Tom Wenstadt, our Door County correspondent, reports that the M/V AMERICAN SPIRIT arrived at the Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding yard mid-morning Tuesday, April 2nd. The vessel came down the Bay of Green Bay, into Sturgeon Bay, pivoted, then backed the six miles to her dock. Assistance from two Great Lakes tugs was needed to accomplish the docking due to high winds. The vessel is in for new propeller blades. It should enter the FCBS graving dock as soon as the STEWART J. CORT leaves from winter inspection and paint.
Originally named the GEORGE A. STINSON, she was built in three sections. The mid body was built at the American Shipbuilding yard in Toledo, Ohio, then towed to the American Shipbuilding Lorain yard for assembly to the bow and stern sections. The STINSON was launched on July 15, 1978, for National Steel. After a number of ownership and management changes, her name was changed to the AMERICAN SPIRIT in January, 2004.
During her career, the vessel suffered a number of minor groundings and collisions. However the AMERICAN SPIRIT continues to run regularly for her operators, American Steamship Co.
Specifications:
Length 1004 feet
Beam (width) 105 feet
Depth 50 feet
Capacity 62,400 tons
Power 2 Pielstick V16 8000 horsepower diesel engines turning two propellers and a bow thruster
Self-Unloading rate 10,000 tons per hour
Look for a black hull with a white aft pilot house and unloading boom. Check out the new gigantic assembly buildings at the south end of the Fincantieri Bay yard. They are being used to construct subassemblies for new US Navy frigates being built across the bay at Fincantieri Marinette Marine.
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Tom Wenstadt, who lives in Sturgeon Bay, is a retired marine engineer, having worked in the Great Lakes area for thirty-seven years. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from Michigan Technological University and is the author of Freighters of Manitowoc. He is a member of the Wisconsin Marine Historical Society and the Door County Maritime Museum & Lighthouse Preservation Society. He is a volunteer archival assistant and docent for the JOHN PURVES.
Photo by Bob Kuhn: AMERICAN SPIRIT dated December 6, 2021
This story was originally posted on April 5, 2024.
