Our Blog
Wisconsin Marine Historical Society is a self-supported nonprofit organization committed to collecting, preserving, archiving, and sharing materials that illuminate the rich heritage of the Great Lakes maritime industry. Check out our blog to dive deep into the fascinating narratives and events that have shaped the Great Lakes maritime legacy.
As a new season begins, freighters are leaving their winter berths, going to work
March 25, 2021By Tom Wenstadt Spring is here, the ice is thinning and the Great Lakes ships are beginning to move. The S/S WILFRED SYKES left Sturgeon Bay the afternoon of March 23, heading for Two Harbors, Minnesota, for its first load of the season, and the M/V STEWART J. CORT departed…Read more
Great Lakes Maritime Task Force expected another good year, but only grain and wind turbine parts buoyed commerce
March 23, 2021By Dan Patrinos Great Lakes commercial mariners played the hand they were dealt last year. “2020 was a year that caught everyone by surprise,” the Great Lakes Maritime Task Force says in its recently released annual report. “Maritime commerce on the Great Lakes was expected to keep on rolling like 2019…Read more
World War II landing craft that took part in battle of Anzio, now working off Bayfield, Wisconsin
March 19, 2021By James Heinz World War II ended nearly 76 years ago, yet some U.S. naval vessels continue to serve today on the Great Lakes. The next time you’re in Bayfield, Wisconsin, you may see what was once a military landing craft berthed near the Blackhawk Marina. She now works as…Read more
Historic World War II tug and once-famed ferry now ply Great Lakes tied together
March 16, 2021By James Heinz A U.S. Navy tug that towed ships around the Pacific during World War II and an old passenger ferry cutdown to a barge are now an articulated team on the Great Lakes. Occasionally, this odd couple visits Milwaukee’s harbor. The tug is one of three former war…Read more
Wearing her battle ribbons, World War II veteran still sails the Great Lakes
March 9, 2021By James Heinz Herman Goering, second in command of the Third Reich, was once asked why Nazi Germany declared war on the United States. He reportedly replied that America’s ability to build large numbers of ships in short time surprised the Nazis. By ships, Goering did not mean warships. He…Read more
Life, death and rebirth of Milwaukee Port’s Harbor Seagull
March 4, 2021By James Heinz In 1960 the Port of Milwaukee had a problem. Fallen trees, logs and other debris frequently clogged its waterways, posing hazards to ships and boats. Winter ice created another problem. Those conditions obstructed fireboats from fighting fires along the city’s rivers and aboard ships in the harbor.…Read more
U.S. shipping companies expect to invest $87 million in Great Lakes region
February 27, 2021By Dan Patrinos This year U.S.-flag Great Lakes shipping companies will invest nearly $87 million in their vessels at shipyards and facilities, according to the Lake Carriers’ Association. That includes over $36 million in Wisconsin, $33 million in Ohio, $13 million in Pennsylvania, and over $4 million in Michigan. The…Read more
Landmark maritime exhibition tower rises in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, alongside busy waterfront. Partial opening is set for May.
February 26, 2021By Dan Patrinos A landmark exhibition tower on Sturgeon Bay’s working waterfront promises to celebrate the rich maritime history of the Great Lakes and Door County where the shipbuilding industry accounts for the largest number of jobs in the area. The Door County Maritime Museum is expanding its main location in Sturgeon…Read more
A video on iceboating recalls a rendezvous with speed
February 19, 2021By Carl Eisenberg Iceboating is also known as hard water sailing. In the 1992 Winter edition of the Wisconsin Marine Historical Society’s newsletter, Soundings, Gene C. Harrison, quoted from the Encyclopedia Americana, Volume 14: “It appears that the ingenious Dutch were the first iceboatmen, for in 1768, Fredrik Hendrik Chapman published a…Read more
U.S. Corps of Engineers lists repairs to Wisconsin harbor projects
February 17, 2021By Dan Patrinos Five Lake Michigan harbor structures in Wisconsin are scheduled for maintenance repairs, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers fiscal 2021 civil work plan sent to Congress in January. Unused buildings at a sixth harbor will be demolished. The work plan includes $62.6 million for the…Read more
Hunting dinosaurs: a family fishing tradition
February 12, 2021By Matt Preissner It’s February on Lake Winnebago. It is not a very friendly place. Wind, cold, ice shoves, ice cracks spanning a foot or more. Most times the ice is thick enough to hold the weight of a pickup truck. Fifteen-plus inches of ice can support a vehicle. On…Read more
World’s richest man you probably never heard of
February 8, 2021By James Heinz In 1977 I was 20 years old. I remember seeing a picture in a magazine of a man walking down a Manhattan sidewalk. The accompanying caption said he was the richest man in the world and that no one knew who he was. His name stuck in…Read more
