By AL PARKER
LELAND -- Using a two-handed grip and spread-leg stance, Janice Sue Kiessel slammed a bottle of Mawby Wet sparkling wine into the fishing tug that bears her name, and recreated the same christening scene she performed as a 3-year-old 50 years ago.
This time it was part of the 50th birthday celebration held for Fishtown's iconic 40-foot fishing tug Janice Sue.
Hundreds lined the historic Fishtown docks last month to pay homage to the sturdy, steel-hulled vessel that enabled Leland's commercial fishermen to haul more than two million pounds of fish from Lake Michigan.
"This was a great celebration," said Amanda Holmes, administrative director of the Fishtown Preservation Society that organized the events. "It brought together summer people, the fishing families and local residents all across the board."
The day-long celebration began with a rubber duck race that started at the dam and continued for 200 feet down the Leland River. The Old Art Building housed an impressive collection of dozens of paintings and drawings of the Janice Sue.
"People from the area, and even Chicago, lent us their paintings and drawings of the Janice Sue," said Holmes. "There were sketches of her, oils, pastels, even a cartoon by Keith Burnham."
An art raffle is still under way that will see six winners win works illustrating Fishtown and the Janice Sue. Tickets are $5 each or five for $20 and are available at several locations in Leland. The prize drawings will take place during Fishtown Fest on Sept. 20. Winners need not be present to win. Proceeds from the event go toward the Fishtown preservation efforts
In the spring of 1958, the Janice Sue and her sister ship the Mary Ann arrived in Leland as cabin-less hulls from Wisconsin. Louis Steffens was skipper and owner of Janice Sue, while Mary Ann was owned by Louis' brother, Hank Steffens, and Leo Stallman of Northport.
With their quarter-inch steel hulls, both boats were better able to endure the ice and waves of Lake Michigan weather. Their revolutionary full skeg design allowed the crew to work closer to their nets for a longer period of time without the rolling and drifting they experienced in the older conventional design. Both boats had a 12-foot beam and a depth of four feet.
"The Janice Sue and the Mary Ann moved the fishermen into the era of steel boats," said Holmes. "These were state-of-the art and were written about in national magazines."
A 1959 article in The Fishing Gazette touted the tugs' durability and their ballyhooed arrival in Leland.
"There are a couple of new girls at Fishtown in Leland, Michigan, but don't get the wrong idea just because the boys have been giving them the eye. The Janice Sue and the Mary Ann are behaving like perfect ladies, according to their owners," the magazine said.
Sometime in the mid-1960s, Holmes noted, the family of famed fisherman Bill Carlson bought Janice Sue and outfitted the tug with a fiberglass top over its wooden frame. For three decades the Carlsons harvested fish with the hard-working tug.
In February 2007, the FPS purchased Fishtown, along with Janice Sue and Joy, a trap-net boat. Carlson and his son Clay still run Carlson's Fishery, but the FPS is responsible for Fishtown itself.
The organization is dedicated to preserving one of the few remaining commercial fishing complexes on the upper Great Lakes.
"We're always looking for volunteers," said Holly Kaludas, the group's administrative assistant. "We need volunteers in the museum, for office work and to work our events."
She's on display in Fishtown, but the Janice Sue has not fished for several years.
The tug has undergone renovation and has had internal electrical work completed, a new navigation system installed and hydraulics repaired in the turning mechanism.
The FPS hoped to have her fishing this summer, but it's taken longer than anticipated to get all upgrades, documentation and insurance completed.
"We're working to get her out fishing this season," Holmes said.
When she's ready to go, Janice Sue will be under the command of Alan Priest, the former skipper under Carlson's ownership.
In May, the FPS hired downstate firms to create plans to preserve Fishtown's historic look while making it a more viable area. The concept is to keep Fishtown looking the way it does as a working waterfront with historical value, yet improve its accessibility and functionality for businesses and visitors.
Last month the firms unveiled three proposed plans that all stress retaining the Fishtown vibe. All would redesign the entrance, add buildings and make renovations, including bringing the site into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. After the FPS board and members of the public provide input, the design firms will develop a long-term master plan.
For more information about the Janice Sue or the Fishtown Preservation Society, go to www.fishtownpreservationsociety.org or call (231) 256-8878.
