Sidewheel Steamer Niagara

Historic Shipwreck

Type: sidewheel “palace steamer”

Built: 1846, Bidwell & Banta, Buffalo, N.Y.

Sank: Sept. 24, 1856, burned

Length: 245’

Beam: 33’

Cargoes: passengers, package freight

Propulsion: single-cylinder walking beam engine, sidewheels

Depth: 55’

From 1844 to 1857, lavish vessels known as “palace steamers” dominated Great Lakes passenger and ...