donate the wreck to the State of Michigan in April 1990, but the state had its own concerns about liability. An agreement was struck in early May 1990 and Mesquite was donated to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources for the proposed Keweenaw Underwater Preserve as an attraction for recreational divers. After the storm of December 8 and 9, 1989, salvors concluded that she could not be patched, pumped out, and refloated. The wreck would have to be lifted off the shoal and carried to her sinking site. To achieve this lift, a barge was chartered and a pair of lowering trusses originally used by Shell Oil for platform construction at its COGNAC oil field in the Gulf of Mexico were mounted on it. The heavy-lift barge was towed from Port Newark, New Jersey to Lake Superior during May 1990. In preparation for scuttling, salvors stripped Mesquite of valuable parts, including the propeller, cargo boom, and anchor windlass which the Coast Guard wanted for its stores. Much loose material was hauled off. Most of the superstructure was cut away. Remaining fuel, oil, paint, and other toxic material was removed. Flooded compartments of the ship were either pumped out or blown out with compressed air to reduce the wreck's weight. Finally, on July 14, 1990 Mesquite was lifted off its ledge. When her full weight was carried by the trusses, the heavy-lift barge had less than of clearance to the bottom of the lake. After Mesquite was off the bottom, the wreck and barge were winched out of the shallow water. Once clear of the shoal, they were towed to the sinking site about away in Keystone Bay. The wreck was lowered to the bottom in of water. The total cost of the removal process was approximately $2 million. Legacy The Coast Guard reassigned Acacia to Charlevoix, Michigan to replace Mesquite. There was no replacement cutter for Acacia, however, reducing the number of buoy tenders in the Great Lakes from five to four. The Coast Guard justified the move based on cost savings, but others attributed it to the influence of U.S. Representative Bob Davis, who represented Charlevoix in Congress. He was vice-chairman of the House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee which had jurisdiction over the Coast Guard. The move left ill-feeling in Grand Haven, Acacia's previous base. The Keweenaw Underwater Preserve was created and Mesquite became one of its most