The Great Lakes, a collection of five freshwater lakes located in North America, have been sailed upon since at least the 17th century, and thousands of ships have been sunk while traversing them. Many of these ships were never found, so the exact number of shipwrecks in the Lakes is unknown; the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum estimates 6,000 ships and 30,000 lives lost, while historian and mariner Mark Thompson has estimated that the total number of wrecks is likely more than 25,000. In the period between 1816, when the Invincible was lost, to the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald in 1975, the Whitefish Point area alone has claimed at least 240 ships.

Lake Superior

Lake Huron

ShipFlag Sunk date Notes Coordinates Image Africa October 1895 Sank while carrying coal on the way from Ashtabula, Ohio to Owen Sound. Wreck discovered in June 2023.Arabia October 1884Barque that foundered off Echo Island near Tobermory, Ontario in of water. 9 November 1913Wreckage found near Bayfield Ontario Canada 14 September 1882 Athens 7 October 1917 The schooner barge foundered after her towline broke in a blizzard. CC Martin 1911Tug lost with barge Albatross during storm off French River, ten lives lost. 7 May 1965A bulk carrier that collided with Topdalsfjord in the Straits of Mackinac.15 November 1913Capsized in the Great Lakes Storm of 1913. Sighted floating upside-down on 10 November 1913 and identified as Charles S. Price before it sank on 15 November 1913. Wreck was not found until the 1960s.12 February 1915Sank in a collision with Wahcondah.City of Grand Rapids29 October 1907City of Grand Rapids was a double-decker passenger steamer that caught fire while docked in Little Tub Harbour. For the security of the harbour, the City of Grand Rapids was towed out into Georgian Bay and released to burn. From there she drifted to the head of Big Tub Harbour where she burnt to the waterline and sank. 21-22 September 1924The whaleback foundered in a storm near Thunder Bay Island.27 November 1875Iced up and slowly sank in a storm after passing through the Straits of Mackinac.29 November 1966Broke in two in a storm on Lake Huron, with the aft section coming to rest five miles from the bow.Dorcas Pendell6 July 1914Shallow-water shipwreck located in the harbor of Harbor Beach, Michigan. Dorcas Pendell was a schooner built in 1884 and burned in place on 6 July 1914 after running aground. 16 May 1919A steel freighter that sank in a collision with Quincy A. Shaw.Emma L. Nielson26 June 1911Collision in fog off Pointe Aux Barques.Equinox10 September 1875A steamship that sank near Au Sable during a storm in which 22 of 23 aboard were lost.21 November 1883A steamship that exploded and sank while attempting to rescue the stranded schooner J. N. Carter.Forest City5 June 1904The vessel ran aground and sank in foggy weather near south east end of Bear's Rump Island in Georgian Bay near Tobermory. The ship's smashed stem is in and stern is at depth.Hunter Savidge20 August 1899Capsized and sank off Pointe Aux Barques.11 November 1913Lost on Lake Huron during the Great Lakes Storm of 1913. Its wreck was discovered in July 2015.Ironton26 September 1894A schooner that sank in a collision with the wooden freighter . 9 November 1913A lake freighter that sank in the Great Lakes Storm of 1913.James C. King November 1901While under tow by W. L. Wetmore, which was wrecked by a storm, James C. King was wrecked too at the northwest end of Bonnet Island near Tobermory, Ontario in about of water. 9 November 1913Lost on Lake Huron during the Great Lakes Storm of 1913.James Davidson4 October 1883Wooden bulk freighter wrecked in shallow water off the coast of Thunder Bay Island while towing a consort-barge to Duluth. While still stranded, its engine and boiler were salvaged, and the rest of it has since broken up and separated about underwater. 1913Lost in storm off Harbor Beach in Lake Huron in the Great Storm of 1913. Wreck discovered in 1985. October 1905A wooden steamship lost in a storm. In October 1905 crew of 16 were lost Lottie Wolf16 October 1891The schooner broke up in gale force seas in shallow water about off the Hope Island Lighthouse in about of water near Midland, Ontario. 1928Discovered below the Georgian Bay in excellent condition with a 1927 Chevrolet Coupe inside.Mapledawn30 November 1924This steel freighter ran aground in a snow storm on the west side of Christian Island near Midland, Ontario. She is in of water with part of the stem sticking out of the water.Marine City28 August 1880Sidewheel steamer passenger vessel. Caught on fire and quickly burnt down to the waterline. All crew survived; 5 of 150 passengers lost. Wreck sits in of water, just north of Sturgeon Point Light.44°46'14.2"N 83°17'22.0"W30 September 1907A wooden tug that burned to the waterline near Pointe au Baril, Georgian Bay.Michigan November 1943While removing grain from the stranded Riverton at the northwest end of Hope Island near Midland, Ontario, high winds blew her into shallow waters grounding her in of water.20 October 1905Sank while in tow, near Harbor Beach, Michigan; Nine crew and passengers lost.Monohansett23 November 1907The wooden steam barge sank after catching fire near Thunder Bay Island in Lake Huron. As the wreck took place near the island's Life Saving Station, there were no deaths.26 May 1959A cargo ship that collided with Royalston north of Thunder Bay Island.Nyanza8 August 1919Started leaking and became beached, later abandoned.26 September 1894A wooden freighter that sank in a collision with the schooner Ironton.Philo Scoville October 1889Wrecked during a storm and is in of water at north east end of Bonnet Island near Tobermory, Ontario.10 November 1913Lost on Lake Huron during the Great Lakes Storm of 1913.R. G. Coburn19 October 1871A passenger and cargo freighter that sank in a storm. Searchlight 23 April 1907A fishing tug lost with crew of six In November 1913 some of the wreckage and the remains of an unknown crewman were found at Harbor Beach after the Great Lakes Storm of 1913 September 1885A schooner that was damaged off Cove Island in August, then sank a month later in Big Tub Harbour, near Tobermory.16 June 2000A glass-bottomed tour boat that sank in Georgian Bay, killing two students.Typo14 October 1899The wooden three-masted schooner was run down by the steamer W.P. Ketcham. The ship sank immediately and three of the seven crew on board drowned.Water Witch 11 November 1863A passenger steamer that sank in Saginaw bay after encountering a gale.22 November 1879A side-wheel paddle steamer lost in a storm in Georgian Bay.9 November 1913Lost on Lake Huron during the Great Lakes Storm of 1913.W. L. Wetmore November 1901Wrecked in a storm at the west end of Bonnet Island in about of water, near Tobermory, Ontario.

Lake Michigan

Lake Erie