Porte Des Morts - A Grim Reputation

A Grim Reputation

Since that time the strait has lived up to its name. The strait is littered with shipwrecks. Some say it has more shipwrecks than any other section of fresh water in the world. A number of factors combine to make this a particularly dangerous strait. Older sailing vessels were not as maneuverable as modern motor boats. The strait is relatively narrow. Shoals extend far from shore. Winds on the Great Lakes are notoriously unpredictable and can increase to gale forces and more almost without warning. The strait is also a combination of three separate passageways. Plum Island and tiny Pilot Island are almost in the center of what is commonly considered Death's Door, and pose hazards. While the Porte des Morts Passage proper to the south of Plum Island is relatively hazard free, the Detroit Island Passage to the north of Plum Island has many. The water between Detroit Island and Washington Island hides shoals that are not navigable, except by small boats like canoes.

Ships lost in Death's Door include the Fleetwing in 1888, the A.P. Nichols, Forest, and J.E. Gilmore in 1892. While deadly to ships, however, the wrecks of Death's Door have taken relatively few human lives.

So great is the reputation of Porte des Morts that a number of shipwrecks have been attributed to it that did not happen in the strait. One of these is the loss of the Griffin (also spelled Griffon), the first sailing ship on the upper Great Lakes. The Griffon was last seen sailing from Washington Island, but it was sailing north, not south into Death's Door. One account does say that she sailed from Detroit Harbor, which does open on Death's Door, but the same account says those on shore watched it sail north, which is impossible from that location. Another possible point of departure for the Griffin would be Washington Harbor on the north side of Washington Island or even Rock Island, which lies just northeast of Washington Island. There have been many who have claimed to have found the remains of the Griffin, but not one has been verified. The most recent "discovery" is awaiting funding and legal process before it can collect sufficient evidence to support or refute the claim. Another ship erroneously said to have grounded in Death's Door is the Louisiana, which records clearly show beached and burned on the shore of Washington Harbor

It might be asked, "Why did people use Death's Door if it is so dangerous? Isn't there a much safer passage between Green Bay and Lake Michigan just north of Washington Island?" The answer, simply, is that "time is money". Death's Door was used primarily by vessels sailing between ports along Green Bay and those along middle to southern Lake Michigan. Going around Washington Island would add roughly thirty miles to the voyage. At a time when ships made between five and ten miles an hour in good sailing weather, that meant three to six additional hours. So captains used Death's Door often until the Sturgeon Bay ship canal was completed in 1878. By using the canal sailors could not only avoid Death's Door, but especially could shorten their voyage by over a hundred miles.