Lake Michigan
Minneapolis
Depth 80- 125 ft/ length 226 ft/ wooden steamer/ sunk on April 4, 1909 due to ice.
Minneapolis was on her first voyage of the 1894 season (opened on April Fools Day) when she began to take on water near Straits. She was heading to Detroit from Chicago carrying wheat and with 2 schooner consorts in tow, San Diego and Red Wing. When her pumps were overwhelmed by water, the crew aignalled to San Diego to pull alongside. Minneapolis sunk as soon as the last crew member boarded San Diego.
Minneapolis is the closest shipwreck to the Mackinaw Bridge, just about 500 ft southwest of it (Lake Michigan side). Interestingly,William Barnum, the other wreck in the Straits, on Huron side, was on the same route and met identical fate just 24 hrs prior.
Minneapolis apparently can have strong current and poor vis, but occasionally the vis is good and current minimal.
She is in decent shape with stern relatively intact complete wiht the propeller. Rudder is laying nearby.
Inside the wreck near the stern, the upper deck is gone exposing the engne and boilers.
Closer to the bow, the upper decking re-appears together with some items on top of it. The bow itself is destroyed to the extent it was hard to tell where the pointy end was originally.
