By Carl Eisenberg
About seven months into Milwaukee’s version of the coronavirus pandemic, on October 13, 2020, the Wisconsin Marine Historical Society began its Little Toot project. On that day, Executive Director Suzette Lopez shared Lynn BeBeau’s October 8 “Mystery Solved” post on Facebook and suggested, “Maybe WMHS should launch a boat?”
The BeBeau Facebook post was about a wooden model boat found by Lynn and Mike BeBeau in the sand near Ashland, Wis. They discovered the boat on October 7, 2020.That little boat had an inscription: “I am traveling to the ocean. Please put me back in the water. Will you send information on your whereabouts to: Lakewood School Room 116 & 118 5207 N Tischer Duluth, MN…53304.”
Twenty seven years earlier in 1993, near Duluth, Minn., at Lakewood Elementary School, the students of teachers Bonnie Fritch and Brenda Scheel painted two model boats and released them at Brighton Beach, Minn., during their year-end trip to Duluth.
This school project was inspired by Holling C. Holling’s 1941 book, Paddle-to-the-Sea, a Caldecott Honor Book in 1942. The students learned about currents and the connection between the Great Lakes and the ocean. In 1966, an Oscar-nominated twenty-eight minute film based on this story was directed by Bill Mason for the National Film Board of Canada. The two boats were painted differently. Brenda Scheel’s boat was not subsequently discovered, but Bonnie Fritch’s boat was found the next year “up the North Shore” where people added a coat of varnish and relaunched it. It was this boat that Lynn and Mike BeBeau discovered years later.
The WMHS’s workroom in the Humanities Room of the Central Branch of the Milwaukee Public Library had been closed because of the coronavirus pandemic and the spirits of the WMHS’s indomitable volunteers were dampened.
Suzette’s provocative question led WMHS leaders to start the Little Toot project as a fun undertaking that might brighten up members’ spirits. Board Member and Promotions Committee Co-chair Joe Grygny eagerly volunteered to construct and decorate three model boats, Little Toot #1, Little Toot #2, and Little Toot #3. Little Toot #3 will be enshrined in the Central Downtown Milwaukee Public Library, perhaps in the Children’s Room, once the pandemic subsides. WMHS member Craig Olsen, a wheelsman on the M/V KAYE E. MARKER, took the responsibility to launch Little Toot #2 from that ship into Lake Superior in June 9, 2021.
Thanks to Holly Church, director of the Milwaukee Community Sailing Center, and Teresa Coronado, the MCSC program director, the christening of Little Toot #1 was held on the grounds of the Sailing Center on Wednesday, June 9.
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Because of Sailing Center limitations on the size of groups, the christening was attended by only eleven individuals.
As WMHS president, I explained that there are some traditions associated with christenings. For example, a bottle of champagne is usually broken on the ship’s bow. In the case of Little Toot #1 we used a bottle of water from Nicolet Bay which is off the shore of Peninsula State Park between Fish Creek and Ephraim, Wis. The bottle of water was provided courtesy of the Northern Sky Theater in Door County. Little Toot #1 was christened by six year old Duke Gordon and two and one-half year old Ryerson Winters who poured the water onto Little Toot #1. It was a beautiful day with a cool breeze but a dense fog bank rolled in and made it necessary to postpone Little Toot #1’s launch until another day. Copies of the Paddle-to-the-Sea book were given to Duke and Ryerson and WMHS hats and t-shirts were distributed among the attendees.
Finally, twenty days later, on June 30, 2021, under a clear sky and with a calm sea, a temperature near 70 and with less than a 10 mph wind from the south, two motor boats provided by the Milwaukee Community Sailing Center for the launch of Little Toot #1 moved slowly away from the dock.
Riding in the IHLENE, piloted by Abbiey Elsasser, was Chris Winters, who has made beautiful photos of the Little Toot project. In the second boat, TETO, piloted by Teresa Coronado, Little Toot #1 rode with me, and Joe, who crafted the three toy boats.
