WCAX-TV Channel 3 News reporter Alek LaShomb says “mystery and intrigue” is the right mood for what researchers believe could be one of the oldest colonial-era shipwrecks resting at the bottom of Lake Champlain.
LaShomb reports the wreck is about 60 feet long, and even though it was first spotted years ago, only recently did it start to look like something that might reach back before the Revolutionary War.
That’s a bold possibility, and it’s also the kind of discovery that makes history feel less like a textbook and more like a hidden room you didn’t know existed.
If this vessel really predates the war, it means the lake was carrying stories long before most Americans think the “main events” began.
A Sonar Find Near Port Kent
LaShomb’s report centers on Gary Lefebvre, a sonar specialist who says the wreck was first found in 2019.
Lefebvre told LaShomb the team came across the vessel near Port Kent, and the moment they saw it, they knew they were looking at something that didn’t fit the usual picture.
Lefebvre put it simply, telling LaShomb, “It’d be certainly nice to identify where it came from to add to the history of the lake.”
That line sounds modest, but it hints at a bigger point: Lake Champlain isn’t just scenic water between states, it’s been a working corridor for centuries, and every wreck has a reason it ended up there.
LaShomb said Lefebvre had immediate questions about what the boat was and where it came from.
Lefebvre also admitted to LaShomb that the identification work wasn’t something he could just guess at.
He said, “As soon as you find it, you realize that this is really old… but it’s above my pay grade as far as identifying exactly what it is.”
That honesty is part of what makes the story feel real, because it shows how a discovery can be obvious in one way – “this looks ancient” – while still being a puzzle in every other way.
It’s also a reminder that good science often begins with someone saying, “I don’t know yet,” and then going looking for the people who can push the answer forward.
The Clues In The Lumber And The Shape
LaShomb reports that Lefebvre didn’t get stronger answers until six years later, when a “top archeologist” working with the United States Navy on Lake Champlain’s Spitfire project took a look at the mysterious boat.
LaShomb says that visit, which Lefebvre describes as happening last summer, changed the tone of the find.
According to Lefebvre, the archeologist’s assessment suggested the vessel could potentially predate Revolutionary War-era construction.
What makes that claim interesting is that it isn’t based on a single dramatic clue, like a carved date on a board, but on construction details that act like fingerprints.
LaShomb had Lefebvre explain what he saw, and Lefebvre went right into the physical features.
Lefebvre told LaShomb, “It’s the way that was constructed, the way the lumber was cut, the knots on the wood, the way the chine or the shape of the boat is… the keelson… and specifically mast steps.”
He described those mast steps as cut-outs in the keelson, and he told LaShomb the way they’re located is “very odd” compared to boats they’ve seen from after the 18th century.
That’s the kind of detail most people would never notice, but to an expert it can be like hearing an accent that places someone in a certain region and time.
And if those odd features really do point earlier than the Revolutionary War, the wreck becomes more than a local curiosity – it becomes a rare physical link to early colonial life.
A Commercial Craft That Might Be A First For The Lake
LaShomb also spoke with Chris Sabick, the executive director of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, who studied the vessel alongside Lefebvre.
Sabick told LaShomb the wreck isn’t just potentially old – it might represent the type of boat that historians know existed, but have never physically found in Lake Champlain.
Sabick’s point, as LaShomb reported it, is that most famous Lake Champlain wreck stories lean military, because war leaves behind ships, wrecks, and records.
But Sabick suggested this one could be different.
LaShomb says Sabick believes the vessel could be a non-military craft, possibly commercial, and that would be a big deal because it fills a gap between “we read about it” and “we can actually study it.”
Sabick told LaShomb, “We have historic documentation of some of them… but we don’t have any archeological remains of a commercial craft from that early date.”
He said that’s why it’s “quite interesting” and “worthy of future study.”
That idea hooked me, because war history gets the spotlight, but everyday history is what built the world people actually lived in.
A commercial boat is about work, trade, travel, supplies, and ordinary decisions – things that rarely become legends, but shaped the region every single day.
If Lake Champlain really has a surviving commercial wreck from that early period, it’s like finding a missing puzzle piece that helps explain how the area functioned before modern borders and highways made it feel smaller.
What Happens Next Depends On New York
LaShomb reports that the ship sits in New York waters, which means the next steps aren’t just a science question – they’re also a government decision.
Sabick told LaShomb that the state will ultimately decide whether it wants to pursue further physical study of the ship.
That matters because there’s a big difference between locating a wreck and studying it in a deeper way.
A sonar image and a careful look can tell you a lot, but a full investigation could potentially reveal construction methods, cargo clues, repairs, and maybe even why it sank.
LaShomb said his team reached out to the New York Office of Parks and Historic Preservation for comment.
In his report, LaShomb noted they had not heard back.
That silence doesn’t mean “no” forever, but it does show how fragile these moments can be.
A wreck can sit on the bottom for centuries and still be at the mercy of modern schedules, budgets, and priorities.
And the truth is, the longer a mystery sits without attention, the easier it is for it to fade into the background, even if it’s one of the most interesting things in the region.
Why This Find Feels So Fascinating
LaShomb’s report is compelling because it isn’t just “we found a shipwreck,” it’s “we found something that doesn’t match what we thought we knew.”
Lefebvre’s excitement, mixed with his caution, feels like the right approach for a discovery like this.
Sabick’s interest also adds weight, because he’s not selling a fantasy; he’s talking about a gap in the physical record and the rare chance to fill it.
My own take is that the most thrilling part is the idea that this wreck might be a quiet, working vessel, not a warship with cannons and famous names.
A commercial craft suggests ordinary people doing ordinary things—moving goods, traveling between settlements, trying to make a living—until something went wrong and the boat never came back up.
That’s a different kind of history, and in a way it’s more personal, because it’s closer to how most lives are lived.
Alek LaShomb’s reporting leaves the story right where a good mystery should be: with strong clues, careful experts, and a decision point ahead.
If New York chooses to push forward with deeper study, Lake Champlain may give up a story that’s been waiting underwater since before the country was even born.
Ed spent his childhood in the backwoods of Maine, where harsh winters taught him the value of survival skills. With a background in bushcraft and off-grid living, Ed has honed his expertise in fire-making, hunting, and wild foraging. He writes from personal experience, sharing practical tips and hands-on techniques to thrive in any outdoor environment. Whether it’s primitive camping or full-scale survival, Ed’s advice is grounded in real-life challenges.
