The Dossin Great Lakes Museum celebrates Detroit's rich maritime history and the city's important place in Great Lakes lore as the riverfront museum celebrates its own 50th anniversary this year.
A year-long celebration of the museum's milestone includes the preview of two new exhibits this weekend, "Life on a Long Ship: Great Lakes Sailors" and "Dossin Great Lakes Museum: Celebrating 50 Years".
"Life on a Long Ship" examines the lives of people making living sailing the Great Lakes. Check out the bridge deck to learn more about the ship captain's life and the many changes in the captain's duties over the years. Visitors also learn about other ship crew members, their lives and their work.
The "Dossin Great Lakes Museum: Celebrating 50 years" exhibit tells about the maritime museum's early years, some memorable museum projects like recovery of the bow anchor from the S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald, and current projects on tap at the Dossin Museum.
Dossin Great Lakes Museum on The Strand in Detroit's Belle Isle Park has its origins in the city's prior maritime museum housed aboard a wooden schooner. The J.T. Wing, the last commercial sailing schooner on the Great Lakes, became home to the Detroit Maritime Museum in 1949. The old schooner soon deteriorated too much to continue housing a museum. The current museum opened in 1960, funded in large part by the Dossin family, Detroit hydroplane boat racing enthusiasts.
Permanent exhibits at the museum include one of the largest model ship collections the world, the Dossin family's famed "Miss Pepsi" hydroplane racing boat, the bow anchor of the S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald, and an opulent smoking lounge restored from the early 20th century Great Lakes cruise ship, the S.S. City of Detroit III.
The Dossin also participates in Detroit's Adventure Pass program. Thanks to a special MASCO grant, museum admission is already free, but if you happen to be at a local library participating in the Adventure Pass program, you can pick up the pass to take advantage of a 10 percent discount offered at the museum store for pass holders. The store discount is also available for Detroit Historical Society members.
The Dossin Great Lakes Museum opens 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
The museum wasn't open the day I snapped these photos, but the website does note that you can take photos in the museum. It's been quite a while since I visited Dossin, so I'm hoping to check out the new exhibits soon and come back here with more stories about the museum and its history.
Meanwhile, check out Hydroplane Racing in Detroit: 1946-2008 by David Williams (and the Hyrdoplane and Raceboat Museum) to learn more about Detroit businessman Russell Dossin, his involvement with hydroplane racing, and the history of high-speed hydroplane boat racing in Detroit after World War II.
Note:
"Where I live" posts are part of a series of periodic stories about
special events and people in, and around, metro Detroit. "Where I
live" posts are stories I'll post in addition to my regular schedule of
stories about attractions around the larger Midwestern region. I hope you enjoy
reading them as much as I enjoy writing them.
© Dominique King 2010 All rights reserved
Comments