It’s been 140 years since a group of U.S. steamship companies formed an alliance called the Cleveland Vessel Owners Association, whose primary purpose was to promote safe navigation by the ships that plied the Great Lakes.
That original alliance has since become the Lake Carriers’ Association, which is still based in Cleveland and represents the interests of companies that have a combined 46 vessels on the lakes and move 90 million tons of cargo annually.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/10/great-lakes-freighters-lake-carriers-association/