From the Depths of Lake Ontario

A 161-year old shipwreck has been discovered in the depths of Lake Ontario, 5 miles off the shore of Breeze Point in Orleans County. The Milan still has two masts standing in the deep dark waters, where lack of oxygen has helped preserve it. (The photograph to the right is from The Buffalo News article.) The ship was sailing from Cleveland to Oswego in October 1849 when the vessel sprung a leak. The crew (and the dog) survived the sinking.

The ship was discoved in 2005 after explorers Dan Scoville and Jim Kennard read a reference to the ship's sinking in an old newspaper article. They located the vessel using sonar equipment and are studying the wreck with the help of students at RIT. Why exactly this story is being picked up by the Associated Press now isn't clear.

We've written about well-preserved upstate shipwrecks before on York Staters, and I thought this was a great news item that may have slipped past the senors of many readers.

Check out other shipwrecks in Lake Ontario, and other Great Lakes at ShipwreckWorld. See other York Staters posts about military history in our archives.

Natalie