Shipwrecks uncovered in the Great Salt Lake
Dec 16, 2022, 2:00 PM | Updated: 2:40 pm
An old shipwreck is pictured exposed in the Great Salt Lake. (Utah Department on Natural Resources)
(Utah Department on Natural Resources)
SALT LAKE CITY– With water levels hovering around their lowest point on record, officials said they are finding more shipwrecks on the Great Salt Lake bed.
Devan Chavez, Public Information Officer for the Utah Division of State Parks, said one of the two wrecks they found at the state park was the W.E. Marsh No. 4, a ship that no one saw above water since 1936.
According to a tweet from the Department of Natural Resources, the W.E. Marsh No. 4 was part of the Southern Pacific Railroad fleet, and it helped construct and maintain the Lucin Cutoff railroad trestle.
Chavez said they discovered the wreck near the marina in the winter of 2020. To this day, they don’t know how or where it sank, similar to other wrecks on the lake.
Chavez said they have no plans to move the ship. Instead, they plan to use it as a visual and talking point.
“They make really awesome conversation starters…not only to get people to come out…but, also to take that little bit sense of ownership back to the lake,” Chavez said. “It is another great conversation starter for things like drought…(and) other items around the Great Salt lake.”
Chavez said according to conversations he’s had with one other official, there’s evidence of upwards of twenty wrecks throughout the lake.
The Great Salt Lake State Park will host a guided tour on January 1, 2023, at 10 a.m. for those who want to see and learn more about the shipwrecks. People attending are required to pre-register, here.
Additionally, those who attend are asked to not take ship pieces.
Related reading:
- How much will it take to save the Great Salt Lake?
- Senate passes Romney-sponsored bill to fund Great Salt Lake study
