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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Steam barge | Mary Mills | 1892-08-25 | 3 | The steam barge Mary Mills spent last Sunday in this port. The Mills was bound north, light. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Barge | Mary Mills | 1891-09-03 | 3 | Capt. Jas. Tufts, of Clay Banks, reports his barge to be kept busy with freights so far this season. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Steambarge | Mary Mills | 1891-12-31 | 3 | The steambarge Mary Mills tarried in the harbor here a few hours last Tuesday. She was bound south with a cargo of wood. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Steambarge | Mary Mills | 1891-11-12 | 3 | Passed this port. It appears that she cannot be much the worse for her contact with the rocks on Green Island reef. | |
| Ahnapee (Algoma) Record | Steambarge | Mary Mills | 1899-05-19 | 3 | In command of Capt. John Bolton, discharged a large quantity of freight that she loaded in Chicago. She left for Egg Harbor to load lumber. | |
| Door County Advocate | Steambarge | Mary Mills | 1898-04-09 | 1 | To Menominee for lumber | |
| Door County Advocate | Steamer | Mary Mills | 1898-09-17 | 1 | Seized by U. S. marshal | |
| Door County Advocate | Steamer | Mary Mills | 1898-11-12 | 1 | Reported lost -bobbed up serenely on Sunday | |
| Door County Advocate | Steambarge | Mary Mills | 1888-08-25 | 3 | Half interest purchased | |
| Door County Advocate | Steambarge | Mary Mills | 1897-05-15 | 1 | Hard aground in channel |
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.