Railroad: Pere Marquette railroad
Built/Acquired: 1941 - Built by Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company, Manitowoc, WI
Crossing: Lake Michigan
End of Service: 1983
Disposition: In 1997, now a barge Pere Marquette 41
Size: 406' long, 58.2' wide. 34 freight car capacity. 75 staterooms.
Type: 72 staterooms, 50 automobiles and 34 railroad freight cars on four tracks.
Ref: [COFTD]
Cost was $1.75 million in 1940. One of the last coal-burning car ferries on Lake Michigan. Powered by two Skinner Unaflow steam engines and capable of up to 20 mph (17.4 knots) with a cruising speed of 17.6 mph.
The ship contained many amenities for automobile and passenger traffic that crossed Lake Michigan in summer months. Nickname was "Queen of the Lakes".
In 2020, purchased by Interlake Holdings and used to carry bulk cargo.
The following sources are utilized in this website. [SOURCE-YEAR-MMDD-PG]: