It’s our favorite #FreighterFriday of the year: Interlake’s full fleet of 11 commercial vessels is underway for the 2026-2027 Great Lakes shipping season! We’re ready to crisscross the Lakes more than 700 times this season and deliver more than 20 million tons of essential cargoes that are the building blocks of America. Our proud, family-owned fleet is U.S. crewed, U.S. built and U.S. owned. We are #madeinamerica. Thank you to all the talented photographers and videographers on the Lakes, and to our incredible mariners working aboard our vessels, who shared their amazing content with us over the season to make …
200+ Michiganders shaped U-M-led state maritime strategy
After talking with lake freighter engineers and shipping company CEOs, boating clubs and ferry captains, frying oil upcyclers and soybean farmers growing crops for biofuels, and many others, Thomas McKenney and his University of Michigan team found a common thread through Michigan’s maritime sector. “While everyone had a unique perspective and viewpoints, all participants emphasized their strong belief that Michigan can do more and is well-positioned to become a national maritime leader,” said McKenney, an associate professor of practice of naval architecture and marine engineering. https://news.umich.edu/200-michiganders-shaped-u-m-led-state-maritime-strategy
Officials build small-scale model of Soo Locks in effort to address ice delays for ships
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and other partners are working to find new ways to address ice in the Soo Locks, which can cause significant shipping delays during the winter shipping season. Each winter and spring, according to the Corps of Engineers, the Poe Lock experiences navigational impacts due to ice flow. The Poe is the largest lock in the Soo, and officials expect to see the same challenges at the new lock when it’s complete in 2030. During the spring, ice flows into the lock chambers, which slows traffic and forces the locks to cycle more often, which …
Interlake Steamship Explores Benefits of Shore-to-Ship Drone Deliveries For Critical Cargo
Using shore-to-ship drone deliveries, Interlake Steamship explored the benefits of drones for supplementing regular deliveries from supply boats, with the potential to cut delays and reduce emissions. https://www.maritimemagazines.com/marine-news/202506/interlake-trials-drone-delivery-to-ships
Meet Our Veterans: Patrick Murray
We are especially thankful and proud to employ many veterans in our company and throughout our fleet. Their brave service and sacrifice to our country is admirable and awe-inspiring. In honor of Veteran’s Day today, we are highlighting one of their stories. Meet Patrick Murray, U.S. Navy Veteran Following in the footsteps of family members and being encouraged by them to join the military is what initially sparked Pat Murray’s interest in the Navy. “My father served aboard a Navy ship as a naval officer during the Korean War and he always spoke fondly of his experiences in the service,” …
Cover Story: July issue of Cleveland Magazine
THE READ Life Aboard the Great Lakes’ Newest Cargo Ship Meet the crew that keeps things running, day and night, on the Mark W. Barker: a new vessel designed specifically to navigate the Cuyahoga River. Annie Nickoloff Thursday, June 20, 2024 https://clevelandmagazine.com/articles/life-aboard-the-mark-w-barker-the-great-lakes-newest-cargo-ship
Maiden Voyage Underway for the First U.S.-flagged Great Lakes Bulk Carrier in Nearly 40 years
Nearly three years after the first cut of steel for the first Great Lakes freighter in nearly 40 years, the 639-foot M/V Mark W. Barker embarked on her maiden voyage today from Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding. “This is a monumental day for our company and the US flag fleet as our much-anticipated freighter departs on her first voyage in what will be a long life of service on the Great Lakes,” says Mark W. Barker, President of The Interlake Steamship Company and namesake of the vessel – the company’s first new build since 1981. “The construction of this vessel, which was made from …
Launch of the First U.S.-flagged Great Lakes Bulk Carrier in Nearly 40 years
Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding and The Interlake Steamship Company hosted a launch ceremony today, marking the latest milestone for the new 639-foot M/V Mark W. Barker. The first U.S.-flagged Great Lakes freighter to be built on the Great Lakes in nearly 40 years, the M/V Mark W. Barker – while still under construction – was “launched” or otherwise floated in the water in the large drydock at the Sturgeon Bay shipyard. A formal maritime tradition, a launching ceremony honors the first time a boat is transferred from land to water. The public event is a way of celebrating and blessing the …
Interlake Maritime Services LOG, Summer 2021
Welcome to the first edition of the Interlake Maritime Services LOG, our new company-wide newsletter. The Interlake LOG was first published in the 1930s, originally as a safety newsletter. It has evolved over the years to include not only notable happenings in our fleet but also stories about those who power our company and the Great Lakes shipping industry. We hope you enjoy this publication! The Summer 2021 Interlake LOG
Interlake Holding Company Secures Two Great Lakes Vessels in Asset Acquisition
Interlake Holding Company announced today the purchase of the assets of Pere Marquette Shipping Company and Lake Michigan Car Ferry Company in an acquisition that includes two working Great Lakes vessels, the Articulated Tug-Barge Undaunted-Pere Marquette 41 and the S.S. Badger, a historic passenger-and-car ferry. The acquisition signals the creation of a new business entity, Interlake Maritime Services, which will manage the new businesses along with The Interlake Steamship Company and its fleet of nine freighters. “This is an exciting day for us and we are thrilled to be welcoming new employees into our Interlake family, new vessel lines into …
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