[2] The Phoenix was built in 1815 by the Lake Champlain Steam-boat Company at its shipyard in Vergennes, Vermont, under the direction of Jahaziel Sherman.

In 1817, she carried President James Monroe from Burlington, Vermont to Plattsburgh, New York, and in 1818 she carried the remains of American Revolutionary War general Richard Montgomery, en route from Quebec City (where he died in the 1775 Battle of Quebec) to his final resting place in New York City.

The company salvaged equipment from the wreck, including the steam engine, and the remnant hulk was dragged off the reef the following spring and allowed to sink.

There was a great deal of speculation at the time that the fire was deliberately set by individuals unhappy with the advent of steam powered ships.

[2] The two charred paddlewheel structures were discovered north of the steamers hull by diver Gary Lefebvre on August 28, 2020, in about 180 and 190 feet of water.