SS Pere Marquette

The vessel was built for the Flint and Pere Marquette Railroad and complete when launched, except for a few finishing items needed for the cabins.

It left Bay City on December 30, 1896, and arrived first in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, for a day's public inspection.

Fully loaded the carferry had a displacement of some 4,050 tonnes (3,990 long tons) on a 12.25-foot (3.73 m) draft of water.

[6][7][8][9] The vessel carried railroad cars and passengers and went into service as a cross-lake train ferry going across Lake Michigan.

It carried 22 railroad freight boxcars and traveled all night at a speed of 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph) and arrived at its destination at 7:00 A.M. on February 17.