LAKE SUPERIOR — Caught in a freezing gale, Captain A.E. White was unable to do anything but watch as the icy waters of Lake Superior claimed the schooner Nelson, which was under his tow en route to the Keweenaw Peninsula.

“Before we were aware of her danger, she began sinking,” White, captain of the steamer A. Folsom, told a newspaper reporter in May 1899.

“In a few minutes, she dove to the bottom.”

“The crew did not even have time to lower their yawl boat. Not a bit of wreckage was left to mark the spot,” White said. “The Nelson disappeared as suddenly as one could snuff a candle.”

On Aug. 26, the first person in more than a century clapped eyes on the Nelson, which sat undisturbed on the bottom of Lake Superior since the day its captain watched his family and entire crew perish.

This week, the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society (GLSHS) announced the discovery of the Nelson in more than 200 feet of water off Deer Park.

The 199-foot, three-masted schooner built in 1866 lies largely intact on the bottom, free of invasive zebra mussels that have yet to foul Lake Superior. The schooner was found during a side-scan sonar search of an area researchers believe holds several hundred shipwrecks, said Bruce Lynn, historical society director.

Using a 50-foot research boat, the society actively searches for undiscovered wrecks. Society wreck hunters Daryl Ertel and Tom Mannesto found the Nelson last month using the “mow the lawn” technique of sonar searching.

“We know there’s a number of other ships that have gone down in the same area,” Lynn said. “It’s not random because we’re being systematic about it, but we’re hoping to find certain wrecks we’ve researched.”

The Nelson was carrying a load of coal when it foundered on May 13, 1899. It, along with the steamer Mary B. Mitchell, was being towed west by Captain White’s steamer when a northwest gale with freezing rain and 50-mph winds forced the trio to reverse course and make for shelter in Whitefish Bay.

At some point, the Nelson’s towline snapped and the ice-laden ship began to sink.

Based on research conducted by Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary historian C. Patrick Labadie, the theory is that coal shifted as the ship was tossed about by angry waves. When the bow dipped, the weight of the coal drove the vessel straight down. Newspaper accounts describe the stern rising abruptly as it sank.

The Nelson tragedy is particularly poignant because its skipper, Captain Andrew Haganey, stayed aboard to lower the lifeboat containing his wife, infant child and the crew of seven. But the sinking ship pulled the still-attached lifeboat down with it.

Haganey drifted ashore on floating wreckage and was nursed back to health at the Deer Park Life-Saving Station, an outpost of the U.S. Coast Guard precursor.

The Great Lakes have claimed many ships, but not every wreck story includes the human drama that was reported in detail about the Nelson sinking, Lynn said.

“You try to put yourself in the shoes of Captain Haganey and think what was going through his mind when he saw the boat founder with his wife and child,” he said.

“It’s a terrible story, but it kind of makes you think a little more about the circumstances and the pressures the captain and crew were under to get to get this cargo to port.”

Coal was a vital resource for isolated communities in the Upper Peninsula. Ships like the Nelson, owned by the Mitchell Transportation Co. of Bay City, were lifelines to towns of the era.

These days, modern technology has made shipping on the lakes much safer. Storms no longer sneak up on captains. “One hundred and fifty years ago, they didn’t have the same ability to predict weather,” Lynn said.

The historical society plans to further document the wreck of the Nelson.

Because the area is rich with shipwrecks, Lynn said the society expects to announce more discoveries before the year ends.

Garret Ellison covers business, government and breaking news for MLive/The Grand Rapids Press. Email him at gellison@mlive.com or follow on Twitter & Instagram