Tom Wenstadt, our Door County correspondent, reports that the M/V JOSEPH L. BLOCK arrived at the entrance to the Sturgeon Bay Ship Canal early morning on Monday, January 13th. She proceeded down the bay, through the three Sturgeon Bay bridges, pivoted and backed into her slip for winter layup at Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding. The tugs DONALD J. SARTER and JIMMY L broke ice in front of and around the BLOCK. The BLOCK is the 5th vessel in for the 24-25 winter lay-up season.
The JOSEPH L. BLOCK was christened June 29, 1976, at Bay Shipbuilding. The vessel’s name came from the Chairman of the Board of the owner, Inland Steel Co. She has carried her name though-out her life and has been owned and operated by Indiana Harbor Steamship Co. and Central Marine Logistics Inc. of Highland, Indiana, respectively since July, 1999. Unfortunately, the BLOCK has had a rough career, suffering a number of engine problems as well as hull damage from groundings and ice. However, after 48 years of battling the Great Lakes, the M/V JOSEPH L. BLOCK continues to serve its owner.
Specifications:
Length 728 feet
Beam (width) 78 feet
Depth 45 feet
Capacity 37,200 tons
Power 2 3600 horsepower EMD V20 diesel engines turning one propeller and bow and stern thrusters
Self-Unloading rate 6,000 tons per hour
Look for an aft pilot house, aft self-unloading boom with an iron ore red hull and white and gray upper paint.
The winter fleet can be viewed at Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding, Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, with viewing spots on both sides of the bay. Be sure to enjoy the spectacular view from the Door County Maritime Museum Lighthouse Tower. Also check out the two new fabrication buildings at the south end of the yard. They are being used to make large subassemblies for a new series of US Navy frigates that will be built across Green 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 dated March 13, 2015
