The wooden 3-masted schooner Moonlight was built in Milwaukee in 1874 at the Wolf & Davidson shipyard. Its official registry number was 90719. Moonlight was of a new, larger class of schooners that signaled the beginning of the golden age of sail on the Great Lakes. It was principally in the grain, coal, and ore trade between ports on Lake Erie and Lake Michigan and was a familiar sight in Milwaukee. In its heyday, many considered the Moonlight as the queen of the lake schooners. The Moonlight achieved fame and recognition across the lakes as a beautiful sailing ship with fine lines and exceptional speed. It even saw service on the Atlantic and served as the inspiration for the modern schooner Denis Sullivan. It's often remembered for its famous 800-mile race with the schooner Porter on Lake Michigan, from Buffalo to Milwaukee. The vessels were caught in a storm, causing the Porter to be dismasted and nearly sunk. The Porter was finally towed to the finish by a tug, and even though it was first to cross the finish line, some said the race ended in a draw. Around the fall of 1888, the Moonlight was converted to a schooner barge for use in the coal and ore trade and was towed by the steamer Charles J. Kenshaw. On September 29, 1895, the Moonlight, along with the barge Henry A. Kent, stranded in a gale while in tow of the steamer Charles J. Kershaw off of Marquette, Michigan.
The old schooner Moonlight ended its days in September of 1903. It had come up the lakes under the tow of the Volunteer for a load of 1,400 tons of iron ore at the Northwestern docks in Ashland, Wisconsin. The wind had been blowing hard for two days, and the two ships departed during a lull in the gale. As the vessels approached Michigan Island in the Apostle Islands, Captain Campbell signaled the Volunteer that he was taking on water. An attempt was made to start the steam pumps, but steam could not be raised quickly enough to overcome the rising water. The Moonlight began to settle rapidly, so Captain Campbell signaled the Volunteer to come alongside. With great effort, all the men on board the Moonlight were able to jump to the safety of the Volunteer. The Moonlight slid to the bottom approximately twelve miles off Michigan Island. It became a total loss, with $9,000 for the vessel and the cargo of iron ore valued at $6,000.
The wreck of the schooner barge Moonlight lies in 240 feet of water seven miles east of Michigan Island near the Apostle Islands, Lake Superior. The hull is broken up, but large hull structures remain intact and many artifacts liter the site undisturbed. A large amount of coal, used to fire the donkey boiler, is scattered around the bow area. The donkey boiler came to rest aft of the stem post on the port side of the keelson, and the donkey engine lies aft of the boiler with its associated pipes and valves. The windlass lies to port of the donkey boiler and engine. Constructed of iron and steam powered, the windlass consists of one wildcat and several large drive gears. A small steam pump lies to port of the windlass. Two large wood stock anchors are present, and the name of the vessel is recognizable on the side.

A debris field lies off the stern that includes many ceramics, including broken and intact plates, a section of a large ceramic jug with handles, serving pitchers, pieces of coal, bottles, and even the ship’s wheel and steering mechanism. The large iron wheel is broken with one half of the wheel bent at an angle from the wrecking incident. The wheel’s worm gear in embedded in the bottom, and only the wheel and shaft are visible above the lakebed. Nearly all of the wooden handles are intact. The galley’s stove pipe lies nearby, complete with chimney cap. Near the stove pipe is a metal milk can, a broken ceramic serving pitcher, and a wooden slat pail. Just to the south of these lies the rudder. Due to its extreme depth, the wreck site has not been extensively explored by divers.