Niagara Maritime Trails Marker
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Niagara Maritime Trails Marker
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Niagara Maritime Trails Marker
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Niagara Maritime Trails Marker
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Niagara Maritime Trails Marker
 
Details
Attraction
Location
Body of Water: Lake Michigan
Trail Name: Mid Lake Michigan
Nearest Address: Harbor Front, 106 Lake St
Nearest City: Port Washington
County: Ozaukee
Zip Code: 53074
Latitude: N 43° 23.306'
Longitude: W -87° 52.082'
Attraction
Features
Open to public?: Yes
Mooring buoy?: Yes
Mooring buoy in place?: No
Snorkelable?: No
Dive guide?: Yes
Trails sign?: Yes
National Register?: No
Attraction
Description
The Niagara Maritime Trails historic marker is located on the Port Washington waterfront as an outdoor exhibit of the Port Washington Historical Society. The wreckage of the sidewheel passenger steamer Niagara lies in 55 feet of water one mile off Belgium, Wisconsin. The site is marked with a Wisconsin Historical Society seasonal mooring buoy. From 1844 to 1857, lavish vessels known as 'palace steamers' dominated the Great Lakes passenger and package trade. Carrying hundreds of passengers and large cargoes, these opulent boats offered the fastest and most dependable transportation between the East and the Midwest before railroads connected these regions. Considered 'the most beautifully appointed craft ever built on the Lakes,' palace steamers marked the pinnacle of Great Lakes passenger service. The Niagara, the second of 25 palace steamers to work the lakes, was a familiar sight along western Lake Michigan and brought thousands of settlers to Wisconsin. On Sept. 23, 1856, the Niagara left Sheboygan, Wis., for Port Washington. Around 4 p.m., fire broke out. The engines soon quit, bringing the vessel's giant paddlewheels to a halt. As smoke and flames engulfed the boat 4-5 miles offshore, passengers panicked, causing one of Wisconsin's deadliest transportation disasters. Despite rescue efforts, over 60 people died, many from drowning while frantically trying to board the lifeboats. Today, the remains of the Niagara memorialize the people and the vessels that fueled the early growth and development of the Midwest. When you visit the marker, be sure to look down for a little surprise (spoiler alert: a sketch of the vessel's outline is marked in the concrete).
 
Map
 
Nearby
Attractions (8)
Mahoning Buoy
Niagara Maritime Trails Marker
Northerner Buoy
Port Washington Fishing Families Memorial
Port Washington Light Station
Port Washington Pierhead Light
Smith Bros. Fish Net House
Toledo Anchor Memorial
Shipwrecks (16)
A.V. Knickerbocker (1840)
Belle (1860)
Bohemian (1856)
Gertie Wing (1880)
Jennifer (1964)
Lavinia (1847)
Lexington (1838)
Linda E (1937)
Mahoning (1847)
Mars (1855)
View 6 more
Shipwrecks (16)
A.V. Knickerbocker (1840)
Belle (1860)
Bohemian (1856)
Gertie Wing (1880)
Jennifer (1964)
Lavinia (1847)
Lexington (1838)
Linda E (1937)
Mahoning (1847)
Mars (1855)
Northerner (1851)
Pere Marquette 18 (1902)
Senator (1896)
St. Peter (1868)
Tennie and Laura (1876)
Toledo (1854)
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© 2026 - Wisconsin Sea Grant, Wisconsin Historical Society