Ghost Ship of the Great Lakes

**Ghost Ship of the Great Lakes** is the 6th episode in Season 6 of Expedition Unknown.

## Plot Synopsis

Josh tackles the maritime mystery of the Griffon, the first ship to be lost in the Great Lakes. Josh uses a state-of-the-art submersible in the search.

## Historical Context

"The year is 1679, and famed French explorer Robert de La Salle has arrived in the new world with a vision - to create a massive fur-trading empire and to discover a westward sea route to Asia. He constructs the Griffon. It is the first true ship to explore the Great Lakes, but less than two months after it launches, it vanishes into thin air never to be seen again."

~ Josh Gates

## Summary

Josh goes to Niagara Falls and meets Joan Forsberg, a historian, who tells him about La Salle and the Griffon. Josh heads to Buffalo, New York and to Griffon Park where the Griffon was built. He then goes to Manistique, Michigan and to the Seul Choix Lighthouse where he meets Brendon Baillod, a maritime historian. Brendon shows Josh a letter from La Salle talking about the shipwreck and a map that shows the mentioned Huron Islands as what are now known as the Beaver Islands.

The next day, they meet oceanographer, Greg Busch, and they take a submarine down to the target but their CO2 alarm goes off, however, they resolve the issue. They find a shipwreck but it isn't the Griffon. Josh then heads to Manitoulin Island and to the William Purvis Marine Museum where he meets with Cris Kohl and Valerie Van Heest, maritime historians. Cris believes a previously found wreck is the Griffon and they have evidence that it was built prior to 1725 and in the 1890's skeletons and French artefacts were found from the 1600s. However, all evidence has been lost.

Valerie, Cris, and Josh head to the local docks and meet Tom Crossmon and Dave Phillips, underwater survey technicians, and they head out to search Magnetic Reef where the original wreckage was found. They use SONAR and Josh, Valerie, and an ROV head down to check out a hit. They end up finding two shipwrecks from the 1890s. One was the Steam Barge Bruno which was towing the Schooner Louisa.

## Final Words

"Thanks to the efforts of folks like Cris and Valerie, we're filling in the blank pages of maritime history - the story of two missing ships emerging from the depths after more than a century. After traversing the Great Lakes, from majestic Niagara Falls to the depths of Lake Michigan to remote Manitoulin Island, I can't help but be awed by the daring mission La Salle undertook, a true expedition into the then-unknown American wilderness. To this day, the legend of the Griffon fuels historic finds beneath the waters of the Great Lakes. And while she never reached her destination she continues to sail on to the far shores of the imagination, the place where the greatest stories live forever."

~ Josh Gates

## Notes & Trivia

* Tom Crossmon and Dave Phillips were also featured in Hunt for the Ruby Slippers.

## Quotes

* "If you've never been here just picture climbing into a washing machine."
* "History is delicious."
* "Yes? God."
* "I made - no there's more stairs. Okay, great."
* "Greg, that terrifying-sounding alarm is nothing?"

## References

1. ↑ https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNWQxYzU5YjctYmU3My00ODJjLWE1OTgtYTM5YzIxZGU0OGE4XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTM3MDMyMDQ@.\_V1\_.jpg