Autos Across Mackinac: Traffic on the Rise Again Across Straits
Part 17: CLIMBING AGAIN
By Les Bagley

The modifications to the St. Ignace State Dock (seen here) done two years earlier had shown their worth. By summer 1935, traffic was already backing up nearly every day, both in St. Ignace and in Mackinaw City. While Michigan's Washington delegation tried to drum up federal support for bridging the Straits, motorists found they waited longer and longer in ferry lines. (Author's collection)

To celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the opening of the Mackinac Bridge, the St. Ignace News is serializing Les Bagley's history of Michigan State Ferries, Autos Across Mackinac. With the worst of the Great Depression apparently over, traffic on the straits ferries again began to build in 1934. The numbers continued to mount in 1935.

While Michigan has always tended to lean Republican, the state's politics are like a pendulum, and with the start of 1935 came the start of another Republican gubernatorial administration. While voters were fed up with the Depression in 1932 and voted out the Republicans, by 1934, they were fed up with the Democrats, and particularly Governor William Comstock. At his inaugural in Lansing, incoming Governor Frank D. Fitzgerald of Grand Ledge was presented with a bronze elephant that had once graced the desk of former Governor Brucker. When leaving office, Brucker had sworn the elephant would someday return, and with the presentation, he made sure it did.

Michigan State Ferries again entered the 1935 tourist season with three ferries, including their 5-yearold flagship, The Straits of Mackinac (bottom.) As the Great Depression eased, motorists returned to the ferries in ever increasing numbers, once again straining the fleet's 200-car-per-cycle capacity. (Postcard by G.H. Wickman, author's collection.)

At the Straits, cold weather did little to hamper enthusiasm for additional employment when the local ERA office received approval of a $13,000 project to improve the State Coal Dock. Old pilings at the end of the dock were to be cut off, tapered, and recapped, with appropriate stringers, flooring and creosoting of the newly extended surface was also planned, to ensure the reconstruction would endure. Two shifts of 15 men were to be employed, with construction starting January 11. The ERA would provide the labor, while the highway department was to provide materials, designs, and supervision. State engineers believed workers could make better progress in wintertime, when the frozen lake surface could support some of the construction from below.

Even with the upper decks filled each trip, the three-boat fleet left cars waiting on nearly every departure. Traffic was particularly heavy on Memorial Day, a portent of things to come on the even busier Independence Day weekend, when the ferries set new daily traffic records. (Author's collection)

But the weather did not cooperate. By the time the lake froze hard enough, and construction actually began with a crew of six men in late February, estimated costs had risen to $15,000. The state planned to employ two shifts of 12 men, each working for a week before being spelled by the other.

Meanwhile, winter auto traffic continued on the railroad boats. The Chief Wawatam's master, Commodore John A. Stufflebeam, retired in late January and moved to California. His crew presented him with a Crosley radio, which was shipped to his new Oakland home. The retirement party also welcomed a familiar face back to the Straits run. The Chief's new master was John Stufflebeam's nephew, Gerald Stufflebeam, late of the Alabama, and former superintendent of the State Ferry fleet, who was glad to return to employment near his many friends at the Straits.

To supplement the three state boats, for the first time, the Highway Department chartered the railroad ferry Chief Wawatam on a "per-trip" basis, and used her when waiting lines of autos grew too long. It was more economical to charter the whole boat than to pay the difference between the fares the railroad charged and those charged on the State Ferries, as had been done in the winter. (Author's collection)

In early February, the trial of Bruno Hauptman, the accused kidnapper of Charles Lindberg's infant son, made national news. Hauptman was found guilty and condemned to the electric chair. Locally, in an unusual joint meeting between Republican and Democrat committees in St. Ignace, veteran druggist Eustache LaRoque, a Republican, was unanimously selected to replace retiring Democrat Mayor Chester Wing for the upcoming term of office. Wing announced he was leaving office to open a new grocery business.

It was also not until mid- February that the weather bureau finally got around to issuing an ice condition report for the Straits, saying it was up to a foot thinner than in past years. Capt. Jerry had no trouble getting the Chief back and forth on her runs, although the ice bridge to Mackinac Island remained useable to horses, dog sleds, and pedestrians. Still, ice conditions led to speculation that the navigation season might open much earlier than normal.

In that hope, about a dozen State Ferry crewmembers began the job of fitting out The Straits of Mackinac at the Coal Dock on March 27, with the balance of the crew to report April 2. For 1935, The Straits would sail with 22 men, one more than in previous years. Supt. Doner announced the other two ferries would probably join the run in May, each with a crew of 21. For 1935, Capt. Sigruid Frey, who had already reported for duty, would command the Sainte Ignace and the Mackinaw City would sail under Capt. Murray McIntosh, who had not yet arrived.

