Larry Wakefield's books on the history of our area are a wonderful resource. The following account is drawn from his Sail & Rail: A Narrative History of Tranportation in Western Michigan (Holt, Michigan: Thunder Bay Press, 1980, 1996).

From 1892 to 1929, passenger steamers plied Lake Leelanau (then known as Carp Lake). Starting at Leland, they made two round trips a day with stops at Provement (today's Lake Leelanau village) and Bingham Point, delivering passengers from the western hinterlands of Leelanau County to the Manistee & Northeastern railroad station at Fouch. From there, passengers could ride to Traverse City for a day of shopping or business, returning home in the evening.

The first steamer to sail the waters of Lake Leelanau was the Sally, beginning 1892. The Sally was succeeded by the Tiger in 1894 under Captain John Hartung. In 1900, the Tiger got a competitor in the steam propeller Leelanau, owned and operated by Louis Mosier.

A price war between the two boats ensued, with prices for a round trip ticket between Leland and Fouch going from $1.50 to $1.00 and eventually $0.75. Eventually, the Leelanau succeeded in driving its rival out of business. But on Aug. 16, 1908, she met with tragedy. Her boiler exploded, throwing one passenger overboard (her body was not found for five days), and severly scalding Captain John Hartung, who had go to work for his rival after selliing the Tiger. He died a few days later at Munson Hospital.

Some time later, the Leelanau was sold to a new owner, John VerSnyder. He operated the boat on the lake until 1929, when ill-health forced him to retire.

That was the end of the Lake Leelanau steamers. By the 1930s, the road system in Leelanau County had improved to the point where the lake steamers were neither necessary nor ecomonically viable. So ended an era in Leelanau County.