Identification & Site Information

  • Type: Wooden-hulled single-Deck propeller Steamer
  • Builder: A.C. Keating, Cleveland, Ohio
  • Original Owner: Northern Transportation Co., Cleveland
  • Dimensions: 41.2 m (135.2 ft) × 7.9 m (26 ft) × 3.4 m (11.2 ft)
  • Tonnage: 438 GT / 357 NT

Vessel Type

A mixed-use screw Steamer combining freight and passenger service, common during the early commercial expansion on Lake Michigan.

Description

Single-Screw Propulsion powered by a single-cylinder high-pressure steam engine (Cuyahoga Works), with one boiler and a single mast likely used for auxiliary sail handling or signalling.

History & Chronology

  • 1870: Registered in Cleveland under Northern Transportation Co.
  • 1876–1881: Changed ownership several times (Philo Chamberlain; Northern Transit Co.; D.H. Day & Co.; Peter J. Klien & John Seymor); re-enrolled in New York, Michigan and Wisconsin ports.
  • 1884: Underwent first Rebuild.
  • 1887 (16 June): As “Champlain,” caught fire (lamp explosion) off Fisherman Island at Grand Traverse Bay while en route Chicago–Cheboygan; fire spread rapidly, resulting in grounding, loss of 22 lives, and vessel Total Loss (Facebook, Census, Wisconsin Shipwrecks).
  • Post-1887: Rebuilt by Milwaukee Shipyard—lengthened to ~50.4 m (165.4 ft), increased to 715 GT, renamed City of Charlevoix.
  • 1892–1899: Upgraded compound engine and boilers; further Rebuilt to ~56.6 m (185.5 ft) length, 33.3 ft beam, 835 GT (collections.petoskeymuseum.org).
  • 1904–1920: Renamed Kansas in 1904; changed owners multiple times under different transport companies.
  • 1924 (27 Oct): Burned at dock in Manistee, MI; declared Total Loss and enrollment formally surrendered in 1924–25 (collections.petoskeymuseum.org).
  • 1925: Sold for scrap by Manistee Lumber Co.

Final Disposition

  • First loss: Burned and wrecked June 16, 1887, off Fisherman Island—22 fatalities.
  • Second loss: Burned at dock in 1924 (Manistee), subsequently junked in 1925.

Located By & Date Found

No known underwater remains from either incident. The 1887 wreck was grounded and dismantled; the 1924 structure was scrapped shore-side.

NOTMARs & Advisories

None identified. The vessel’s losses were well before modern navigational charting and not flagged as hazards today.

Resources & Links

Shore Dive Information

Not applicable. No submerged or preserved wreck exists for exploration.

Conclusion

The Champlain is a notable example of a 19th-century Great Lakes Steamer whose lifecycle encapsulates early mixed-traffic utility, mid-life reconstruction, tragic loss, and eventual repurposing under multiple identities. Though remembered primarily for its deadly 1887 fire, the vessel reflects broader patterns in Great Lakes commercial maritime history—from initial regional transport, through rebuilds and renaming, to final dismantling.

Keywords, Categories, Glossary Terms

  • Screw Steamer, mixed freight/passenger, Great Lakes propulsion
  • Fisherman Island disaster, 1887 fire, Rebuild, City of Charlevoix, Kansas, Manistee docking fire
  • Wooden boiler-powered steamships, maritime safety, Great Lakes commerce

Would you like to explore survivor accounts from 1887 or technical schematics of her post-fire Rebuild?