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TRAVERSE CITY. Thunder Bay area, north of Lake Huron off the coast of Michigan, USA. Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary in Alpen, Michigan, said on Wednesday, 22.02.2023, that the mystery of the location where the 191-foot (58-meter) freighter Ironton sank has finally been solved. The Associated Press received details of the opening prior to the announcement.
September 26, 1894, – 58-meter freighter collided with a grain carrier, both sank. The captain of the Ironton and six sailors approached the lifeboat, but it was dragged to the bottom before they could disconnect it from the ship. Only two crew members survived.
For other ,lake it has become a grave.
For a long time, ship hunters could not find the place where the ship sank.
In the environment, representatives of the Thunder Bay Marine Sanctuary in Alpen, Michigan, said the mystery was completely closed.
A team of historians, underwater archaeologists and technicians discovered the wreck in 2019 and deployed remote-controlled cameras to scan and document it, superintendent Jeff Gray. The reserve expects to disclose the location in the coming months and consider placing a mooring buoy at the site. Officials kept the find secret to prevent divers from disturbing the site before video and photo documentation was complete.
A number of organizations were involved in the search and verification, including the Ocean Exploration Trust, founded by Robert Ballard, which oversaw the wreckage of the Titanic and the German tomlinker Bismarck.
“We expected this discovery to help connect with the families of those who died on the Ironton and the communities that died from its destruction,” Ballard said. “Ironton is yet another piece of the mystery of Alpena’s fascinating place in America’s trade history,” while Thunder Bay Sanctuary “continues to draw closer to lost chapters of maritime history.”
Nearly 200 shipwrecks are believed to rest within or nearby the boundaries of the sanctuary, which includes the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center in Alpena and some 11,137 square kilometers of northwestern Lake Huron
Despite the large number of ships swallowed up by the lake in this dangerous area, the Ironton’s fate seems particularly cruel.
The reserve is awaiting federal and state approval to install a 1,360 kg buoy anchored to the bottom of the lake. Divers could attach their boats to a floating device and set out to explore the long-lost vessel.
“Then we can share it with the rest of the world,” Gray said, “and try to protect it so our grandchildren can see it the way we do today.”