Beaver Island ArchiveA primary-source archive & encyclopedia45°40′N 85°33′W · Lake Michigan
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Vessel

Eclipse

Also Eclipse

Draft — sources verified, prose evolving

TypeVessel
RigBoat
Datesto 1855
WithinBeaver Island
ErasStrang era
On this page
Vessel
Rig
Boat
Dates
to 1855
Eras
Strang era
Concepts
maritimeshippingmormonismhistoriography
Within
Beaver Island

Summary

The Eclipse is a vessel named only in the January 1907 Charlevoix County Herald retrospective. That article says the boat was captained by James Jesse Strang, captured and burned after a bloody 1855 fight, and represented by partly burned hull fragments later found in Beaver Island sands.

Evidence and limits

The held source supplies only the name, the generic description “boat,” the attributed Strang connection, and the alleged destruction. No official number, builder, dimensions, rig beyond the source’s generic term, owner, crew, route, or independent wreck identification is held. The vessel’s connection to Strang’s fleet is therefore recorded here as contested; the record does not establish that the alleged boat was part of Strang’s fleet or that the reported hull belonged to it.

Open questions

  • Can a contemporary source or Great Lakes vessel register identify this Eclipse?
  • Was the reported hull fragment from a vessel, and can its location be documented?
  • What relationship, if any, did the boat have to Strang’s settlement?

See also

Sources

  1. "Relics of Michigan Mormonism," *Charlevoix County Herald*, January 5, 1907.
    The retrospective calls Eclipse a boat, says it was captained by Strang, and reports that a partly burned hull was found buried in the Beaver Island shore sands. These claims are not independently corroborated in the held corpus. No public copy of this file is known; the archive holds one and can provide it on request.
    charlevoix · Charlevoix_County_Herald_1907-01-05
  2. Raw issue OCR retained as a second representation of the same source and its uncertain vessel history.
    charlevoix · issues · Charlevoix_County_Herald_1907-01-05 · Charlevoix_County_Herald_1907-01-05_djvu

Added 1 August 2026. Recent changes

Cite this article

Beaver Island Archive, “Eclipse”, https://beaverislandarchive.org/vessels/eclipse-1855/, accessed [date], citing "Relics of Michigan Mormonism," *Charlevoix County Herald*, January 5, 1907. (and 1 further source listed on the page).

Last revised 2026-08-01. Fill in [date] with the date you read it — this page is static and cannot know that.

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