(Image on top: This photogrammetry model was created from thousands of 4k photos and stitched together to create a 3D model of the King. This view shows the damage to its bow when it hit the bottom and to its stern when it blew off from the air rushing back as the iron ore cargo slammed forward. Credit: Zach Whitrock, Wisconsin Historical Society.)

After 139 years of being lost, the wreck of the schooner F.J. King has finally been identified in Lake Michigan. A team from the Wisconsin Historical Society and the Wisconsin Underwater Archaeology Association located the ship off Baileys Harbor, Wisconsin, confirming the fate of the “ghost ship” that vanished in a storm in September 1886 with its cargo of iron ore.

The discovery and how it was located

Lead researcher Brendon Baillod plotted the search after reviewing hundreds of historical documents, including reports from a lighthouse keeper who saw masts breaking the water near shore. This contradicted the captain’s original account that placed the wreck further away. The team chartered a vessel, set up a 2-by-2-mile grid around the lighthouse keeper’s sighting and used side-scan sonar during the expedition in June 2025. Just two hours into the sonar sweep, they saw a large object about 144 feet long at a depth of around 42 metres (137 feet) and realised they had found the F.J. King. They then deployed remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) to document the find.

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The ship

Built in 1867 by shipwright George R. Rogers in Toledo, Ohio, the F.J. King was a wooden schooner roughly 144 feet long, with a beam of about 26 feet. Originally two-masted, it was later adapted to three masts and worked mainly carrying grain and iron ore across the Great Lakes.

Final voyage

On 15 September 1886, F.J. King departed Escanaba, Michigan, for Chicago, laden with iron ore. Off Door Peninsula, it struck gale conditions. Strong southeast winds and heavy waves caused the ageing hull to leak. Despite the crew pumping continuously, the vessel began taking on water. Captain William Griffin ordered abandonment, and at about 2 a.m., the ship sank bow-first, her stern deckhouse reportedly blown away in the storm. All crew were rescued and taken to Baileys Harbor.

Significance

This wreck is one of the more complete examples of a Great Lakes schooner carrying ore. Its discovery brings insights into 19th-century shipbuilding, cargo shipping and navigational challenges. The hull is largely preserved, despite the heavy cargo and long exposure. The find also highlights the power of citizen science in maritime archaeology.