Wisconsin 101

Great Lakes Shipping and the SS Meteor

The SS Meteor sailed the lakes longer than most ships of her day, and in her many reincarnations she offers a portrait of how some of the industries on the Great Lakes changed– and what those changes meant for Wisconsin. Launched in 1896, the then-named Frank…

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May 21, 2018

Industry / Maritime Industry / Superior / Related Stories / Douglas County / Manufacturing & Trade / 1877-1900 / Region 1 - North West / Transportation & Tourism / The SS Meteor

The American Steel Barge Company

Duluth, MN and Superior, WI face each other across the Saint Louis Bay. In the mid-nineteenth century, as grain harvests of the northern plains expanded, logging grew, and as iron and copper mining developed in northern Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula, shipping…

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May 21, 2018

Maritime Industry / Racine / Manitowoc / Milwaukee / Kenosha / Kenosha County / Milwaukee County / Sheboygan / Port Washington / Two Rivers / Related Stories / Ozaukee County / Door County / Racine County / 1848-1877 / Manitowoc County / Nature & Environment / Sheboygan County / Politics & Government / Region 5 - Center East / Transportation & Tourism / Region 8 - South East / Lifesaving Medal

Early Lifesaving Stations in Wisconsin

A Slow BeginningAs maritime commerce grew in the early 19th century, the loss of vessels and crews to shipwreck increased. In 1848, the federal government, through the United States Revenue Marine, established its first lifesaving stations along the New Jersey coast. The system…

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May 21, 2018

Industry / Maritime Industry / Milwaukee / Milwaukee County / Related Stories / 1848-1877 / Manufacturing & Trade / Nature & Environment / Transportation & Tourism / Region 8 - South East / Lifesaving Medal

The Wreck of the Tanner

The Wrecked VesselThe Tanner was a barque, or three-masted ship, whose foremast was square-rigged and whose main-and mizzenmasts were fore-and-aft rigged. It measured 156.38 feet long by 31.75 feet in breadth. The ship was built in 1863 by the Milwaukee shipbuilding firm Ellsworth & Davidson and…

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May 21, 2018

Read more about the article The Rescuers of the Tanner

Lifesaving Service crew, about 1910. This image, which was taken by Milwaukee photographer J. Robert Taylor, likely shows the crew of the Milwaukee station. Wisconsin Historical Society Image ID 55832.

Maritime Industry / Milwaukee / Milwaukee County / Related Stories / 1848-1877 / Transportation & Tourism / Region 8 - South East / Lifesaving Medal

The Rescuers of the Tanner

On September 10, 1875, six rescue boat volunteers were dispatched to aid the crew of the Tanner, a cargo ship foundering in Milwaukee Harbor after being struck by a powerful storm. All six of the rescue boat volunteers – but not the captain…

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May 21, 2018