Don’t miss the full story, whose reporting from Todd Richmond at The Associated Press is the basis of this AI-assisted article.
After nearly 140 years of searching, researchers have finally discovered the wreckage of the cargo schooner F.J. King, which sank during a fierce storm off Wisconsin’s Lake Michigan coastline in 1886.
Some key facts:
• The F.J. King was a 144-foot, three-masted cargo schooner built in 1867 in Toledo, Ohio, designed to transport grain and iron ore.
• The ship sank on Sept. 15, 1886, during a gale while carrying iron ore from Escanaba, Michigan, to Chicago.
• Waves estimated at 8 to 10 feet ruptured the ship’s seams, forcing Capt. William Griffin and his crew to abandon ship around 2 a.m.
• The wreckage was discovered on June 28 by researcher Brandon Baillod’s team off Bailey’s Harbor on Wisconsin’s Door Peninsula.
• Searchers had been looking for the F.J. King since the 1970s, but conflicting location reports made it difficult to find.
• The ship developed a reputation as a “ghost ship” among shipwreck hunters due to the unsuccessful decadeslong search efforts.
• The hull was found surprisingly intact despite carrying heavy iron ore cargo, located less than half a mile from where a lighthouse keeper reported seeing masts.
• The Wisconsin Underwater Archeology Association has discovered five wrecks in the last three years, including this significant find.
READ MORE: Searchers discover shipwreck of schooner that sank in Lake Michigan almost 140 years ago
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