St. Peter Shipwreck Listed in the State Register of Historic Places

PORT WASHINGTON, Wis. - The Wisconsin Historical Society announces the listing of the St. Peter shipwreck on the State Register of Historic Places. The shipwreck sits upright on the bottom of Lake Michigan in 450 feet of water near Port Washington (Ozaukee County) in the Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary designated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and managed jointly with the State of Wisconsin. The shipwreck was discovered by NOAA during lakebed mapping of the 962 square-mile sanctuary. The State Historic Preservation Officer presented a certificate to maritime archaeologist Kendra Kennedy.

St. Peter was built in Michigan in 1868 and operated in the Great Lakes grain, lumber and other bulk cargo trades throughout its career. At the time of its registration, St. Peter was described as a schooner rigged with one deck, two masts, and a square stern. Despite strandings, collisions, a prior sinking, and repairs throughout its career, St. Peter maintained its original measurements and construction features throughout its service.

On May 6, 1874, the schooner was bound from Chicago with a cargo of wheat when it encountered stormy conditions about 35 miles northeast of Milwaukee and began to leak. With three feet of water in the hold, the crew abandoned the ship and rowed their yawl for only a few minutes when St. Peter lurched forward and sank bow first.

State and federal laws protect this shipwreck. Divers may not remove artifacts or structure when visiting this site. Removing, defacing, displacing, or destroying artifacts or sites is a crime. More information on Wisconsin’s historic shipwrecks may be found by visiting Wisconsin’s Great Lakes Shipwrecks website: https://www.wisconsinshipwrecks.org/Home#anchor3

To learn more about the State and National Register programs in Wisconsin, visit: www.wisconsinhistory.org.

About the Wisconsin Historical Society

The Wisconsin Historical Society, founded in 1846, ranks as one of the largest, most active and most diversified state historical societies in the nation. As both a state agency and a private membership organization, its mission is to help people connect to the past by collecting, preserving and sharing stories. The Wisconsin Historical Society serves millions of people every year through a wide range of sites, programs and services. The Wisconsin Historical Foundation, a 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization, receives grants and private contributions benefitting the Wisconsin Historical Society and administers the membership program. For more information, visit www.wisconsinhistory.org.