The Ship

The original Charley was a 61’ square-stern wooden schooner that transported goods up and down the North Shore during the late 1800’s. Built in 1863 in Bark Shanty Point, MI by John B. Mayer (no known relation to the contemporary musician), Charley was bought by the Wieland family of Beaver Bay, Minnesota and was the first vessel enrolled in Duluth as Port of Entry after the ship canal opened in 1871. The Wielands, a German-American immigrant family and early European settlers of Beaver Bay, built a sawmill and transported lumber using Charley. The famous North Shore mailman John Beargrease is said to have been a deckhand onboard. According to John Beargrease: Legend of Minnesota’s North Shore by Daniel Lancaster, Charley’s captain Albert Wieland yelled commands using a mix of English, Ojibwe and German. The community referred to Charley as “that faithful old tub.”

But, as was often the case, conditions and unpredictability of Lake Superior brought Charley’s career to an end. In May of 1881, the vessel was running from a building storm. She made it to Beaver Bay, but was driven aground and gradually broke apart onshore. In Shipwrecks Along Lake Superior’s North Shore: A Diver’s Guide, Stephen B. Daniel mentions the submerged anchor and some debris believed to be from Charley.