Remains of the Phoenix, one of Lake Michigan’s deadliest shipwrecks, discovered 175 years after sinking off Sheboygan's shore
SHEBOYGAN - A Dutch podcaster’s project sparked the discovery of remains from one of the deadliest shipwrecks on Lake Michigan 175 years ago.
The Phoenix steamship was carrying more than 225 passengers when it burned to the waterline on Nov. 21, 1847, within sight of Sheboygan’s shore, according to the monument on Sheboygan’s North Point.
Dutch podcaster Joske Meerdink and filmmaker Diny van Hoften visited the Sheboygan area in July as part of their quest to retell the story of the ship and the people — mainly Dutch emigrants — who did and did not survive its sinking.
When Meerdink contacted local shipwreck hunter Steve Radovan about the Phoenix, he remembered spotting something he thought was a log around the area where it sank.
“(Meerdink) was really insistent that, boy, it would sure be nice if we could find artifacts from the Phoenix,” Radovan said. “That got me thinking about this log.”
The team returned to the location, where Tamara Thomsen, archaeologist at Wisconsin Historical Society and diving team member, found the object was indeed a smokestack.
“It has to be the Phoenix because that would be the only smokestack out here in the area,” Radovan said. “To me, it’s kind of neat. … The smokestack of the Phoenix tells me exactly where this disaster happened now.”
While about 45 people survived the sinking, most, including nearly 100 children, died.
“People were jumping overboard because literally the ship was burning beneath them, and they had to decide whether they were going to burn to death or drown,” Sheboygan genealogist Mary Risseeuw said.
The disaster made a big impact on the size of the Dutch community in the Sheboygan area, Risseeuw said.
“Immigration halted for probably 12 to 14 years after the Phoenix disaster,” she said. “People in Sheboygan County wrote letters back to the Netherlands warning them that it wasn’t safe for them to get on a ship and come.”
Sheboygan presentation to commemorate Phoenix disaster
On Wednesday, Radovan and Sailing Education Association of Sheboygan Program Director Matt Wierzbach will lead a commemoration and presentation on the Phoenix disaster at the Sheboygan Yacht Club. The event, from 6 to 7 p.m., is free and open to the public.
Reservations to [email protected] are appreciated, but not required.
First episodes of Dutch podcast and documentary on the Phoenix tragedy to be released this week
Trailers for Meerdink’s podcast "De Ramp met de Phoenix," which translates to “The Phoenix Disaster," and Van Hoften’s documentary of the same name are available at www.gld.nl/phoenix. Both include some interviews in Dutch and some in English.
The first episode of the podcast was released Monday and is available online, on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts. The first episode of the documentary will be released Tuesday.
Reach Maya Hilty at 920-400-7485 or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at @maya_hilty.
This article originally appeared on Sheboygan Press: Smokestack from Phoenix shipwreck discovered off Sheboygan shore
