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New DNR Website Offers A Dive Into Indiana's Eerie Underwater History

Indiana DNR

Though it may come as a surprise to some, there are indeed shipwrecks in Indiana. The unlucky vessels rest beneath the waters of Lake Michigan, and now, thanks to a new website from the Department of Natural Resources, you don’t need a scuba suit to visit them.

The new site, IndianaShipwrecks.org, is part of the DNR’s website. It provides detailed, virtual tours of historic shipwrecks lying off Indiana’s coast beneath Lake Michigan.

The eerie renderings were made using advanced sonar scans that render complete, 3-D portraits of four historic shipwrecks. Visitors to the site can click on the scans to learn more about the crafts’ histories, what they were used for and how they appeared aboveground before they met their untimely end.

The project was completed by the DNR’s Indiana Lake Michigan Coastal Program. DNR officials say they hope the project will get people more interested in exploring facets of Indiana history that lie just out of sight – or in this case, under water.

The site also provides information for people curious about diving and exploring the shipwrecks.

Only one of the ships, the J.D. Marshall off the coast of Porter County, has been designated as an underwater preserve. 

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