kohler-Andrae State Park
Lottie Cooper
Phoenix Maritime Trails Marker
Selah Chamberlain Buoy
Sheboygan Breakwater Lighthouse
Shipwrecks (40)
Abiah (1848)
Ahnapee (1867)
Baltimore (1847)
Belle Wallbridge (1857)
Big Z (1844)
Black Warrior (1854)
Blue Belle (1867)
Brilliant (1856)
Commerce (1857)
Conquest (1853)
View 30 more
View all fonts in this project
© 2025 - Wisconsin Sea Grant, Wisconsin Historical Society