it started out as a town originally called Pere Marquette, but was later named Ludington after the industrialist James Ludington ran his own logging operations. Ludington was incorporated a city in 1873. In 1875, Flint and Pere Marquette Railroad started cross lake shipping with side wheel steamer John Sherman, but was not large enough to handle the volume of freight. So in 1897 they built the Pere Marquette. Its first steel car ferry beginning a creation of ferries to continue the cargo across Lake Michigan to Manotowoc, Wisconsin. The ferries were also made to carry cars and people. Ludington has been the largest car ferry port in the world since
