– stranded and lost 17 November 1857
Identification & Site Information
- Name: Leander (no prior renames recorded)
- Year Built: 1838
- Registry / Home Port: Michigan / Great Lakes trade route
- Date of Loss: 17 November 1857
- Voyage: Unknown sailing route; operating on Lake Michigan or Huron corridor
- Location of Loss: Went ashore during a storm in Michigan waters; broke up on the beach shortly afterward—no survivors mentioned or casualties recorded
Vessel Type
Description
No surviving construction details (dimensions, tonnage, official number) appear in accessible sources. Given standard Schooner design of the 1830s, likely 100–200 tons and length around 80–100 ft.
History
There are no substantial operational records—crew, owner/operator identity, cargo, or specific route remain undocumented in online databases.
Final Disposition
- Cause of loss: Driven ashore by a storm and stranded; vessel subsequently fragmented on the beach, declared a Total Loss
- Casualties: No records of injury or loss of life
- Cargo / Manifests: Not reported
Located By & Site Condition
- No modern archaeological discovery or dive surveys
- Debris likely washed ashore or broken on beach; no underwater wreck documented
Notices & Advisories
- No official Notices to Mariners persist or have been digitized beyond basic casualty lists. The only cataloging reference appears in a summary index entry noting Leander‘s loss.
Sources & Archival References
- A summary reference from Great Lakes Shipwreck Files (WordPress) lists an unnamed Schooner lost in Lake Michigan in November 1857 with a Total Loss of around $13,500 on record; this likely corresponds to Leander (oceanexplorer.noaa.gov, en.wikipedia.org, nplsf.org, greatlakesrex.wordpress.com, en.wikipedia.org, greatlakesrex.wordpress.com).
- No further archival databases currently detail Leander by name, tonnage, or owner.
Gaps & Suggested Next Steps
Because verifiable records are minimal, researching Leander further would require:
- HCGL Accident & Casualty Lists for 1857: Often include names, cargo, and port of departure or destination.
- Michigan & Wisconsin Newspaper Archives (Mid-November 1857): Newspapers such as the Milwaukee Sentinel, Detroit Free Press, or Chicago Tribune may have reported a Schooner wrecking in a storm.
- Maritime Insurance Records / Claims: Ship abandonment values and loss assessments (e.g. $13,500 Total Loss) may be mentioned in underwriting archives.
- Ship Enrollment Registers for Michigan or nearby ports, which may list the vessel with build details or master’s name.
Summary Table
| Element | Details |
|---|---|
| Vessel Name | Leander (Schooner) |
| Built | 1838 |
| Loss Date | 17 November 1857 |
| Storm | Yes |
| Outcome | Stranded ashore, broke up, Total Loss |
| Casualties | Not recorded |
| Site Location | Michigan coastline (exact shore unknown) |
| Modern Rediscovery | None known |
Conclusion
The Schooner Leander, built in 1838, met its end on 17 November 1857 during a storm off the Michigan coast. The vessel stranded and subsequently broke up onshore. No casualties or detailed survivor accounts are recorded, and the vessel remains unlocated in modern underwater surveys. Most construction, ownership, and casualty documentation remain undocumented or lost to archival gaps