Full Breakdown
Mother’s Beach Walk Reveals Century-Old Tugboat Beneath Lake Superior
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Discovery
While spending a day at the Camp Amnicon beach in South Range, Wisconsin, Hannah Damon — director of outreach and administration at Camp Amnicon Adventures and Retreats — and her 9-year-old son noticed an unusual formation on the lakebed. Clear, glassy water allowed them to see wooden beams, cables and a massive pipe, leading Damon to recognize the remains of a shipwreck. She quickly returned to shore to document the find.
Historical Background
The wreck is the A.H. Pitz, a steam-powered tugboat constructed in 1923 for the McMullen and Pitz Construction Company in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. The vessel was named for Armond Pitz, according to the Wisconsin Historical Society. After changing owners several times, the tugboat was deliberately sunk at the mouth of the Amnicon River in 1951 to help stabilize a sandbar. The nearly 70-foot-long hull has remained fully submerged and largely hidden by the typically murky waters of the Lake Superior clay plain.
Community Response
Commenters recalled seeing the tugboat as far back as the late 1960s, but many, like Damon, had never observed it directly.
Data & Statistics
- Vessel: A.H. Pitz (steam-powered tugboat)
- Construction year: 1923
- Length: approximately 70 feet
- Abandonment: 1951, purposefully sunk to stabilize a sandbar
- Location: mouth of the Amnicon River, Lake Superior shoreline, South Range, Wisconsin
Verbatim Quotes
- “We started seeing beams and cables and this massive pipe, and it was like, wait a minute, this is a shipwreck, this is a shipwreck,” — Hannah Damon
- “I ran back to shore and I got my camera, and I was like, OK, you are not allowed to splash me, this is a really exciting discovery,” — Hannah Damon
- “I was actually just down back at the beach yesterday, and again, the water was calm, but it was murky again,” — Hannah Damon
- “It was probably the closest thing to ‘viral’ the Camp Amnicon has ever experienced,” — Hannah Damon