The Working River - Wisconsin Maritime Museum

The Working River Today
As you walk along or paddle on the
Manitowoc River today, you won’t
see a river crowded with ships or
hear noisy sounds of hammers and
saws. But you will see thriving
companies like Broadwind Energy
building 100 foot wind turbine
towers, Deep Flex with their massive
coils of flexible pipe, St. Mary’s
Cement and the St. Mary’s Conquest
barge unloading and storing
thousands of tons of cement, Burger
Boat constructing a variety of
vessels, and the SS Badger carferry
transporting visitors from all over the
nation.
Manitowoc
River
Guide
Please tell us about your experience
along or on the Manitowoc River!
Your constructive comments will help in our
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will continue to improve the River Guide
brochures and your experiences on or along
the river.
The Working
River
Visit Friends of the Manitowoc River Watershed’s
webpage to share your story or comments.
http://bit.ly/GuideSurvey
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River Watershed Facebook page!
All photos courtesy of Wisconsin Maritime Museum
unless otherwise noted.
A list of references for the sources of the information
provided in this River Guide is available on the Friends
of the Manitowoc River Watershed’s website.
http://bit.ly/GuideSources
The Wisconsin Humanities Council supports and
creates programs that use history, culture, and
discussion to strengthen community life for
everyone in Wisconsin. See more at:
http://www.wisconsinhumanities.org/grants
THANK YOU FOR HELPING MAKE OUR
SS Badger carferry in Manitowoc
WATERSHED A HEALTHIER AND MORE
BEAUTIFUL PLACE TO LIVE!
Peter Reiss delivering coal along the south bank of
the Manitowoc River.
St. Mary’s Cement Company (2 on map)
• Has also been known as Medusa Cement Company,
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Burger Boat Company (1 on map)
• The Brauberger family emigrated from Germany
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when Henry was 7 years old. They shortened
their name to Burger.
H. Burger shipyard opened in 1863 and made
small Mackinaw fishing boats.
Having the only dry dock north of Milwaukee,
Burger was prosperous in the 1890s.
In 1902, the shipyard was sold to the Manitowoc
Dry Dock Company (later Manitowoc
Shipbuilding Co.) .
The Burger tradition carried on across the river
where nephew Henry B. Burger Jr. started in
1892 and where Burger Boat is still located.
During WWII, the U.S. Army and Navy ordered 55
vessels, including rescue boats, minesweepers
and sub chasers.
Burger began producing pleasure yachts after
the war.
Under current president Jim Ruffolo, Burger Boat
continues to build custom yachts and
commercial vessels. It is the oldest
yacht-building company in America.
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Badger State Portland Cement, and Manitowoc Portland
Cement Company.
Cement was manufactured from 1924 until 1969.
They originally manufactured white cement using clay
from clay pits (deposits) near Schuette Park (5 on map)
(about 1 mile away).
Silos are currently used for storage of cement; the 12
silos can hold up to 45,000 tons.
Employed 150 men at height of production. Today there
are approximately 8 employees.
The cement carriers St. Marys Conquest and St. Marys
Challenger deliver cement from the plant in Charlevoix, MI.
Aerial view of the Manitowoc Portland Cement Plant
Manitowoc Shipbuilding Co. (4 on
map)
• Opened in 1902 by Charles C. West and Elias
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Manitowoc River
Gunnell as the Manitowoc Dry Dock Co.
Mainly built steel ferries and ore haulers.
In WWII, built 28 submarines along with tank
landing craft and self-propelled barges.
At its peak, employed 7,000 people and
occupied the entire peninsula.
In 1942 the company built its first sub, the USS
Peto. Crowds gathered to watch the experimental
“side launch” and see if the sub would flip over
or right itself. The launch was a success.
In 1968 Manitowoc acquired Christy Corp. and
Sturgeon Bay Shipbuilding, combined them into
Bay Shipbuilding and moved to Sturgeon Bay.
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The Rahr Malting Company (Grain Elevators) (3 on map)
• William Rahr emigrated from Germany to Manitowoc in 1847, opening a
brewery to provide quality beer for a large German population.
• Opened Eagle Brewery and produced Wisconsin’s first beer but he fell into a
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Lake freighter Saginaw unloading barley at grain tower
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brewing kettle and died in 1880. Three sons continued the business as William
Rahr’s Sons.
1891 shifted to malt production, selling to Anheuser-Busch. Rahr family left the
business by 1900.
Prohibition forced the company to produce different malt products, like malted
milk, cereals, soda, and near beer.
The Manitowoc River grain tower eased shipping and receiving of barley. In 1947
a new underground conveyor belt carried grain beneath the street.
Anheuser- Busch purchased the plant in 1962. It is now owned by Briess Malt &
Ingredients Company.
Peto was launched 6 weeks ahead of schedule and was
covered by the major networks. "Picture of the Week,” a
spectacular picture of the Peto launching was used by
Life Magazine.