Identification & Build Details

  • Type: Originally a steam-powered cargo vessel later converted into a three-masted Schooner‑Barge
  • Built: 1854 by Stephenson & Lafrinier, Ohio City, OH
  • Dimensions: ~213 ft × 32 ft × 12 ft; ~846 gross tons (Wikipedia)

Ownership & Career

  • Served under multiple owners (Sternberg & Co., Western Transp. Co., Scott Lumber Co., etc.) between 1854–1913 (Wikipedia)
  • Converted to sail‑only Barge in 1884 and carried lumber—famously transporting ~100,000 cedar posts in 1912 (Wikipedia)

Final Voyage & Loss During the “Big Storm” (Nov 1913)

  • Date of loss: November 11, 1913
  • Under tow by: Tug James H. Martin from Menominee, MI, heading to Lake Huron (Wikipedia)
  • Storm action: During the Great Lakes Storm of 1913 (Nov 7–10), the Tug sought shelter in the lee of St. Martin’s (Gull) Island, cutting the Towline and abandoning the Plymouth (Wikipedia)
  • Disappearance & fate: Plymouth vanished. A bottled note from Deputy Marshal Chris Keenan (found near Pentwater, MI) recounted 40 hours anchored in the storm, then disappearance of the vessel with all seven aboard (Wikipedia)

Casualties & Aftermath

  • Lost: All 7 crew members aboard (dlab @ EPFL)
  • Message in a bottle: “We were left up here… lost one man yesterday… we have been out in storm forty hours…” signed “Chris K.” (dlab @ EPFL)
  • Wreck has never been found—searches discovered other wrecks like Erastus Corning, but not Plymouth (Wikipedia)

Wreck Status & Significance

  • Part of the Great Lakes Storm of 1913, losing her crew and bunkered near Gull Island in Lake Michigan (Wikipedia)
  • One of three lost vessels yet to be located from that storm (goderich.ca)
  • Wreck remains unlocated—potential candidate for sonar/dive recon in northern Lake Michigan near Gull/Gull Island or Poverty Island areas

Recommended Research & Exploration

  • Review U.S. Lifesaving Service and Coast Guard archives for additional survivor accounts or location clues
  • Analyze nautical charting around Gull Island and northern Green Bay for likely anchorage depths
  • Launch a targeted sonar survey or ROV search in waters off Gull Island and Poverty Island
  • Explore contemporary press coverage from Menominee, Milwaukee, and Green Bay papers (Nov 1913) for eyewitness notes

Summary

The Plymouth was a sturdy 59‑year‑old former Steamer turned lumber‑carrying Barge lost with all aboard during the catastrophic Great Storm of November 1913. After being Abandoned by her Tug at Gull Island, she disappeared into Lake Michigan, leaving only a poignant bottled message behind. Her posterity endures in maritime lore—a poignant reminder of nature’s might and an open challenge to underwater explorers seeking her final resting place.