Returning exhibition explores the extraordinary role of Lake Michigan and its
waterfront communities during World War II
The Michigan Maritime Museum announces the return of Lake Michigan’s Call to Duty, an exhibition exploring how the lake and the people who lived and worked along its shores helped support the nation during World War II. Returning after an extended loan, the exhibit will be on display in the R. B. Annis Exhibit Hall Atrium Overlook.
Far from the ocean battlefields, Lake Michigan became an essential setting for military training, shipbuilding, and wartime production. Passenger steamers became aircraft carriers. Shipyards built vessels for military service. Freighters carried the raw materials that fueled American industry, while waterfront communities contributed their labor, expertise, and resolve.
Among the exhibition’s remarkable stories is the transformation of the passenger steamers Seeandbee and Greater Buffalo into the training aircraft carriers USS Wolverine and USS Sable. Operating on Lake Michigan, these vessels helped prepare Navy and Marine Corps aviators for carrier operations overseas.
The exhibit also explores the broader effort along the lakeshore, from the construction of submarines and other military vessels to the contributions of merchant mariners, commercial fishermen, and civilians. Together, these stories reveal how familiar waters and local industries became part of a global undertaking.
“Lake Michigan’s wartime history reminds us that service took many forms,” said Chelsea Bailey, Museum Curator, who headed the project. “It happened aboard training carriers, in shipyards, on freighters, and throughout the communities along our shores. Bringing this exhibit home allows us to honor those contributions and help new generations understand the role our region played.”
The Museum gratefully acknowledges the Edward W. Thompson American Legion Post 49, Dan and Laurie Thompson, DO-IT Corporation, and Cottage Home for their generous support and sponsorship in returning this exhibition to public display.
“This return reflects the care our community takes in preserving its history,” said Bailey Sisoy-Moore, Executive Director of the Michigan Maritime Museum... “We are deeply grateful to the supporters who made it possible to share these stories again.”
Lake Michigan’s Call to Duty will be available during regular Museum hours. Admission to the exhibition is included with Museum admission and is free for Museum members.
The Michigan Maritime Museum is located at 260 Dyckman Avenue in South Haven. For current hours and visitor information, visit MichiganMaritimeMuseum.org.
In celebration of the exhibits rehanging, veterans and active-duty service members receive free Museum admission throughout November during regular Museum hours.
