After over twenty long years in preparation, I have finally finished my Pentwater shipwreck opus, Ghosts of the Oceana Coast: Pentwater, Michigan’s Shipwreck Graveyard. This comprehensive book is nearly 300 pages in length at 8.5×11″ and includes detailed information on over 60 total loss shipwrecks in Oceana County waters.
The area around Pentwater, Michigan in Oceana County has one of the highest shipwreck concentrations on the Great Lakes. Beginning in 1839 with the loss of the brig Neptune, the area has continued to collect the bones of lost ships. Ghosts of the Oceana Coast tells the stories of these dramatic shipwrecks using first-person accounts of the sailors who survived these harrowing ordeals. The Armistice Day Storm of 1940 is explored in detail, telling the stories of the Minch, Davock and Novadoc, exploring their final hours using previously un-released investigation files from the US and Canadian National Archives.
The book not only explores the stories of the area’s lost ships but also their remains, describing the many keels that have peeked out from under beaches and sandbars as well as those that can be visited by sport divers. The maritime history of Oceana County is also explored in depth, detailing the area’s lighthouses, piers, and ships built in the area. It is not only a detailed and comprehensive reference book, but also provides entertaining reading for those who wish to take a step back in time to the days of three-masted schooners and elegant passenger steamships. This book is a must-have for anyone interested in the maritime history of Western Michigan.
Thanks to Valerie Van Heest and Ric Mixter for their support, assistance and encouragement in helping me dust this old project off and get it across the finish line.
I expect to have copies in stock by December 1st, just in time for the holidays. If you’d like to reserve a copy, you can do so by messaging me or emailing me at baillod@gmail.com. Once the copies arrive, I will process payments via PayPal. Brendon Baillod