Scattered amongst the old trees and aged waterfront buildings around Bayfield, Wisconsin, are very old fishing boats, quietly rotting away. Some are in residential yards, some in marine repair areas with dilapidated docks. Some are just “there.”

Having been a Lake Superior boater for some years, I’ve always been taught that old boats, once clearly abandoned, should be burned. Not so, we find, with family-owned fishing boats.

Years ago Captain Dave Strzok of Apostle Islands Cruise Service enlightened me.

“Jim,” he asked me, “would you burn the image of your mother, father or grandmother?”

This led to quite a history lesson. Dave began by describing the conditions surrounding Lake Superior fishing families in those early years of 1870 to 1900.

Immigrants all, mostly Scandinavian, they spoke limited English and settled around Lake Superior “because it looked like home.” If their early efforts were rewarded, they might buy their first fishing boat. And, if they did, it often carried mortgage payments that continued into the next two generations. It was a member of the family. Burn it? 

It gradually became apparent why Dave spends so much time on his excursion fleet out in the islands. Understanding and preserving history is very important to Dave.

In the Bayfield area, Dave is not alone in his love of boats and their history. That’s why it’s not surprising that Bayfield now boasts a new maritime museum that honors fishing families. In fact, the museum should be covered in glistening stars in recognition of the dedicated and sincere volunteer team that gave it life.

But let’s back up just a little. Before there was a museum, there was a generous couple wanting to find a use for their seasonally vacant building who teamed up with some boat afficionados owning enough commercial fishing artifacts to fill a museum.

A tall new building on Bayfield, Wisconsin’s waterfront might be attracting some attention … at least that’s what the organizers of the Bayfield Maritime Museum hope. DAVE STRZOK

Scott and Jane Randall had built quite a building to provide winter storage for their beautiful yacht. The Ames, Iowa, couple discerned the value of housing at least a few other quality yachts whose owners would quickly perceive the real advantage of heated storage. And so, that’s the way it happened.

Just one problem: The whole structure was empty all summer! 

So they asked Captain Dave Strzok and Ed Erickson, a former Bayfield mayor and longtime contractor, how it might be used in the summer “empty time.”

When Dave and Ed proposed a maritime museum, the Randalls at first stepped back. “We store boats in here, all winter, wall to wall!”

“Not a problem,” assured Dave. “We’ll build the museum to be removed and stored for the winter months, and you can fill it with boats!”

If the original “optimistic American” uniform is still available, it would fit Dave perfectly. It is time, he says, for an explanation of just what has made Bayfield and the Apostle Islands so important for several hundred years. We need to explain the “mysterious” methods of commercial fishing in a way that visitors may study and understand. Life and work aboard these vessels is another mystery needing illustrated explanation. 

Dave was convinced a maritime museum would do this. 

And finally, Ed and Dave told the Randalls, the value of those tired old fishing boats scattered around the area should be acknowledged. As Dave says, they were much more than just boats to those fine fishing people. A maritime museum would answer so many questions. 

With a smile, Scott and Jane agreed.

I saw the fruits of this effort on my fall visit to Bayfield, part of the almost obligatory examination of the autumn shores of our lovely lake. The Keeper of the Lights annual gathering, now in its sixth year, added incentive for a trip. On a sunny Saturday we explored friendly old Bayfield. As usual, the harbor attracted me, as did the relatively new building. 

To the visitor, it may first seem simply a very tall building, nicely finished in cedar shakes. With its large door system it has drawn considerable attention as a new member of Bayfield’s “downtown.”

A wealth of information and artifacts from Lake Superior commercial fishing stocks the new Bayfield Marine Museum in summer. In winter, stored boats find comfortable, heated space in the building. LAKE SUPERIOR MAGAZINE

Bayfield, the main access point for visits to the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore and headquarters for the ferry fleet servicing Madeline Island, handles thousands of visitors extremely well.

“Temporary Bayfielders” explore the whole area, boating and fishing or taking walks and hikes in all directions. There is so much to see, so much to contemplate.

It soon comes to the attention of most visitors that Bayfield is, indeed, a very old community. La Pointe, it’s neighbor on Madeline Island, is the oldest known settlement still occupied on all of Lake Superior, dependent yet on mainland access through Bayfield.

Not far from the main part of Bayfield, visitors regard its living history with subdued awe. Homes and farms with orchards attract inspection, as do the well-worn roads and avenues.

Now visitors can know more about their favorite place. Like its founders dreamed, the new museum explains both the living history and the past of this lovely community.

You will see models of the many net systems used for commercial fishing, as well as actual portions of the vessels involved. A carefully restored pilothouse glistens with new windows and old equipment. And so many boxes, used to store and ship several different kinds of fish bear family and company names.

This wonder sprang from a gathering of eagles, two men with vision and major contributions who found others to support the work. 

Space precludes listing the whole roster, but major supporters include Bayfielders Larry Reiten, Bill Roth and Frank Graves and Northern Wisconsin Tourism manager Ruth Goetz. Pat Labadie, creator of Duluth, Minnesota’s world famous Corps of Engineers Lake Superior Maritime Visitor Center, got involved early. He matched his retirement with the work needed in Bayfield. His talented wife, June Perry, contributed her art work.

True to their word, Dave and Ed have packed up the museum and the building comfortably keeps boats this winter. But come next summer, when the owners put their boats in for the season, the doors will open on a great maritime museum … and on a great effort to preserve and explain history.

A selection of Jim Marshall’s columns of lake lore and his inland sea voyages has been published as Lake Superior Journal: Views from the Bridge by Lake Superior Port Cities Inc. Follow this link for more information.

Feedback: jrm@lakesuperior.com