The three masted wooden barkentine Mojave was built in June 1863 at the shipyard of Master Shipbuilder Stewart McDonald in Detroit, Michigan, and was belatedly launched on November 18, 1863. The ship was christened on the afternoon of November 16, 1863, by the shipbuilder's niece who named the ship Mojave after the Native American people she had learned about in school. Constructed for George W. Bissel for use in supporting the produce and commission house Backus & Bissell, Mojave was a canaller. Mojave was also built with uncommon features that would allow it to sail on the open ocean in the Detroit - Liverpool trade; the vessel's bulwarks were taller than typical and a monkey rail was added on top, along with other mechanical improvements to make the vessel strong and seaworthy. Captain Darius Nelson Malott was named Master of the Mojave, he was Master of the barkentine Ravenna prior, and prior to that Master of the schooner Augusta. On September 8, 1860, the Augusta rammed and sank the steamer Lady Elgin during a gale, which resulted in the deaths of 388 people. Malott was arrested and was found not guilty of navigational negligence for the incident. Although cleared of charges in the deaths of 388 passengers aboard the Lady Elgin, he was not accepted by the public in either Milwaukee or Chicago. Wishing to avoid conflict, Malott stuck to sailing the eastern Great Lakes. Being launched so late in the season, it is unknown if the Mojave sailed during the 1863 season. The first voyage of the Mojave was carrying a cargo of hay from Detroit to Toledo. After the hay was unloaded, Mojave sailed for Pigeon Bay to collect a cargo of wood for Chicago. During the return trip on April 7,1864, while sailing through a thick fog, the ship grounded on the southwest side of Middle Island in Lake Erie. The tug Bob Anderson was sent from Detroit on April 10 to pull Mojave free after it was towed to Detroit for repairs. During the night of June 24, 1864 the Mojave grounded on Skillagalee Reef in Northern Lake Michigan. Wind and heavy seas blew the ship further onto the reef. When it was finally rescued by the steam wrecker Michigan on July 1, it was towed to Duncan Harbor and allowed to sink in shallow water, it was then pumped out and taken to Detroit for repairs. After repairs the Mojave was back in service by mid-September. Until it's final voyage, the Mojave transferred coal to Chicago and Milwaukee and sailed wheat to Buffalo.
During the first week of November 1864, Mojave loaded 18,460 bushels of wheat at Chicago for Buffalo. On November 8,1864, while northbound on Lake Michigan, the Mojave was sailing four miles behind the Canadian barkentine Monarch when the vessels encountered heavy gales. The last time the crew of the Monarch saw the Mojave, the vessel was sitting low in the water and rolling heavily in the seas. Mojave went down into the trough of the waves, became swamped and sank quickly. A sailor was sent aloft to the masthead of the Monarch to search for the schooner, but Mojave was not seen again.
The wreck of the Mojave was located in 295 feet of water off Sheboygan, Wisconsin by shipwreck hunter Steve Radovan in 2016. In cooperation with Radovan, the wreck was investigated in July 2023 by Wisconsin Historical Society archaeologists and volunteers as well as a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) provided and operated by Crossmon Consulting, LLC. The remains of the ship are largely intact, and many artifacts lay deep within the wreck and under the silt.