One of the last operating coal-burning steamships in the world, the S.S. Badger provides travelers and their automobiles with what is now the only opportunity to ferry across Lake Michigan. Each summer, thousands of tourists enjoy sailing the 60-mile run between Ludington, Michigan and Manitowoc, Wisconsin.

In 1892, the Ann Arbor Railroad Company introduced a fleet of cross-lake ferries intended to transport railroad cars. By 1897, the Pere Marquette Railroad launched its own fleet out of Ludington, beginning with the S.S. Pere Marquette. For decades, these ships carried freight, and eventually automobiles and people, across Lake Michigan. Today, only the Badger remains.