Search below for stories about ships, lighthouses, sailors and anything else about life on Lake Michigan. The database contains references to articles from the Ahnapee (Algoma) Record (June 12, 1873 to Jan. 7, 1927), the Door County Advocate (Nov. 8, 1861 to Dec. 22, 1949), and the Manitowoc Pilot (June 14, 1859 to Dec. 28, 1899). The results will direct you to the date and page in these newspapers where the article can be found.
Microfilm copies of the Ahnapee (Algoma) Record are available at the Wisconsin Historical Society Library in Madison, Algoma Public Library in Algoma. Microfilm copies of the Door County Advocate are available at the Wisconsin Historical Society Library in Madison, the Door County Public Library in Sturgeon Bay, and the Brown County Library in Green Bay. Microfilm of the Manitowoc Pilot are available at the Manitowoc County Historical Society, the Manitowoc Public Library, and the Wisconsin Historical Society in Madison.
Check with your local library about obtaining the microfilm via interlibrary loan.
| Newspaper | Object | Name | Date | Page | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Steamer | Iowa | 1915-03-05 | 1 | The United States Government notified the Goodrich Transit Company to remove the wreckage or they will dynamite it. There is a cargo valued at $50,000 in the sunken steamer. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Iowa | 1913-02-07 | 1 | Suit against Goodrich dealing with the Iowa settled. Payment was for $5,750 | ||
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Iowa | 1915-02-19 | 3 | The steamer Iowa which was sunk by the ice off Chicago was located last week. It turned turtle when it sunk. | ||
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Steamer | Iowa | 1915-03-19 | 1 | The Goodrich Company are attempting to recover the cargo of the steamer Iowa sunk off Chicago. The company has leased the small steamer O. E. Parks and are using the boat in the work. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Steamer | Iowa | 1913-01-31 | 1 | Goodrich Co. is being sued by the Gillen Dock & Dredge Co. involving when the steamer Iowa was stranded five miles from Racine. | |
| Door County Advocate | Steamer | Ira Chaffee | 1899-05-13 | 1 | Possibly be used as a breakwater of Pankratz Lumber Co. | |
| Door County Advocate | Steambarge | Ira Chaffee | 1894-08-04 | 5 | Burnt wreck brought into port | |
| Door County Advocate | Steamer | Ira Chaffee | 1902-11-22 | 1 | Old boiler fixed up | |
| Door County Advocate | Steambarge | Ira Chaffee | 1890-08-09 | 5 | Ashore on Peshtigo reef | |
| Door County Advocate | Ira Chaffee | 1894-12-15 | 5 | Machinery taken out of burned hull |
This database is a cooperative effort of the Wisconsin Underwater Archaeology Association (WUAA), the Wisconsin Historical Society (WHS), and the University of Wisconsin Sea Grant Institute. The project is spearheaded by WUAA member Russel Leitz, who helped develop a framework for the database and painstakingly combed through 54 years of the Ahnapee (Algoma) Record, 87 years of the Door County Advocate and 40 years of the Manitowoc Pilot for maritime news. The more than 50,000 references are the fruit of his labor alone.