The Maritime Speaker Series at the Door County Maritime Museum continues on Thursday, December 6 at 7pm with Frederick Stonehouse discussing the US Life-Saving Service on the Great Lakes. Admission is free of charge with either a non-perishable food donation or a toy for “Toys for Tots”. Each month, November through April, the Door County Maritime Museum in Sturgeon Bay features a new speaker covering historical topics and current issues affecting the Great Lakes and the economy that relies on it.
Stonehouse’s talk will focus on the heroes of the U.S. Life-Saving Service on the Great Lakes. From 1874 until 1915, when it became the U.S. Coast Guard, the men of the US Life-Saving Service displayed incredible courage and bravery in rescuing over 55,000 people from potential death on the Great Lakes. Their unofficial motto was, “Regulations say we have to go out; they say nothing about coming back.” It was a motto they lived and, in some cases, died by. Despite personal danger or difficulty, in the face of nearly insurmountable odds, the Life-Savers invariably accomplished the rescue. Stonehouse will share their story of courage.
Frederick Stonehouse is a founding board member and past president of the U.S. Life-Saving Heritage Association, which is dedicated to saving and telling the story of this most remarkable organization. He has authored over thirty books on maritime history. His extensive knowledge has also made him an on-air expert for National Geographic, History Channel and Fox Family television. He has been honored with the Association for Great Lakes Maritime History award for historic interpretation and the Marine Historian of the Year by the Detroit Marine Historical Society. Most recently, he was given the 2014 Distinguished Alumni Award by Northern Michigan University. Stonehouse teaches Great Lakes maritime history at Northern Michigan University and is an active consultant for numerous Great Lakes oriented projects and programs.
The Door County Maritime Museum holds the Maritime Speaker Series on the first Thursday of each month from November to April at 7 pm. Admission is free and the Maritime Speaker Series is held in the Reddin Bridge Room at the Door County Maritime Museum in Sturgeon Bay.
Be sure to check out the upcoming speakers in the series:
- January 3, 2019: Dr. Patrick Forsyth, “Great Lakes Fish”
- February 7, 2019: Jake Heffernan, “Lighthouses of Door County”
- March 7, 2019: Tom Wenstadt, “Title XI Vessels Built in Door County”
- April 4, 2019: Program TBA
The Door County Maritime Museum & Lighthouse Preservation Society, Inc. preserves Great Lakes maritime history, primarily focusing on Door County, Wisconsin, and provides interpretive and educational opportunities for current and future generations. The Museum is comprised of three locations: Door County Maritime Museum in Sturgeon Bay, Cana Island Lighthouse in Baileys Harbor and Death’s Door Maritime Museum in Gills Rock. For more information, please visit www.DCMM.org or call (920) 743-5958.