On Sunday, April 14, a strong northwest wind blew ice out of the St. Ignace harbor. That cleared the way for The Straits, under Capt. George Loughlin, to move over to the auto dock, which she did, at about 2:30 Monday afternoon. The 1935 State Ferry season began as scheduled on Tuesday, April 16, with sailings on the same one-boat schedule as in the past.

At a speech in Iron River, George Bishop of the U.P. Development Bureau projected 1935 tourism would be worth more than $7 million in the Upper Peninsula. He praised Rep. Fenlon's bill, pending in the legislature, to provide $200,000 in promotion money for the upcoming biennium, saying any money spent would be well worth the investment. Bishop hoped improved tourism could replace the declining lumber industry as the region's economic leader. To help, the Michigan Department of Conservation set about an ambitious plan to improve streams for fishing, the Highway Department continued road construction and improvements, and local communities were asked to create more tourist friendly facilities, including public parks and rest stops.

In St. Ignace, promoters started a local "tourist club," an idea they borrowed from tourism boosters in Florida. Hotel and rooming house operators provided guests' names to the "club office," and meetings were held between tourism promoters and visitors in the area. For a nominal fee, a list of planned tourist activities was then offered to induce visitors to stay longer.

More tourists were coming to the area, as well. On May 18, the two smaller ships replaced The Straits of Mackinac and began sailing every 90 minutes. The larger boat was taken to the coal dock for two weeks of painting to get her ready for the summer "rush."

By Monday, May 20, the state boats had carried more than 7,000 cars for the year.

"Traffic on the ferries is one of the best barometers of the tourist business in the state," Highway Commissioner Murray Van Wagoner said. "This early season increase indicates that Michigan is in line for a record tourist season."

By late in the month, traffic was running 15 percent ahead of the previous year.

Memorial Day weekend brought a rush normally seen only in August. The Straits, which was to have been held in reserve until Independence Day weekend, was pressed into service over a month early to deal with the growing backups. With all three ferries running wild, more than 250 autos were transported in just three hours on Saturday morning. By afternoon, the rush had slackened and The Straits was tied back up. Yet, she was pressed back into service the next day, when 884 cars were transported, setting a new single-day Straits record for so early in the season.

No sooner had the holiday rush been handled than another rush developed. On the next Friday, 40 units of the United States Air Defense Command, consisting of 113 vehicles and nearly 500 men, arrived in St. Ignace after war maneuvers in Kewaunee, Wisconsin. The trucks and trailers came at intervals starting early in the afternoon, and it took the rest of the day for the three state boats to ferry them to Mackinaw City. Five gigantic searchlights, five huge sound locator units, and four 10-ton anti-aircraft guns, along with base trucks, supply, and personnel carriers made the crossing, en route to the Cheboygan airport.

Tourist traffic just kept coming. June figures showed another 15 percent increase over the year before. All three boats were used on several weekends when traffic began to back up on the docks. By month's end, when the third boat should have started, many officials privately wondered what would happen during the Independence Day rush. They quickly found out.

To relieve congestion, the Mackinaw City was called into service at 12:30 a.m. as third boat. All three boats then began a 24-hour summer schedule, leaving each side hourly, from St. Ignace on the half hour, and Mackinaw City on the hour. That schedule was slated to last until September 9, after Labor Day.

Commissioner Van Wagoner was one of the passengers that July 4th weekend. Along with much of his staff, he traveled north to dedicate a bridge at Sault Ste. Marie.

In early July, the Public Works Administration (PWA) conducted hearings in Washington, D.C., on funding the proposed bridge across the Straits. While waiting for the PWA's decision, there was widely conflicting speculation about the results. Cheboygan delegates said prospects for approval were encouraging, while those from the Mackinaw City Chamber of Commerce reported that, "for the present, the Straits Bridge is out."

Several problems had arisen. The PWAsubmitted a list of questions to be answered by Michigan's attorney general, but those were categorized as minor. More crucial were the Lake Carriers Association and Shore Captains Committee objections that the long bridge route, via causeway from Cheboygan, would obstruct navigation. The objections were ruled out of order, but observers felt that if only one route, the direct route, had been mentioned, the decision would probably be more favorable.

The biggest problems were threefold: 1. The plans for financing might be illegal. One member of the board cited examples from three other parts of the country where similar programs were held unconstitutional, and the states were not responsible for the bonds issued. 2. The chairman of the board of review, also an engineer, felt if the present boat service was not sufficient, it would be more feasible to build more boats, than to build three bridges and miles of causeway as proposed by Mr. Fowler. 3. The Lake Carriers objected to closing the south channel, or restricting it to one 300-foot-wide opening. Their spokesman, Vice President L. C. Sabin, reminded the board that 21 million tons of shipping passed through the channel the year before.

The delegates returned home to await the PWA's decision.

