“The Abbie ran west to the last channel; past the abandoned light-house and, turning east, ran along the outer sides of Caribou and Mott’s Islands, to the wreck of the iron steamer Algomah [sic]. Only a small portion of what were the bows of an elegant steamship, lies above the water and this has been jammed into a crevice in the rock.

The greater part of the hull lies on the solid rock, near shore, under a few feet of water, where she struck during a furious gale and snow-storm a few years ago. It gives one a gruesome feeling to float in a skiff, over the visible remains of a terrible disaster and one half expects to be startled by discovering, among the wreckage, the ghastly form of one of the forty-six unfortunates who perished with the ship.”

Four years earlier, the Algoma had encountered a “violent snowstorm and the sea was running mountains high” while on a run from Owen Sound, Ontario on Lake Huron to Port Arthur, Ontario on Lake Superior.

The ship was carrying general merchandise, railway supplies and 37 passengers. The storm forced the ship off-course. Around 4:40 am on Saturday, November 7, 1885, shortly after attempting to correct course, the ship ran aground on the southeast shore of Mott Island off Isle Royale.

This photo shows the damage the SS Algoma sustained. (Photo courtesy of the Marquette Regional History Center)

As the waves battered the vessel, it broke in two, the bow drifting away while the stern remained grounded on the rocks. Most of the passengers and crew were swept away.

Some attempted to swim to shore which was only 50 feet away. Only three people made it safely to shore, the waves hurled others against the rocks until they were mangled beyond recognition.

Another 11 took shelter in the stern of the boat waiting for the storm to pass. The 14 survivors, consisting of two passengers, 11 crew members and the captain, stayed with a party of fishermen until they were picked up by the passing steamer Athabasca late on Monday morning.

The only passenger list was lost during the shipwreck, leaving no way to confirm how many passengers were on board, but the final death toll was believed to 46 people, 13 passengers and 33 crewmembers. Even though the wreck of the Algoma was the worst loss of life in the history of Lake Superior shipping, the disaster could have been much worse.

The Algoma had 60 large state rooms and 250 beds in steerage. Her record capacity was 1,100 passengers, although this far exceeded both the builders’ expectations and the capacity of her safety equipment. Luckily, when it went aground, the ship had the fewest passengers it had ever carried. This was likely attributable to the lateness of the season and the recent opening of a rail route around Lake Superior.

The Algoma had a fatal flaw. Built in Scotland in 1883, it had been too long to pass through the Welland Canal on the St. Lawrence Seaway. The solution was to cut it in half, with the bow and stern moved through the canal separately on pontoons. Once in Buffalo, New York, the two sections were rejoined and the passenger cabins added. This center seam was precisely where the vessel broke in two.

The remaining portion of the ship’s hull was broken up with explosives during a salvage expedition in the summer of 1886. The boilers and machinery were recovered in good condition and reused in a new vessel but only about 10 tons of iron were salvaged. Additional salvage efforts were made in 1903 and 1905. At that time, some skeletal remains were recovered as well.

To see Longyear’s original journal and learn more about Longyear and his friends’ journey and the sites they visited, join the Marquette Regional History Center for The Cruise of the Abbie Returns: Photography and Adventure on Lake Superior at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 15 Longyear will be portrayed by a historical reenactor.

Come and enjoy humorous adventures from Longyear’s journal and see the pictures from his impressive collection. You may also enjoy our current special exhibit: Exposing Photography, featuring Longyear’s work among many others. $5 suggested donation for this program. For more info call 906-226-3571 or visit marquettehistory.org.