NOAA’s Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary
Posted to Facebook on December 18, 2024 ·
It’s Wednesday once again, which means we’re welcoming you back to another #WreckWednesday! This week we are featuring the converted tug: ROBERT C. PRINGLE!
ROBERT C. PRINGLE was built as the packet steamer CHEQUAMEGON in 1903 at Manitowoc Shipbuilding in Manitowoc, WI to carry freight on Lake Superior, operating for the Chequamegon Bay Transportation Company between Ashland, WI and the Apostle Islands. Only a year after the vessel was built, Fredrick Pabst (yep, THAT Pabst) purchased the vessel and operated it out of Milwaukee. Until 1908, the vessel was used to transport passengers for day trips between Whitefish Bay Park and Milwaukee, as well as various other ports throughout the Great Lakes region.
In 1911, CHEQUAMEGON’s name was changed to PERE MARQUETTE 7, and the vessel was once again used to carry package freight throughout the region. During this eight-year period, the vessel traveled to many different ports in the upper Great Lakes. By 1918, the vessel was sold once again, this time to the Pringle Barge Line, based in Cleveland, OH, and its name was changed to ROBERT C. PRINGLE. Once owned by the Pringle Line, the vessel’s upper decks were removed, and the vessel was converted into a tug, with a tall forward pilothouse, and a large, open back deck equipped with a large steam winch, used for towing large vessels.