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 | Scow | John LaClue | 1880-08-05 | 3 | Info on what she can haul is given | |
| Door County Advocate | Scow | John LaClue | 1880-07-22 | 3 | New scow | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Tug | John Lain | 1916-10-06 | 2 | Tug John Lain picked up the body of Mrs. Johnson, wife of the Captain of the Crosby Line steamer Crosby. Search parties had been looking for her the past two weeks in the city and lake. | |
| Door County Advocate | Steamer | John Lambert | 1911-04-27 | 1 | Damaged in collision with North Lake | |
| Door County Advocate | Steamer | John Lambert | 1904-12-31 | 1 | Laid up at Milwaukee | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Tug | John Latham | 1890-11-13 | 3 | Tug John Latham arrived from Sturgeon Bay, with steam pump, and will attempt to raise the scow Becker and pump her out. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | John Latham | 1889-06-13 | 3 | Arrived from Sturgeon Bay with a scow load of timber, and forty cords of stone for the government work. | ||
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Tug | John Leatham | 1902-05-02 | 1 | Harlow Fuller drowned in Lake Michigan the latter part of last week by falling off the tug John Leatham. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Tug | John Leatham | 1880-10-28 | 3 | Is ashore at Whitefish Bay. She was driven on the beach by the southeaster of Monday. | |
| Manitowoc Pilot | Tug | John Leatham | 1892-07-28 | 3 | Brought in schooner Rogers for a general overhaul. |
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.