The Great Lakes have been busy with shipping for centuries since the North-West Company brought furs from the West to Montreal.

Cold waters and rocky shores made the Great Lakes a dangerous place to ship. Fogs, storms and ice; however, there were massive quantities of grain and iron ore to be shipped east.

The "Meteor" is the only turn of the century whaleback iron ore carrier, you can visit without scuba kit. Its rounded hull and tightly fitting hatches make it the forrunner of the modern submarine and oil tanker.

This is the bridge, more exposed than on an ocean ship for manoevring in locks and ports.

Crew quarters were basic but considerably better than on the corvette we visited in Halifax. When any crew member could leave at any port and claim a free homestead or work onshore in Henry Ford or Andrew Carngie's factories, it had to be.

Click here to take the Kenosha streetcar to see more of Wisconsin.

Click here to fly the crane to Wisconsin's Eagle State Park.

Click here to take the minivan to sensational Copper Canyon.

Click here to take the New York Ferry to New York.

Click here to take the Hudson-Bergen tram to the contents page.