Search below for stories about ships, lighthouses, sailors and anything else about life on Lake Michigan. The database contains references to articles from the Ahnapee (Algoma) Record (June 12, 1873 to Jan. 7, 1927), the Door County Advocate (Nov. 8, 1861 to Dec. 22, 1949), and the Manitowoc Pilot (June 14, 1859 to Dec. 28, 1899). The results will direct you to the date and page in these newspapers where the article can be found.
Microfilm copies of the Ahnapee (Algoma) Record are available at the Wisconsin Historical Society Library in Madison, Algoma Public Library in Algoma. Microfilm copies of the Door County Advocate are available at the Wisconsin Historical Society Library in Madison, the Door County Public Library in Sturgeon Bay, and the Brown County Library in Green Bay. Microfilm of the Manitowoc Pilot are available at the Manitowoc County Historical Society, the Manitowoc Public Library, and the Wisconsin Historical Society in Madison.
Check with your local library about obtaining the microfilm via interlibrary loan.
| Newspaper | Object | Name | Date | Page | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Door County Advocate | Tug | J. N. Brooks | 1879-05-22 | 3 | Engaged in fishing business | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Tug | J. N. Brooks | 1905-12-01 | 1 | The tug J. N. Brooks has been taken up above Second street bridge and laid up for the winter, it having been stated that she will not engage in fishing this winter. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Tug | J. N. Brooks | 1905-09-15 | 1 | Sinks while lying at her dock. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Tug | J. N. Brooks | 1903-10-30 | 1 | Thos. Swaty left Monday for Eagle Island to resume his position as engineer on the fishing tug J. N. Brooks, now engaged in fishing in Green Bay waters. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Fishing tug | J. N. Brooks | 1902-11-14 | 1 | Arrived in port from Detroit Harbor where the boat has been engaged in the fishing business for the past couple of months. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Tug | J. N. Brooks | 1901-06-14 | 1 | Has been fishing out of Washington Harbor. Ran in to have some repairs made to her machinery. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Fish tug | J. N. Brooks | 1900-11-02 | 1 | The fish tug J. N. Brooks was taken to Manitowoc last week to have some needed repairs made to her boiler before entering into the winters fishing. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Tug | J. N. Brooks | 1902-05-09 | 1 | Chapek Bros., bought the schooner Leo and brought her to this port in tow of the tug J. N Brooks. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Tug | J. N. Brooks | 1902-07-11 | 1 | The tug J. N. Brooks left here for Washington Island to tow the schooner Leo to Sturgeon Bay for repairs. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Tug | J. N. Brooks | 1899-07-14 | 3 | Capt. Frank Chapek says they will be in readiness to begin fishing about the first of the month. |
This database is a cooperative effort of the Wisconsin Underwater Archaeology Association (WUAA), the Wisconsin Historical Society (WHS), and the University of Wisconsin Sea Grant Institute. The project is spearheaded by WUAA member Russel Leitz, who helped develop a framework for the database and painstakingly combed through 54 years of the Ahnapee (Algoma) Record, 87 years of the Door County Advocate and 40 years of the Manitowoc Pilot for maritime news. The more than 50,000 references are the fruit of his labor alone.