Joel Stone, Curator Emeritus, Detroit Historical Society,  Spoke to the Club on July 11th

 

Curator Emeritus Joel Stone of the Detroit Historical Society, author of 100 Years of the Detroit Historical Society and Floating Palaces of the Great Lakes spoke July 11. The Society is the steward of both the Detroit Historical Museum and the Dossin Great Lakes Museum. Joel summarized the history of the palatial steamboats that cruised the Great Lakes in the 19th and early 20th century. They were the focus of his Floating Palaces book, published by the University of Michigan Press in 2015. Click here for more information on his book. 

Joel described the importance of these boats that began carrying passengers and freight on the Great Lakes in the early 19th century. They frequently connected railroad lines and could save time and expense on trips to the west or the east. For example, the Michigan Central Railroad ran side-wheel steamers from Buffalo to Detroit. Passengers could then transfer to trains to cross Michigan and then another steamer would take them to Chicago, from which they could continue to various destinations in the West. Other railroads and shipping companies, such as the Detroit and Cleveland Navigation Company, expanded their fleets as traffic grew. As the boats got larger, they also became more elegant, with multiple restaurants and lounges. They gave middle-class Americans a taste of luxury they couldn't get elsewhere at a price they could afford.

Steamers also carried passengers to resorts and hotels in the northern lakes, such as Mackinac Island, and on day trips from Detroit and Cleveland. In the mid-19th century, propellers started to replace side-wheels, but the conversion took decades. The industry suffered as a result of the Panic of 1857 and the Civil War, but came back strong in the latter part of the century and the beginning of the 20th century. To get a taste of these ships, visit the Dossin Great Lakes Museum to see the restored Gothic Room from the S.S. City of Detroit III, built in 1915.

Located on Belle Isle, the Dossin Great Lakes Museum is dedicated to showcasing the story of the Great Lakes, with a special emphasis on Detroit's role in regional and national maritime history. Visitors at the 16,000 square foot museum enjoy exhibits that tell more than 300 years of the region's rich maritime history, from the shipping fleets that rule the waterways to the varied roles that the Great Lakes and the Detroit River have played in our region's industrial and social history.

 For photos of the July 11th meeting, go here.