On July 26, Governor Fitzgerald visited Mackinac Island to see what could be done to revive the tourist industry there, hard hit by the Depression, and the change in travel habits to an automobile-based itinerary. He had only recently received reports that on one July date the Grand Hotel had only 34 guests registered, and there were only 15 guests at other lodgings on the island. The Governor tentatively suggested that the Mackinac Island's ban on autos be removed and that the State Ferries add the island as a port of call. Cars could be parked in a lot near the dock, or used on the island on a "limited basis." One suggestion was that a single highway for autos be completed around the perimeter, but that cars should be banned from interior roadways.

Many island residents, particularly the local carriage drivers, strongly objected to the proposal.

Elsewhere in Straits Country, tourism was booming. In July, traffic on the ferries climbed 4,059 cars over the previous year's record. On a day-to-day average, business was up a whopping 20 percent. With good weather, area beaches were crowded and most resort operators reported near capacity bookings. And Commissioner Van Wagoner reported good news for worker relief efforts, as well. As part of a statewide, $13 million program approved by President Roosevelt, almost $1,276,000 would be spent improving "tourist roads" in Upper Michigan. The work was to start by the end of August.

By Saturday, August 10, Straits traffic records were falling daily. That day the three-boat fleet moved 2,030 cars, about 50 percent of them going in each direction. Captain Doner interviewed many of the southbound motorists to see why so many had ended their vacations early. He reported that most said they'd been called back to work at the Detroit auto plants to begin work the following Monday. But even as those vacationers left, they were replaced by more northbound travelers. Lines on the dock seemed to grow longer by the week. By month's end, traffic tallies were up 21.15 percent, passenger counts were up 19.41 percent, and revenues were up 21.94 percent over the previous year. With Labor Day and hunting season yet to go, the ferries had carried almost 81,000 cars!

To help out, the Highway Department arranged to charter the Chief Wawatam on a per-trip basis. By chartering the whole boat, more cars could be carried at less cost than paying the difference between the state and the railroad auto fares. The agreement came just in time.

In an editorial published August 29 in the St. Ignace Republican- News, E. J. Chatelle noted that with so much more traffic, the ferry service had proved woefully inadequate. Even with the Chief Wawatam pressed into service for several trips in the previous weeks, motorists had to wait two or three boats before they could board. He demanded the ferry service add another ferry, saying at times as many as six were needed. He concluded that with the traffic the ferries were carrying, they could ill afford not to add another boat as soon as possible.

He was right. On Labor Day weekend, the all-time record for autos ferried was shattered twice in two days. All three state boats and the Chief ran wild to move 2,346 cars in 24 hours on Saturday. On Sunday, 2,625 were carried.

Asked about using the Chief for summer crush service, Capt. Doner said it had "solved a problem for us. Our equipment has not been adequate to handle the rush business this season, but the chartering of the Chief has enabled us to give autoists pretty decent service. There have been no long waits for passage, only a few cars indeed being asked to wait over an hour. By chartering the railway ferry, with its 95 small car capacity, we have used it just as one of our own ferries in the times we've needed it."

Over the weekend the big boat moved more than 1,000 cars.

Traffic started backing up onto highways ahead of the toll booths. Autos rolled into town, one right after the other all weekend, and had to wait in line to buy tickets before boarding. The jam only ended when the Labor Day weekend concluded.

When traffic finally dropped to more manageable levels, Capt. Frey took the Sainte Ignace on a 36-hour cruise to a minor overhaul in Detroit. The fall schedule with two boats went into effect, lasting until hunting season began on November 10, when once again all three boats would run wild.

It is interesting to note that, as the fall schedule began, the Highway Department sent out a press release touting the combined 100 year experience of its ferry captains. Capt. Loughlin had 38 years sailing experience, Capt. MacIntosh had about 50 years of service, and Capt. Frey boasted 32 years. All three were licensed to sail anywhere on the Great Lakes. In addition, Capt. Doner, though not actively sailing, also held a license to command any vessel on any sea. All four had been appointed three years previously by Commissioner Murray Van Wagoner.

Despite their masters' experience, the State's three ferries were proving inadequate. From no less a publication than The Christian Science Monitor came suggestions that the Highway Department quickly look into acquiring more boats. The request became particularly poignant in late September when the New Deal administration in Washington dashed bridge hopes by rejecting the Bridge Authority's loan request. The Highway Department wasted no time and began a study to see if one or more boats should be added.

One proposal was to build another boat. But officials thought maybe the new boat should be of a different type. Since starting in 1923, the operation had always depended on side loading ferries. The arrangement began as an expedient for the little Ariel, a side-loader from the Detroit River. With side loading slips for her already in place, it was natural that the Colonels were built that way when they were modified for ferry service. The new-built Straits was again constructed along the same lines, and the arrangement had continued since.

