MV ''Mark W. Barker'' is a large diesel-powered

lake freighter Lake freighters, or lakers, are bulk carriers operating on the Great Lakes of North America. These vessels are traditionally called boats, although classified as ships. Freighters typically have a long, narrow hull, a raised pilothouse, and the ...

owned and operated by the Interlake Steamship Company. She is the first of the s constructed for an American shipping company. MV ''Mark W. Barker'' is the first ship on the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning the Canada–United States border. The five lakes are Lake Superior, Superior, Lake Michigan, Michigan, Lake Huron, H ...

to be powered with engines that meet EPA Tier 4 standards. It is the first U.S.-flagged, Jones Act-compliant ship built on the Great Lakes since 1983. The ship is named after the president of the Interlake Steamship Company.

Description

The vessel was built by Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding at

Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin Sturgeon Bay is a city in Door County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. The population was 9,646 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located at the bay of Sturgeon Bay for which it is named, it is the most populous city o ...

. Construction began in mid-2019. Her self-unloader was 's boom that was taken off before the ship was scrapped. The ship is long and has a beam, with a carrying capacity of . She is designed to carry

bulk cargo Bulk cargo is Product (business), product cargo that is transported packaging, unpackaged in large quantities. Description Bulk cargo refers to material in either liquid or granular, particulate (as a mass of relatively small solids) form, ...

such as

taconite Taconite () is a variety of banded iron formation, an iron-bearing (over 15% iron) sedimentary rock, in which the iron minerals are interlayered with quartz, chert, or carbonate. The name ''taconyte'' was coined by Horace Vaughn Winchell (1865– ...

, salt, or limestone, as well as other loads like

wind turbine A wind turbine is a device that wind power, converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. , hundreds of thousands of list of most powerful wind turbines, large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, were generating over ...

blades. MV ''Mark W. Barker'' is powered by two , 16-cylinder EMD diesel engines. In operation, she is designed for a complement of 16–17 crew.

Service history

Launched in spring 2022, she became the first new American-built lake freighter since 1983, as well as Interlake's first American-built bulk freighter since 1981. The ship underwent sea trials in June and July 2022, sailing under her own power for the first time on July 1, 2022. On July 27, 2022, MV ''Mark W. Barker'' began her maiden voyage to

Port Inland, Michigan A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manchest ...

, to load stone for

Muskegon, Michigan Muskegon ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Muskegon County, Michigan, United States. Situated around a harbor of Lake Michigan, Muskegon is known for fishing, sailing regattas, and boating. It is the most populous city along Lake Michigan' ...

, thus entering regular service. She was christened on 1 September 2022, in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

. On May 17, 2023, she ran aground in the

Detroit River The Detroit River is an List of international river borders, international river in North America. The river, which forms part of the border between the U.S. state of Michigan and the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ont ...

near Belle Isle. She was refloated shortly before 12:30pm local time.

References

External links

Official M/V Mark. W Barker Webpage
2022 ships Fincantieri Great Lakes freighters Ships built in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin {{Merchantship-stub