First in decades, a new Great Lakes freighter joins fleet

For the first time in decades, a new bulk freighter has been built on and launched on the Great Lakes.

The Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding Company in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin unveiled the Mark W. Barker earlier this year after spending nearly three years constructing it. The vessel was commissioned by Cleveland-based Interlake Steamship Company which currently operates about a dozen ships.

Read Now at Great Lakes Now.

Original Article

Great Lakes Now

Great Lakes Now

https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/09/new-great-lakes-freighter-joins-fleet/

James Proffitt

Shipwreck discovered in Lake Superior, 131 years later

DEER PARK, Mich. (AP) — A ship carrying a load of coal when it sank in a storm in 1891 has been discovered in Lake Superior off Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.

The Atlanta is well-preserved in the extremely cold lake, the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society said Thursday.

The shipwreck group posted photos and video with the name of the ship clearly visible at a depth of more than 600 feet (183 meters), roughly 35 miles (56 kilometers) off Deer Park, Michigan.

Read Now at Great Lakes Now.

Original Article

Great Lakes Now

Great Lakes Now

https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/03/ap-shipwreck-discovered-lake-superior/

The Associated Press

Oldest Coast Guard cutter with smallest crew and largest Great Lakes responsibility needs replacing

This article was republished here with permission from Great Lakes Echo.

By Eric Freedman, Great Lakes Echo

The U.S. Coast Guard wants to retire its oldest cutter on the Great Lakes, the 57-year-old cutter Buckthorn.

But don’t hold your breath waiting for the replacement of the Sault Ste.

Read Now at Great Lakes Now.

Original Article

Great Lakes Now

Great Lakes Now

https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/12/oldest-coast-guard-cutter-great-lakes/

Great Lakes Echo

Eastland Documentary: Filmmakers talk behind-the-scenes journey and stories

The latest episode of Great Lakes Now takes a trip to Chicago to learn all about the Eastland tragedy – one that isn’t well known, despite its big impact.

On July 24, 1915, a steamship capsized in the Chicago River, and 844 people drowned.

A documentary about the tragedy, “Eastland: The Shipwreck That Shook America,” is airing on PBS stations around the country.

Read Now at Great Lakes Now.

Original Article

Great Lakes Now

Great Lakes Now

https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/08/eastland-documentary-filmmakers-behind-the-scenes/

GLN Editor

Chicago’s Eastland Disaster: Explore this Great Lakes tragedy with a Storymap

Historic photos, newly discovered film reels, archival accounts from survivors and stories from their descendants are all part of the new documentary “Eastland: The Shipwreck That Shook America.”

The steamship capsized on the Chicago River as hundreds of passengers boarded. Their destination: a day trip to Michigan City, Indiana, just across the southern end of Lake Michigan.

Read Now at Great Lakes Now.

Original Article

Great Lakes Now

Great Lakes Now

https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/08/chicago-eastland-disaster-great-lakes-tragedy-storymap/

Sandra Svoboda