You can find the Fedora near Bayfield, Wis. It rests in less than 10 feet of water north of Buffalo Bay, not far from Chicago Creek ( LORAN : 32403.3, 46153.5; GPS : N 46° 51.588', W 90° 46.709'). The Fedora is number two on our map of the Apostle Islands .

The Fedora is easy to spot, because some of its port futtocks and iron cross bracing stick out of the water. Because the Fedora rests in shallow water, kayakers, snorkelers and divers can all get good views of the site. Water temperature in the summer ranges from 40° to 60° F.

The wreckage consists primarily of the lower hull . It is burned to the turn of the bilge on the starboard side. The port side survives several feet above the turn of the bilge at the bow and almost 5 feet above the turn of the bilge near the stern . The wreck is 281 feet 4 inches from sternpost to stem . The sides of the hull have collapsed outward, increasing the ship's width beyond the original beam measurement.

Fire damaged much of the hull's interior, but the keelson assembly was left intact from bow to stern. Two 8-inch-wide steel straps that reinforced the sternpost jut out of the sand. Sixteen inches forward of those straps, the lower half of the Fedora's shaft log extends into the hull. Forward of the boiler remains, you can see frames and planks on the starboard side of the hull almost all the way to the bow. On the port side, both frames and planks are intact from the rabbet in the shaft log to the stem.

Evidence of the fire that destroyed the Fedora is visible along the starboard side of the hull. The turn of the bilge is covered with iron fasteners that fell from the side of the hull as it burned. You can also see the remains of a series of iron cross-bracing straps that strengthened the hull. The 5-inch-wide by 3/8-inch-thick straps formed a diagonal web beneath the exterior planking.

If you visit the Fedora, you might see a brass valve, trademarked JENKINS, located just aft of the engine beds . You might also see some firebox brick fragments and shards of ironstone ceramics. One shard, found outboard of the stern, has a maker's mark --

J & G. ME ... EASTWOOD W ... HANLEY, ENG

-- and a coat of arms with a lion flanking a shield. These are the marks of the J&G Meakin Company of Hanley, England, which made "ironstone china" dinnerware. Unfortunately, it appears that divers have taken most of the other visible artifacts.

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