1950s ferry waiter rides Badger cross lake ferry 68 years later
In the summer of 2024, Bill Bussell of Round Rock, Texas, along with his daughter and son-in-law, took a special trip on board the S.S. Badger cross lake ferry. Bill worked for the C&O Railroad’s Ludington car ferries during the summers of 1958 and 1959 while attending Michigan State University.
Born in Capac, Michigan, Bill’s family moved to Lansing, Michigan when he was in the fourth grade. He graduated from J.W. Sexton High School in Lansing and enrolled at Michigan State.
“That summer I got a job on the car ferries,” Bill said. “I started working as a summer dining room waiter on board the SS Badger and the SS City of Midland 41. This was in the era of fine railroad car dining which included silver, pewter, china and cloth napkins. All the waiters were college students. I estimate that I made about 180 round-trips across Lake Michigan.”
From the beginning of car ferry service in 1897 until the mid-1970s, the Ludington car ferries (the “car” meant rail car) travelled from Ludington to the Wisconsin ports of Manitowoc, Milwaukee and Kewaunee. In the 1950s there were seven car ferries in the C&O’s Ludington fleet. The ships operated year-round in every type of weather. But, passenger service, carrying automobiles, dramatically increased in the summer months, which meant an increased need for passenger service crew.
After working on the car ferries for two summers, Bill moved on. In his 86th year, 2024, he and his daughter and son-in-law returned to Ludington and took the Badger to Manitowoc.
“When I bought some drinks in the concession stand before the trip started I told the cashier that I had worked on the ship in the 50s,” he said. “She then told the captain (Captain Ed Wiltse) about meeting me and he came down and introduced himself. He then invited the three of us to come up to the pilot house and watch our departure from the slip and out through the breakwater. It was quite a thrill reliving the trip to Manitowoc that I had made so many times in the past.
“It was one of the best experiences in my 86 years.”
Photo: Bill Bussell, second from left, with Second Mate Charlie Arnott, left, Capt. Ed Wiltse, and Wheelsman Corey Ottgen.
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Lake Michigan Carferry operates the S.S. Badger, the largest cross-lake passenger and car ferry service on the Great Lakes. Designated a National Historic Landmark, the Badger is a key part of US-10 highway connecting the cities of Ludington, Mich., and Manitowoc, Wis. A vital link across Lake Michigan, the Badger can accommodate 600 passengers and 180 vehicles, including RVs, motorcycles, motorcoaches, and commercial trucks and oversized loads in one single trip. www.ssbadger.com
Interlake Maritime Services is a family of companies with nearly 300 years of collective service on the Great Lakes. A family-owned and -led company in its second generation, Interlake Maritime and its more than 50 shoreside employees manage The Interlake Steamship Company, Interlake Logistics Solutions, Lake Michigan Carferry, Soo Maritime Services and Interlake Port Services from its corporate headquarters in Middleburg Heights, a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio, and additional regional offices in Ludington, Mich., and Sault Sainte Marie, Mich. www.interlakemaritimeservices.com