Hamlin Lake Preservation Society

Launches

The dummy train stopped at many stations along the Shore of Hamlin Lake.  People were met at the train stations by launches sent out by the various resorts.  The Reliance, the Tilly C, and the Alice S. were a few of the more famous launches.  These boats were 50 foot long, some with a canvas roof, and others with an enclosed cabin.  At least one launch had a deck on top for passengers.  Most could hold twenty persons, though the Piney Ridge brochure says their launch could hold 70 persons.

There were two kinds of launches on Hamlin Lake in the early 1900’s, steamboat launches and naphtha or gasoline powered launches.  The Tilly C, operated by Arcadia was a naphtha launch while the launch operated by Bud Robinette in Indian Pete Bayou was a steamboat launch.

Not only did these launches deliver people, but they also delivered supplies.  For many years one was used to deliver mail to mailboxes which were located on the end of the piers.

Photo #4 is a picture taken in 2008, of a Launch that is preserved in the Manitowoc Maritime Museum.