St. Joseph Evening Herald (St. Joseph, MI), Wednesday, 21 April 1907

Muskegon, Mich., April 22 - It is believed the little passenger steamer R. I. Gordon of South Haven has been lost in Lake Michigan. The Gordon was in Muskegon for the purpose of getting a supply of coal Sunday, April 14, leaving for Manitowoc the same evening.

It is reported that nothing has been heard of the steamer since she left Muskegon, and it is believed that the wreckage seen by vessels in the vicinity of Ludington during the last week indicates the fate of the Gordon.

The Gordon lay on the bottom of the harbor at South Haven all winter and was raised by Captain Bert Race of South Haven who recently purchased the vessel. She was taken in Grand Haven for inspection, and was given a permit to go to Manitowoc to be recaulked.

While here the mate informed Captain Nelson of the Life-saving station that the lower part of the hull was in good condition but the upper part was leaking.

The steamer carried a crew of five men, including her owner, Captain Race, who was acting as master. The names of the other members of the crew are not known.

The Gordon was built at Marine City in 1881; was 104 feet in length, 23 feet beam, tonnage 280.

Manistee, Mich., April 23 - The wooden lumber barge Arcadia, which left this port on April 12 for Two Rivers, undoubtedly has been lost in Lake Michigan, with its Captain and owner, Harry May, and is wife and twelve other persons.

Marine men here have given the vessel up as lost and would not be surprised to hear that the wreck was caused by a boiler explosion. Some hold the theory that it went down as the result of the big storm of April 11.

The Arcadia was a wooden steamer 119 feet in length, 26 feet beam, and 9 feet draft, registering 230 tons, and was built in Milwaukee in 1888.