Jim McMahon/Mapman®

Wisconsin’s latest “museum” is a little unusual. Its artifacts are all underwater! 

The Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary contains dozens of shipwrecks at the bottom of Lake Michigan. The U.S. government designated the 962-square-mile area as a marine sanctuary last year, with a public celebration planned for this spring. The designation sets up protections to preserve the artifacts, but visitors can still snorkel and dive to the wrecks to explore them.

In addition to 36 known shipwrecks, experts believe there may be nearly 60 others in the protected area. So far, the wrecks date as far back as the mid-1800s, when great numbers of people were moving west across America in search of more land. The Great Lakes, including Lake Michigan, were a key shipping passageway, and ships played an important role in carrying supplies across them.

Many of the ships are in excellent condition, preserved by the cold fresh water. They are valuable time capsules, says Russ Green, a scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. “These historic shipwrecks tell America’s story,” he says.