Alpena in Alpena County, Michigan — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

A Shipbuilding Revolution

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, July 23, 2018

1. A Shipbuilding Revolution Marker

Inscription. Click to hear the inscription.

Shipbuilding forever changed with the transition from wooden hulls to those built of iron and steel. The first iron-hulled freighter on the Great Lakes, the Onoko, debuted in 1881. At 287 feet long, she was a giant of her day. Just five years later, in 1886, the first steel-hulled vessel arrived on the Great Lakes, the Spokane.

Iron and steel made it possible to build ships of sizes wooden shipbuilders only dreamed of. In 1894, the steel steamer Victory distinguished herself as the first ship over 400 feet in length on the Great Lakes. In 1912, the first 600-footer followed. As ships grew, locks and canals grew with them. By 1958, these expansions allowed for 730-footers like the well-known Edmund Fitzgerald. With the most recent enlargement of the Soo Locks in 1973, the Great Lakes now host vessels reaching incredible lengths of just over 1,000 feet.

Erected by Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Trail.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Waterways & Vessels.

Location.

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45° 3.989′ N, 83° 26.034′ W. Marker is in Alpena, Michigan, in Alpena County. Marker can be reached from West Fletcher Street west of Commercial Street, on the left when traveling north. Marker is located along the Alpena Bi-Path, on the west side of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife complex, beside the Thunder Bay River. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 480 West Fletcher Street, Alpena MI 49707, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Bigger, Stronger, Faster (here, next to this marker); Fast Steel Flyer: The Bulk Freighter Grecian (within shouting distance of this marker); Steaming Open the Frontier (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Research Vessels (about 400 feet away); Rising from the Ashes: The New Orleans (about 400 feet away); The Fletcher Coal Piers (about 500 feet away); Propellers (about 500 feet away); The Loss of the Pewabic (about 500 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Alpena.

More about this marker. Marker is a large composite plaque, mounted waist-high on a metal supporting rack.

Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker. S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald

Also see . . .
1. SS Onoko. The Onoko was an iron hulled Great Lakes

Marker sidebar photos image. Click for full size.

2. Marker sidebar photos

freighter. She was launched in 1882 in Cleveland, Ohio as hull number #4, and sank on September 14, 1915 in Lake Superior near Knife River, Minnesota. The Onoko is thought to be the prototype for every single steel hulled Great Lakes Bulk carrier that ever sailed. These vessels made possible the cheap transport of bulk cargoes such as iron ore, coal and limestone. Her wreckage still remains on the bottom of Lake Superior and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992. (Submitted on August 25, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

2. Great Lakes Vessel History: the Spokane. Steel Great Lakes bulk and package freight vessel, later package freighter and automobile carrier. Built at Cleveland OH by Globe Iron Works, Hull 11. Launched June 5, 1886. Stranded Oct 28, 1907 on Gull Rock, Manitou Island, Lake Superior and declared constructive total loss. No lives lost. (Submitted on August 25, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

Shipbuilding Revolution Marker (<i>view south along Alpena Bi-path; Thunder Bay River on right</i>) image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, July 23, 2018

3. Shipbuilding Revolution Marker (view south along Alpena Bi-path; Thunder Bay River on right)

Credits. This page was last revised on August 25, 2018. It was originally submitted on August 20, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 273 times since then and 123 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on August 25, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.