October 13, 1872: The Sinking of the Lac La Belle

October 13, 1872: The SS Lac La Belle sinks in Lake Michigan, off the coast of Racine, Wisconsin. There are 8 deaths.

The Lac La Belle was a luxury passenger steamer, built in Cleveland in 1864, along with an identical sister ship, SS Ironsides. She was involved in several accidents, including one in Algonac, Michigan in 1866, in which 2 crewmen died.

At 9:00 PM on October 13, 1872, under the command of Captain W.H. Thompson, she left Milwaukee, to cross Lake Michigan to Grand Haven, Michigan. She had 53 passengers and crew, with a cargo of about 19,000 bushels of barley, 1,200 barrels of flour, 50 barrels of pork, 25 barrels of whiskey, 20 tons of animal feed, and various sundries.

The boat began leaking about 25 miles off the coast of Racine, Wisconsin. At around 12:00 Midnight, rising water in the engine room extinguished the fire in the boilers. She sank about 20 miles off the coast. One of the lifeboats capsized, resulting in the deaths of 8 people, while the rest of the lifeboats drifted ashore, or were picked up by passing vessels.

SS Ironsides remained in service for almost another year, until it sank on the same Milwaukee-to-Grand Haven route, taking 28 lives with it.

UPDATE: In 2026, a research crew announced they had found Lac La Belle's wreck in October 2022, about the time of the 150th Anniversary of the sinking.

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October 13, 1872 was a Sunday. The only professional sport in North America at the time was baseball, and Sunday baseball was then prohibited by both the National Association and most State laws. So there were no scores on this historic day.

September 15, 1873: The Sinking of SS Ironsides

September 15, 1873: The SS Ironsides sinks in Lake Michigan, off the coast of Grand Haven, Michigan. There are 28 deaths.

The Ironsides was a luxury passenger steamer, built in Cleveland in 1864, along with an identical sister ship, SS Lac La Belle. She was involved in several accidents, 3 in 1869 alone.

At 9:30 PM on September 14, 1873, under the command of Captain Harry Sweetman, she left Milwaukee, to cross Lake Michigan to Grand Haven, Michigan. Lac La Belle had sunk on the same route the year before, with 8 deaths. She had 19 passengers and 30 crew, with a cargo of about 13,000 bushels of wheat, 500 barrels of flour, 125 barrels of pork, and various sundries.

As with Lac La Belle, the wind got worse as the night wore on. By 4:00 AM on September 15, Ironsides' starboard midships gangways had been smashed in by the waves, causing her to take on water fast.

Sweetman tried to guide her into Grand Haven harbor, but the bad weather pushed Ironsides off course, forcing him to turn back and try again. After failing to guide her into the harbor a second time, Captain Sweetman decided to ride out the storm while anchored offshore.

By 9:00 AM, Ironsides began to sink, and Sweetman gave the order to abandon ship. The first lifeboat was launched at 11:20 AM, and the last at 11:50 AM. Out of the 5 lifeboats, 3 of them capsized before they reached land, and 28 people died.

The wreck was found in 1966. It has been remarked that Lake Michigan's cold temperatures are good for preserving the thousands of shipwrecks at its floor.

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September 15, 1873 was a Monday. The only professional sport in North America at the time was baseball. Two games were played in the National Association. The New York Mutuals beat the Brooklyn Atlantics, 11-6 at the Union Grounds in Brooklyn. And the Boston Red Stockings beat the Philadelphia White Stockings, 7-5 at the Jefferson Street Grounds in Philadelphia.