The two motor boats slowly exited Milwaukee’s Inner Harbor and made their way to the launch site at 43 02.724N and 087 52.439W, what appeared to be about a mile from shore. On the way to the launch position the outboard motor on TETO sounded an alarm. The WMHS Book Club has been reading Dead Wake by Erik Larson about the sinking of the LUSITANIA so we were on edge!A quick check proved that there was sufficient gasoline, the motor’s cooling system was working, and there was no smoke. Fortunately, the alarm spontaneously stopped relieving everyone’s concern. As Chris in IHLENE circled to take photos of the launch, Joe spoke to Little Toot #1: “Travel safe and far” and Little Toot #1 was launched over the starboard side.
Little Toot’s journey started right side up. There was happiness as we motored back to the Sailing Center even when the motor sounded another transitory alarm. Besides Chris’ marvelous photos, other images were taken during this event, some from shore by Board member Tina La Prest and some by passengers Joe and me. When we were safely on land, we noticed an emerging fog bank approaching from the south, but the launch of Little Toot #1 was complete.
WMHS member Craig Olsen launched Little Toot #2 from the stern of the M/V KAYE E. BARKER at 7:50 p.m. on Wednesday, June 9, 2021. The BARKER was westbound for Marquette, west of AuSable Point, in Lake Superior and was carrying 20,000 tons of stone that had been loaded earlier that day and the night previous at Stoneport on Lake Huron. It was sunny, with pleasant conditions and about 58 degrees. The stern wind at 88 degrees was 14.6 mph. The ship’s speed was 13.1 knots on a course of 256.2 degrees and the water’s depth was 287.4 feet. The location at time of the launch was 46 42.808N and 086 17.123W.
We were delighted to learn that Little Toot #2 was found on June 17, 2021 ––eight days after Craig launched it –– by Lauren and John Shuman and their 2 year old son, John Andrew. They emailed WMHS on June 21 with this message:
Our boat found Little Toot while fishing at Grand Marais.
Little Toot was floating, in the water, upside down, by the
log slide.
John Andrew is a 2 year old who loves all boats, cars, and
tractors. (See pictures)
We stay in Curtis, MI on Big Manistique Lake, and are from
Canal Fulton, OH.
The Shumans graciously gave permission for WMHS to publish their story and photos. They are planning to relaunch Little Toot #2 later this summer. A copy of Holling C. Holling’s Paddle-to-the-Sea was sent to John Andrew as a memento of his family’s discovery.
Now, we are all wondering where the Little Toots will end up, perhaps years from now.
The inscription on the bottom of each Little Toot says:
My name is little Toot
If you find me please contact my builders at the Wisconsin Marine Historical Society, WMHS@WMHS.ORG
Tell them where you found me
June 2021
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Photo at top of page
Little Toot #1 was christened June 9, 2021, at the Milwaukee Community Sailing Center and launched in Lake Michigan with the Milwaukee skyline in the background. Photo Credit: Chris Winters
More photos
are Teresa Coronado from the Milwaukee Community Sailing Center, and WMHS members Carl Eisenberg and Joe Grygny, who made the toy boats. Photo Credit: WMHS member Chris Winters
Sources:
10/8/20 – Facebook post by Lynn BeBeau: “MYSTERY SOLVED!!” — Noted by Suzette Lopez, WMHS, on 10/13/20
10/11/20 –WQOW.com (Eau Claire)” “Mystery wooden boat found off Wisconsin Shoreline after 27 years”
10/14/20 – Leda Reynolds, Newsweek, “Hikers Find Mysterious Message on Model Boat Washed-up on Lake Superior From 27 Years Ago”
10/16/20 – Lauren M. Johnson, CNN, “A mystery from Lake Superior has been solved, after a tiny boat ended up on the remote shores of the Great Lakes.
Wikipedia – Holling C. Holling
Albert Ohayon (National Film Board of Canada): “Bill Mason: Beyond the Wild, Beyond the Paddle” (https://www.nfb.ca/playlists/albert_ohayon/bill-mason-beyond-wild-beyond-paddle/, June 8, 2021 at 4:32 p.m. CDT)
Carl Eisenberg, MD, FAAP, is a retired pediatrician, and president of the Wisconsin Marine Historical Society, headquartered in Milwaukee. He can be reached at ceisen@icloud.com.
