Olson noted that the wreck lies in shallow waters approximately 20 feet deep. He observed that the bottom of the hull is mostly intact, while the ship’s sides are cut and flattened like fillets.
Tamara Thomsen, a maritime archaeologist at the State Historical Preservation Office of the Historical Society, dedicated several weeks to scrutinizing newspaper clippings, archival insurance records, and a database of port registrations, which is comparable to vehicle registrations.
Thomsen and her team also undertook diving missions to identify specific characteristics of the wreck.
Based on the ship’s exterior and its general wreckage location, the Historical Society confirmed that Olson had unearthed the long-lost remains of the Frank D. Barker.
“What’s fascinating about this wreck is that it’s all there,” Thomsen remarked. “It spreads across the bottom like a puzzle piece that you can visualize and reorganize.”
The 137-foot Frank D. Barker was constructed from wood in 1867 by veteran shipbuilder Simon G. Johnson in Clayton, New York. This canaler is specially designed for operation in the Great Lakes, as Thomsen explained. It was built to navigate the Welland Canal, which includes a series of locks that permit ships to bypass Niagara Falls, in addition to a combination of natural and modified waterways.
The Frank D. Barker primarily transported grain from the ports of Milwaukee and Chicago to Lake Ontario, and on westward voyages, it typically carried coal from Lake Erie’s ports to the Midwest, fueling factories and industries.
In 1887, the Frank D. Barker sailed from Manistee, Michigan, to Escanaba, Michigan, to load a cargo of iron ore. Unfortunately, the ship’s captain and crew strayed off course due to inclement weather and fog.
Ultimately, the vessel ran aground and was stranded by blown limestone on Spider Island. Multiple attempts to salvage the ship in October 1887 and again in August, September, and October of 1888 were unsuccessful.
“They finally concluded that they couldn’t retrieve it from where it was stuck and decided to abandon the ship,” Thomsen explained.
According to the Wisconsin Historical Society, the estimated loss of the ship was around $8,000 at the time, which translates to over $250,000 today.
Rediscovering the Frank D. Barker after 138 years is a momentous occasion for Door County, but it holds personal significance for Olson as well.
After informing the state’s historic preservation office about the findings, Olson chose to delve deeper into the exploration.
“When I think about my six-year-old son snorkeling on a shipwreck for the first time,” he shared.
Source: www.nbcnews.com
