Resting beneath the waters of Lake Michigan is a 185-foot German U-boat—an unexpected sight, given that enemy submarines never operated in the Great Lakes during wartime. Its presence traces back to a little-known chapter after World War I, shaped by diplomacy, public curiosity, and a remarkable journey across the country.
After Germany’s surrender, the submarine was seized and transported to the United States as a symbol of Allied victory. It was later displayed as part of a nationwide tour, attracting large crowds eager to see firsthand the type of vessel that had once struck fear into Allied shipping. When the exhibition came to an end, the submarine’s voyage concluded as well, and it was ultimately left to settle at the bottom of the lake—where it remains today as a quiet reminder of that era.
German U-boats after WWI
In 1919, just months after the guns of World War I fell silent, Europe began the long road to recovery. When the Armistice was signed, Germany was required to surrender its naval fleet to the Allies. This was only the beginning of what would become a punishing disarmament process. Under the Treaty of Versailles, Germany was stripped of its military strength and saddled with crushing reparations for the devastation caused by the war.
Rather than comply, the German Navy chose to scuttle most of its own fleet, defying the surrender conditions. But the prized U-boats—the cutting-edge submarines that had terrorized Allied shipping—were spared from scuttling and eventually seized by the British. At the time, Germany was at the forefront of submarine innovation, and these captured vessels represented a significant opportunity to study and display the technology of a fallen adversary.
The US saw U-boats as a way to fix some of their wartime debt
Following World War I, Britain took possession of 176 German U-boats that had been surrendered and sent many of them to other Allied countries for examination and trials. The submarines were provided under a specific requirement: after testing was complete, they had to be deliberately sunk in deep water so they could not later be salvaged or returned to service.
The United States showed relatively little enthusiasm for keeping the captured vessels. American naval authorities largely considered the German boats less capable than U.S. submarine designs, while Britain was pushing for an international prohibition on submarine warfare because of the destruction associated with it during the conflict.
Some U.S. officials, however, recognized another potential use for the captured submarines. With the country carrying significant debt after the war, several U-boats were transported around the United States and placed on public display. Admission fees allowed the government to benefit from widespread interest in the former enemy vessels while generating money connected to the repayment of war bonds, transforming captured weapons into public attractions with a financial and patriotic purpose.
UC-97
German submarine UC‑97 was one of six U-boats shipped from Europe to the United States following World War I. A Type UC III minelayer, it was part of a late-war class designed to carry six mine-laying tubes, three torpedo tubes, and a deck gun.
Although over 100 Type UC III submarines were originally planned, the armistice halted construction, leaving only 25 completed—UC‑97 among them. Once in the U.S., promoters claimed the vessel had sunk seven enemy ships, a story meant to thrill the public. In truth, UC‑97 never saw combat; the record was fabricated to heighten the submarine’s dramatic appeal as an exhibition piece.
UC-97 toured the Great Lakes
She spent a large portion of this period in New York City, drawing thousands of spectators everywhere she appeared. After she had fulfilled her role as a profitable attraction, the submarine embarked on another series of tours as part of a naval recruitment campaign.
Her journey took her across the Great Lakes to cities including Milwaukee and Chicago, where enormous crowds gathered once again. Attendance was so high that many ports struggled to accommodate the influx of visitors. When the tour concluded, everything of potential value was removed from the vessel, and she was tied up along the Chicago River.
The stripped-down hull remained there until 1921. In June of that year, UC-97, which no longer had engines and could not move under her own power, was towed into Lake Michigan to complete the original plan of sinking the submarine once she had outlived her usefulness.
The sinking of UC-97
UC-97 was to be used as a floating target for the gunboat USS Wilmette in a highly publicized event. She was hit by several 4-inch rounds before quickly sinking to the bottom of the lake, to be forgotten for much of the century.
Attempts to locate the vessel in the 1960s and 1970s were thwarted by a clear lack of information about the submarine’s final moments. In 1992, UC-97 was finally discovered by A and T Recovery. Her location is not available to the public, but A and T Recovery have visited her multiple times since the discovery.