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Marinette, WI. - The Wisconsin Historical Society announces the listing of the Sidney O. Neff Shipwreck near Marinette, Marinette County, on the State Register of Historic Places.

The Sidney O. Neff Shipwreck has been added to the State Register for its archaeological significance as a steambarge. It is located upright on the bottom of Green Bay, under 10-15 feet of water. Originally launched in 1890 from the Burger and Burger Shipyard in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, it operated throughout the Great Lakes, facilitating the lumber industry. By 1934, the steambarge was determined unseaworthy and abandoned in Marinette until 1939, when the machinery was salvaged and the vessel abandoned.

The shipwreck still retains many of its hull components with artifacts, including the engine and propeller. It is a rare opportunity to witness wooden steambarge construction and the lumber trade at the turn-of-the-century. 

The State Register is Wisconsin's official list of state properties determined to be significant to Wisconsin's heritage. The State Historic Preservation Office at the Wisconsin Historical Society administers both the State Register and National Register in Wisconsin.

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

https://www.wisconsinshipwrecks.org/Home#anchor3

To learn more about the State and National Register programs in Wisconsin, visit: www.wisconsinhistory.org.

About the Wisconsin Historical Society
The Wisconsin Historical Society, founded in 1846, ranks as one of the largest, most active and most diversified state historical societies in the nation. As both a state agency and a private membership organization, its mission is to help people connect to the past by collecting, preserving and sharing stories. The Wisconsin Historical Society serves millions of people every year through a wide range of sites, programs and services. For more information, visit wisconsinhistory.org.