Stunning deck plan brochure for the magnificent cruises through the “French Canadian” water ways .. specifically the ST Lawrence and the Saguenay river. on the SS Richelieu. This would have been such a relaxing voyage! A stunning brochure in excellent like new condition.

Stunning deck plan brochure for the magnificent cruises through the “French Canadian” water ways on the SS Richelieu. The beautiful old ship would only make these cruises for a few more seasons before being forced into retirement due to her extensive wood construction. A stunning brochure in excellent like new condition.

Craftily named after the line itself (there was a publicity mail in contest to name the ship) and the great lakes only 4 funnel passenger ship … the mighty see and bee. A Frank Kirby creation .. she was the largest ship for passenger serving the great lakes until the Greater Detroit and Greater Buffalo. She was refitted and reworked into the aircraft carrier training vessel USS Wolverine during WW2 and scrapped soon after WW2. Great brochure with excellent info and graphics.

2 nice pieces for the Old Bay Line aka the Baltimore Steam Packet Company. These services covered the Chesapeake Bay and Potomac river routes .. and at the time were the oldest steamboat company in the US… services started in 1840! The City of Norfolk and City of Richmond were the last survivors … but would be soon retired.

Lovely Brochure folder for the lovely Sister Queens of the Great Lakes. Covers rates and sailing cruises for the entire 1959 season. These are by far my 2 favorite Great Lakes sisters. Excellent condition.

Great little model paperweight of one of the Later USC’s boats that served the coastal watesr and rivers in Western Canada. Somewhat of a competitor to Canadian Pacific .. CP eventually bought what was left of the company when it was liquidated in the period after WW2. Heavy and in good shape .. still red and black paint on the funnel.

Lovely heavy laminate cabin #374 key and FOB for the mighty Mississippi Queen. She was the newer companion to the famous Delta Queen … but after the her owner’s bankrupcy she fell into disrepair and was scrapped. The DQ is thankfully intact and currently in Chattanooga TN.

10 page article on one of the Great Lakes most tragic stories .. the loss of the bulk carrier Edmund Fitzgerald. On November 9th she left superior Wisconsin with a full load of iron-ore pellets for her anticipated 5 day voyage .. but a historic gale was brewing … and she would be lost the following day. The tragic tale is still debated to the day on exactly what happened that evening beyond Caribou island. excellent condition with a tiny sticker and writing on the cover.

Covers cruises for the 1960 season April thru November. There are deckplans and nice onboard snapshots of the interiors and life aboard … as well as destination info. Some small silverfish nibbles on the cover and the last page is clipped.

Step back right into 1944 and see where the SS Richelieu would be steaming on the great lakes. This fold out has lovely simple deck plans and lots and lots of information about the ship and the places she visits. Full of color-toned type pictures from July of 1944. In excellent shape!

Very interesting 25 page-ish booklet that covers D&C lines services for the entire 1929 season. Lots of folks would have been traveling on these great ships for work and or leisure … thought the great stock market Crash later that year probably ended most of the leisure sailings … folks had no money. This booklets contains all info you would need .. lots of nice ship info , plans pictures etc and lots of port info as well. There are quite a few adverts too .. even for “rival” Steamship lines on the Great Lakes like the Georgian Bay line, GLTC and others. The cover of this is a little brittle and is starting to separate form the spine .. but interior contents are what will keep you entertained! Wonderful D&C graphics!

Neat little fold out brochure trying to lure folks across the great lakes to ride the D@C ships to the NY worlds fair.
The D&C boats were glorious .. the Greater Detroit and Greater Buffalo were the largest side wheelers built … both designed by the famous maritime architect Frank Kirby. There rates were pretty low … I would have been sorely tempted! Good condition and printed on heavier stock.

Cute little fold out for the PM well after she was sold by Canadian Pacific and was owned by BCSC. A nice piece of her history!

 Two great little writing sheets and one envelope from onboard the SS South American. These South spent the better part of the 20th century cruising the great lakes before being retired in the mid 60’s. Oh .. the lost and romantic art of writing letters! In good shape .. though need to be pressed to clean up the minor edge bumps.

Folder for the Delta Queens River Cruises Voyages to America 1975 season. The folder has all sorts of information, a few pictures and little mini plans for the vessel. Gosh, who doesn’t love the Delta Queen? She has had such a good long life .. though forced to retire from service about 3 years ago due to her wooded superstructure .. she still serves as a B&B In Tennessee. The folder is in great shape, though a little wrinkled.

Nice portrait of one of these 2 sisters in their original 3 funnel configuration. They were the fastest on the lakes in their day … and their hungry boilers ate tons and tons of coal to maintain their high speed as there raced train passengers across the lakes from one side to the other. The cabinet photo is in pretty good condition … the details of the ship are quite clear, though there are age spots.

A lovely Hudson river day liner named for the last Dutch leader of the New Amsterdam settlement … which today is the BIG Apple, NYC. The PS was a medium sized vessel in the fleet and did a lot of charter cruising for the Day line. She was laid up in 1962. This is a wonderful heavy brass souvenir model …probably purchased onboard many years ago for some lucky little devil.

American Queen was the largest river steamboat ever built when completed in 1995 … and holds that title still today. She went through several owners and was retired in 2008 … but came back into service in 2011 under contract to the newly formed American Queen Steamboat Company. Let’s all hope she remains successful and we can continue to cruise the inland rivers (primarily Ohio and Mississippi). There are some wrinkled edges and border blemishes (one small tear)… this poster came from Frank Braynard’s collection. Would looks stunning framed .. If river lore is your thing … this poster is for you! Will ship rolled in a tube.

A lovely fold brochure for the 21 day to Mardi Gras cruise of the Gordon C Greene arriving in New Orleans in March 1941. Named after the founder of the Greene Line … she would be joined after WW2 by her most famous and beloved fleet mate, the Delta Queen. Great little brochure in wonderful shape.

Unusual key and fob for one of the D&C boats that traveled on the great lakes until the early 1950’s. The twins Greater Detroit and Greater Buffalo were Frank Kirby designed and the largest side wheelers ever built. Sadly, we do not have anything as grand on the Great lakes today.

This is an interesting souvenir ceramic dish  … from the coloring, I’d date it to the late 60’s or early 70’s. For almost 80 years the twin Kirby designed steamers took Detroit area tourists to Bob Lo island and Amusement Park. The Ste Claire is currently undergoing restoration and hopefully will return to service soon!!

A six pack of matches … totally unopened and mint condition. The Milwaukee Clipper is currently docked in Muskegon, Michigan. She is open in the summer on Saturday and Sunday afternoons for tours. Say “Yes” to Pure Michigan and come see her!