The United States Life Saving Service has many roots in Michigan. Although the services started out on the East Coast, they quickly grew where trade on the waterways prospered. As such, Michigan’s shorelines, dangerous shoals and severe storms dealt out there fair share of disasters of life at sea on the Great Lakes. Many life saving station’s were established in Michigan along with some volunteer life saving station’s and crews. There are many interesting facts in which to explore about this service on the web site. Please explore to discover that the Life Saving Service saved hundreds and thousands of lives unlike the lighthouse service which tends to get all the credit.
The list below contains a list of the life saving stations located in Michigan with a brief description and photos of those stations we have photos of.
A History of the Life Saving Service by Dennis Noble who is a noted authority on the service. This article describes the service in detail and is a brief look into what they did.
The following station are on the endangered list for Michigan. This means they are threatened by erosion, vandalism, deterioration or being torn down. Help is needed in all these cases to ensure their survival. The Endangered Stations List for Michigan:
November 2005 – White River Life Saving Station Montague, MI. LOST – March 2006 posted
October 7th, 2004 Update – Harbor Beach, MI. Station LOST – September 2004
Ludington Coast Guard Station – Ludington, MI.
Portage Life-Saving Station – Hancock, MI.
Vermillion Life-Saving Station – Vermillion, MI.
Donate to the Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy to Help Save Michigan’s Life Saving Station’s, Because Life Saving Station’s Need Saving Too.