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From: baillod
Category: Shipwreck Research
Date: 21 May 2008
Time: 18:09:37
Remote Name: 64.73.69.5
On May 3, Steve Radovan, Bill Prince, John Scoles, Tracy Xelowski and myself examined a wreck off Sheboygan in 300 ft of water. The wreck had been known since it was first snagged by commercial fishermen in 1977. After a number of attempts to identify the wreck remotely, Steve invited technical divers to examine the wreck. The divers were able to film the wreck and confirm that it is the tug Robert C. Pringle, lost in 1922 when it hit an obstruction and sank. Built at Manitowoc in 1903 as the excursion steamer Chequamegon, the vessel ran out of Ashland, Wisconsin and later out of Milwaukee to the Pabst Whitefish Bay Resort. For a time she ran in the Traverse Bay Line, before being renamed Pere Marquette 7 and running in the PM line on the Michigan shore. In 1918, she was rebuilt as a large work/tow tug and lost in that capacity. She is in remarkable condition with literally no damage and sits upright and entirely intact. She will likely become a popular tech diving target in coming years and will be the subject of an NRHP Nomination effort.