Hide Article Text (OCR)
LUDINGTON, Mich.—(#)—Af ter 40,000 trips across Lake Michi gan, Capt. Arthur Altschwager has had enough. The 70-year-old veteran made his final trip last week when he nudged the big carferry, the City of Midland, into her berth, bade his crew farewell and called it a career. With this the portly skipper end ed 40 years of sailing on the Great Lakes. Capt. Altschwager first shipped out as a lookout on the wooden freight and passenger craft that plied between Ludington and Wis consin cities. Boss of ‘Queen.’ He became a second mate on one of the Pere Marquette car ferries in 1918 and has been em ployed by the company ever since. After serving as skipper on each of the company’s seven carferries, he became master of the City of Midland, $2,000,000 queen of the Pere Marquette fleet. The skipper estimates he has made at least 1,000 round trips across each year for the past 20 years. Thus his voyages have taken him the equivalent of 100 times around the world—all on Lake Michigan. And he has spent nearly 200,000 hours piloting his craft through the lake’s storms and calms and wintry blizzards. For the past 65 years, Capt. Alt schwager has lived in Ludington. Now that he has retired, his plans for the future are like those of many another old mariner. He will stay on land, but never get far away from the water. Son's Career Same. “I’m going to settle down now and take life easy,” he told well wishers. “I'm going to do some carpentry around my home and see a lot of my grandchil dren.” But his retirement will not mean an end to his name on Lake Michi gan. One of his sons, Capt. Harold Altschwager, is master of the Pere Marquette carferry City of Flint. Occasionally, the old skipper confides, he may take the trip over to the Wisconsin shore with his son—just for the ride.
Newspaper Details
Racine Journal Times Sunday Bulletin
Racine, Wisconsin, US
Sun, Jan 09, 1949
Page 1
Full Page
Clipped by
Rob A.
USA 07 Jun 2026
Other Publications Near Racine, Wisconsin
Racine Examiner
Racine Independent News
Forward
Racine Index
Racine Independent
