Learn More About the SS D.M. Clemson (1903)

In December 1908, the D.M. Clemson, among the largest freighters on the Great Lakes at the time, disappeared during a storm on Lake Superior. The ship’s wreck has never been discovered, and the circumstances surrounding the loss of the Clemson and her crew remain one of the Great Lakes’ most enduring unsolved mysteries.

The SS D.M. Clemson was a 468-foot (143-meter) steel-hulled freighter that operated on the Great Lakes. Built in 1903 for the Provident Steamship Company, the vessel vanished on December 1, 1908, after passing through the Soo Locks into Lake Superior. Tragically, all 24 crew members were lost, and the ship is remembered for its mysterious disappearance on the lake.

In his book Went Missing, historian and author Frederick Stonehouse explores the mysterious loss of the Clemson. He notes that the vessel may have sustained structural damage on October 20, 1908, after colliding with a lighthouse pier in Ashtabula, Ohio. This incident reportedly damaged ten hull plates and a starboard-side water tank. Although temporary repairs were made, the ship was not fully restored before its scheduled winter layup later that year. Another theory proposes that the ship’s wooden hatch covers may have failed during rough weather, allowing water to flood the cargo hold and ultimately leading to the vessel’s sinking.

No one survived to recount the final moments of the Clemson, but in the weeks following its disappearance, wreckage and the remains of some of the 24 crew members began to wash ashore between Crisp Point and Grand Marais. Among them was Simon Dunn, the ship’s watchman from Dublin, Ireland, whose body came ashore at Crisp Point. He was wearing a life vest labeled D.M. Clemson. Additional debris, including parts of the ship’s cabin, 23 wooden hatch covers, and at least three more bodies, were spotted drifting farther west. Only one other body was recovered and identified—that of second mate Charles Woods from Marine City, Michigan.

A new vessel bearing the name D.M. Clemson was launched in 1917.