1.02 miles NNE of Amsterdam Park boat launch, in Lake Michigan | National or State Registers Record | Wisconsin Historical Society

National or State Registers Record

1.02 miles NNE of Amsterdam Park boat launch, in Lake Michigan

National or State Register of Historic Places
1.02 miles NNE of Amsterdam Park boat launch, in Lake Michigan | National or State Registers Record | Wisconsin Historical Society
NAMES
Historic Name:Atlanta Shipwreck (Steam Screw)
Reference Number:100001785
PROPERTY LOCATION
Location (Address):1.02 miles NNE of Amsterdam Park boat launch, in Lake Michigan
County:Sheboygan
City/Village:Cedar Grove
Township:
SUMMARY
Atlanta Shipwreck (Steam Screw)
1.02 miles north northeast of Amsterdam Park boat launch in Lake Michigan, Cedar Grove, Sheboygan County
Builder: Cleveland Dry Dock Company
Date of Construction: 1891

The remains of screw steamer Atlanta lies in 17 feet of water in Lake Michigan, partially covered by sand. Lower hull structure, artifacts, and machine implements, remain intact on the site. The Cleveland Dry Dock Company built Atlanta in Cleveland, Ohio. The vessel operated primarily in the transportation of passengers and manufactured goods across Lake Michigan.

In 1906, while heading toward Sheboygan, Wisconsin with passengers and freight, the steamer caught fire. Great efforts were made to put out the flame, but the location of the blaze and flammability of cargo on board foiled every effort. Passengers and crew were saved by the actions of the fishing tug Tessler and crew and transferred to passing Goodrich Steamer Georgia. She ultimately could not be saved and the tug Tessler towed the burning hulk into shallower waters where it remains today.

As one of the few passenger and packet freighters in Wisconsin water, the Atlanta provides historians and archaeologists the rare chance to study the construction of the vessel, the implementation of heat and electricity, and an insight into the lives and cargos that were transported through the Great Lakes.

State and federal laws protect this shipwreck. Divers may not remove artifacts or structure when visiting this site. Removing, defacing, displacing or destroying the artifacts or sites is a crime. More information on Wisconsin’s historic shipwrecks may be found by visiting Wisconsin’s Great Lakes Shipwrecks website,

Wisconsin Shipwrecks

PROPERTY FEATURES
Period of Significance:1891-1906
Area of Significance:Archeology/Historic - Non-Aboriginal
Area of Significance:Maritime History
Area of Significance:Commerce
Applicable Criteria:Information Potential
Historic Use:Transportation: Water-Related
Architectural Style:Other
Resource Type:Site
Architect:Cleveland Dry Dock Company
DESIGNATIONS
Historic Status:Listed in the State Register
Historic Status:Listed in the National Register
National Register Listing Date:11/06/2017
State Register Listing Date:02/24/2017
NUMBER OF RESOURCES WITHIN PROPERTY
Number of Contributing Buildings:1
Number of Contributing Sites:0
Number of Contributing Structures:0
Number of Contributing Objects:0
Number of Non-Contributing Sites:0
Number of Non-Contributing Structures:0
Number of Non-Contributing Objects:0
RECORD LOCATION
National Register and State Register of Historic Places, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin

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