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  • Fish Tugs (Page 2)

Fishtown’s Tugs

A (Very) Brief History

By the late 1800s Leland was home to a small fleet of fishing vessels. These early fishermen set their nets offshore in open wood mackinaw boats rigged with sails. By 1905 the fishermen began to replace the sails in their mackinaw boats with gas-powered engines. The new engines and the addition of protective cabins enabled the fishermen to fish farther from port, in more inclement weather, and for more of the year.

fish tug gallery

Click here to see our photo gallery

Diesel eventually replaced gas and new machinery was added to newly built tugs that made the fishermen increasingly efficient at catching fish, but wood tugs still reigned in Fishtown until the late 1950s. In 1958 the Steffens and Stallman families dedicated two new fish tugs in Leland. With these boats, the Janice Sue and the Mary Ann, commercial fishing in Leland left the world of wood boats and entered the world of steel, with hulls specially designed for the rigors of this part of the Great Lakes. Janice Sue has served in Leland ever since. Trap net fishing began in Leland in 1982, with the launch of the hand-crafted steel tug, the Joy.

 

The Bead Hut

Unique handcrafted jewelry using Leland blue, Petoskey stones, beach glass, and semiprecious gemstones.

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Big Stone Bay Fishery

For more than thirty years, Cameron “Cam” McMurry of Big Stone Bay Fishery has caught and

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Advanced Computer Solutions

ACS is passionate about helping small business owners succeed through the use of their technology.

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Stories and Fishes and Me – Defining Fishtown

Defining Fishtown Gabrielle Grobbel – Fishtown Preservation I meet people all the time in the Fishtown Welcome Center who ask me why Fishtown is worth preserving and what makes it so special. This is what I have to say. Fishtown has grown through the years as a booming commercial fishing village and a beloved summer […]

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