A father-and-daughter fishing trip at Green Island, Wisconsin, led to the accidental discovery of the 153-year-old wreck of the George L. Newman. ROV imagery collected in December 2023 was analyzed by the Wisconsin Historical Society and matched to the 122-foot barkentine, which ran aground on Oct. 8, 1871, amid smoke from the Great Peshtigo Fire. The wreck lies in under 10 feet of water and will be examined by divers this spring for detailed documentation.
Father and Daughter’s Fishing Trip Uncovers 153‑Year‑Old Shipwreck Tied to Deadly Peshtigo Fire
A 152-Year-Old Shipwreck Found While FishingEXTREME-PHOTOGRAPHER - Getty Images
A routine father-daughter outing to a favorite Wisconsin fishing spot produced an unexpected link to 19th-century maritime history: the newly identified wreck of the 153-year-old George L. Newman.
How It Began
In August 2022, Tim Wollak and his then-5-year-old daughter, Henley, visited Green Island, Wisconsin, to swim and fish. Tim’s fish finder returned an unusual sonar image that resembled the outline of a vessel; Henley jokingly told NBC 26 she thought they had found the mythical “Green Bay Octopus.”
From Facebook Post To Historical Investigation
Tim shared his photos in online boating and history groups and initially wondered whether the site might be the known wreck of the Erie L. Hackley. When Jordan Ciesielzyk, a maritime specialist with the Wisconsin Historical Society, saw the images, he suspected the discovery might be undocumented.
In December 2023, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources deployed a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to survey the site. The ROV captured detailed underwater photographs that the Wisconsin Historical Society compared against its database of historic wrecks. After careful analysis of location, structure and features, experts matched the images to the George L. Newman and confirmed the identification the following spring.
What Happened to the George L. Newman
The George L. Newman was a 122-foot wooden barkentine built in 1855 in Black River, Ohio. On the evening of October 8, 1871, while carrying a load of lumber out of Little Suamico, Wisconsin, the ship ran aground at the southeast point of Green Island. Thick smoke from the Great Peshtigo Fire — the deadliest wildfire in U.S. history — reduced visibility so severely that the crew could not see and grounded the vessel.
Samuel Drew, the Green Island lighthouse keeper, had left the light burning through daylight because of the heavy smoke and was able to rescue the crew. The crew remained at the lighthouse for about a week trying to salvage what they could before abandoning the ship. Over subsequent years the wreck broke up in storms and ice and was gradually buried beneath shoal sand until recent shifting exposed it again.
Why the Find Matters
The remains of the three-masted wooden ship now lie in just under 10 feet of water, likely made visible by shifting sand. Ciesielzyk told NBC 26 that at least 13 shipwrecks were discovered in Wisconsin over the past year, most by accident. “Shipwrecks give us a unique look into the past because each of them is basically like a time capsule,” he said.
The Wisconsin Historical Society plans a diver survey in spring to document the wreck in greater detail, make more photographs, and gather information to better understand the events of that night in October 1871.
As for the discovery’s youngest member, Henley is still hoping for treasure. “She was hoping that there would be some treasure that we could get to keep from the boat,” Tim told NBC 26.
Sources: Wisconsin Historical Society, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, NBC 26, NPR.
