B.W. Blanchard

Blanchard underway in the bay.

GPS Location : N45°01.271' W83°15.763'
Depth: 9 Feet
Wreck Length: 221 Feet Beam: 32.4 Feet
Gross Tonnage: 919 Cargo: Lumber
Built: 1870 by Quayle and Martin at Cleveland, Ohio
Wrecked: November 29, 1904

Shortly after the vessel grounded at North Point.

Description: The B.W. Blanchard and its consort schooner barges John T. Johnson and John Kilderhouse ran aground together on North Point Reef during a blinding snowstorm. The Kilderhouse was later pulled off the rocks but Blanchard and Johnson stuck fast and soon went to pieces. Their remains are now intermixed in very shallow water easily accessible to kayakers and snorkelers.

Shallow water wreckage makes the site easily accessible to all levels of divers.

Link to historical Information on this ship.

Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary: Enjoy diving the wrecks of Thunder Bay, but always respect the past. State and federal laws prohibit removing or disturbing artifacts. Future generations are depending on us to leave historic shipwrecks intact. Please take only pictures and leave only bubbles.

The Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary maintains seasonal moorings at many shipwreck sites. Available from May to September, the moorings make for safer diving and also protect shipwrecks from anchor damage. Sanctuary regulations require vessels to use moorings when present.

Marine Forecast

Forecast for the Alpena area