Ludington

Auto Barons Christmas Trees Covered Bridges Detroit Ford Museum Frankenmuth Grand Rapids Holland Keweenaw Peninsula Lansing Lower Peninsula Ludington Mackinac Island Muskegon Pictured Rocks Upper Peninsula

Ludington

 

Mason County Courthouse

 

 

 Ludington is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 8,357. It is the county seat of Mason County.

 

nautical theme playground

Ludington is a harbor located on Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Pere Marquette River. Many people come to Ludington in the summer for recreation, including boating and swimming on Lake Michigan, Hamlin Lake, and other smaller inland lakes, as well as hunting, fishing, and camping. Nearby are Ludington State Park, Nordhouse Dunes Wilderness Area, and Manistee National Forest. It's also the home port of the SS Badger, with daily service in the summer across Lake Michigan to Manitowoc, Wisconsin. Watching the Badger come in to port in the evening from the end of the north break wall is a favorite local pastime.

 

 

In 1675, Jacques Marquette, French missionary and explorer, died and was laid to rest here. A memorial and large iron cross mark the location.

 

The Spirit of Ludington

In 1845, Burr Casswell moved to the area near the mouth of the Pere Marquette River as a location for trapping and fishing. In July 1847 he brought his family to live there as well and began a small community known as Pere Marquette village. Two years later they built a two-story wood-framed house on their farm. After the organization of Mason County in 1855, the first floor of this building was converted into the county's first courthouse. Restored in 1976 by the Mason County Historical Society, the structure stands today as a part of White Pine Village, a museum consisting of several restored and replica Mason County buildings (see external links). The town was later named after the industrialist James Ludington, who owned some of the logging operations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and also lived here. The area boom in the late 1800s was due to these sawmills and also the discovery of salt deposits.

 

 

"Put me in, Coach"


Lumber

 

 

Ludington's Lumbering Era

 

 


By 1892, 162 million board feet (382,000 m³) of lumber and 52 million wood shingles had been produced by the Ludington sawmills. With all of this commerce occurring, Ludington became a major Great Lakes shipping port.

 

 

 

 

 


SS Badger

 

 

Watching the Badger come in to port in the evening from the end of the north break wall is a favorite local pastime.

 

Ludington Car Ferries

In 1897, the Pere Marquette Railroad constructed a fleet of ferries to continue the rail cargo across Lake Michigan to Manitowoc, Wisconsin. The fleet was also expanded to carry cars and passengers across the lake. By the mid-1950s, Ludington had become the largest car ferry port in the world. Unfortunately, due to disuse and declining industry, this fleet eventually dwindled. Currently only one car ferry, the SS Badger, makes regular trips across the lake from Ludington, one of only two lake-crossing car ferries on Lake Michigan.

Text from Wikipedia

 

SS Badger turning in Ludington harbor
to meet the ferry dock to unload autos

 

ready to depart for Wisconsin

 

passing the Ludington breakwater

 

and the Ludington beach

 

the Captain watching as the SS Badger heads for Manitowoc, Wisconsin


Auto Barons Christmas Trees Covered Bridges Detroit Ford Museum Frankenmuth Grand Rapids Holland Keweenaw Peninsula Lansing Lower Peninsula Ludington Mackinac Island Muskegon Pictured Rocks Upper Peninsula

Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Missouri Mississippi Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington Washington D.C. West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming

World Heritage Mosaics Roman World Africa Antarctica Asia Atlantic Islands Australia Caribbean Central America Europe Indian Ocean Middle East North America Pacific Islands South America The Traveler Recent Adventures Adventure Travel

 

People and Places