In October, Superintendent

Doner joined Commissioner Van Wagoner on a week-long fact-finding junket to Washington, D.C., and Norfolk, Virginia. In tidewater, they inspected a ferry operation that used end-loading ferries to cross Hampton Roads, a style particularly adaptable to the railroad boats at the Straits. The state's proposal might include that type of arrangement for a new boat as well.

Meanwhile, the Chief was again chartered for the hunting season rush. Starting November 1, all four boats ran wild, with a four-boat operation continuing, regardless of schedule, until all the hunters were accommodated.

But hunters weren't the only things that rattled the Straits that November morning. At about 1:30 a.m., a pronounced earthquake shook the region. For about two minutes, swinging doors and rattling windows caused many residents to run outside to investigate. According to a newspaper report, "The quake was apparently felt most in the vicinity of the St. Ignatius Church." It added, "Seamen on the state boats reported no signs of the quake being apparent aboard their steamers."

The hunting season started out barely apparent, with traffic the first few days well below 1934 levels. For awhile, the expected rush failed to materialize. But as the season progressed, traffic counts did likewise. Commissioner Van Wagoner arrived on Wednesday evening, November 13, as a new hunting season record was set. Some 5,414 hunters crossed that day on the three state boats and two additional trips by the chartered Chief Wawatam. In five days, more than 15,000 hunters made the crossing, some surprising the ferry captains on the way.

On Tuesday evening, November 12, a bright suited hunter met Capt. McIntosh by accident on the Mackinaw City, and discovered he'd sailed as a steward under the captain 15 years before. He presented McIntosh with a jar of homemade strawberry jam for his toast at breakfast. One man on the Mackinaw City was surprised to see his wife on her first trip north, wearing men's hunting clothes.

"You'd better not come up to the cabin with those pants on," he told her. She replied, "You might as well get used to me in these - I'm going to wear them all the time, now!"

There were hunting success stories as well. Sheriff W. S. Chapman of Shiawasee County showed off an 11-point buck, but his teenaged son topped him with a 12-pointer. Crowds also gathered at the State Dock to see the 374 lb. carcass of an enormous black bear, which Chapman had to shoot five times to bring down.

"If I'd known the size of that bruin, I'd never have shot," the sheriff said. "Next time I'll let a bear that size go by!"

The volume of hunting traffic was monitored on an hourly basis for the entire season at the ferry docks, northbound at Mackinaw City and Southbound at St. Ignace. The state wanted to know how many cars arrived at what hours, and how the traffic volume compared to levels in pervious years. Planners also wanted to know how many cars had been left on the dock each time a boat left Mackinaw City. The numbers would be used as preliminary data when considering possible expansion of the service.

By the end of the month, nearly 20,000 hunters had crossed the Straits. The Chief had only been used for three trips, but the total summer traffic had been up nearly 22 percent. The State reverted to a one-boat schedule on December 1. That boat tied up December 15, with all three ships slated for reconditioning over the winter. By the end of the year, 147,474 autos had been carried. Receipts totaled $290,937. In 13 years, the ferries had transported 1,193,752 autos and 1,953,153 paying passengers. The state had collected $3,333,975 in exchange.

Armed with those figures, bridge backers weren't about to give up, despite the PWA's rejection of their financing plan. On November 20, tourism and development officials met in Lansing to discuss how to proceed, and heard experts say that bridge bonds could be repaid in 26 years. In early December, a committee of seven was appointed by the Bridge Authority to take plans for the span directly to President Roosevelt for his consideration early in the next year. The Chairman of the Authority, plus Governor Fitzgerald, former Governors Comstock and Osborn, Congressman P.M. Brown, and two others made up the group. They were encouraged when the president revealed he'd ordered Army engineers to survey the project's feasibility.

There was still concern that such a bridge might be a menace to navigation. To quell those fears, Louis Levine, the Chippewa County Highway Engineer, proposed using a series of man-made islands to anchor high spans to clear the shipping lanes. He also noted that instead of a bridge, there were many advantages to digging a tunnel.

All the news stories generated more interest in bridging the Straits than ever before, a fact noted by Dean Cooley, the state PWA director.

"I'm convinced that if sufficient interest is developed, Washington will be impressed with the importance of the bridge," he wrote. "One reason given for turning it down was that apparently very few people in Michigan were interested."

Without a bridge, the Chief shuttled auto traffic for another winter. Starting December 16, the boat left Mackinaw City at 5 a.m., 9:15 a.m., 1 p.m., and 6 p.m. From St. Ignace, she left at 6:30 a.m., 10:30 a.m., 3 p.m., and 7:30 p.m.

The year 1935 closed on a celebratory note. Prohibition was over. The state liquor commission suspended regular closing hours for New Year's Eve. The commissioners said they doubted it would be possible to enforce normal closing hours that night, anyway.

Next week: To build, to buy, or to bridge?

Copyright 2007 by Les Bagley, all rights reserved.