The three-masted schooner Rouse Simmons was a Chicago tradition every December, bringing a cargo of Christmas trees from up north to families across the city.
However, sadly, it sank off Two Rivers, Wisconsin, in a violent Lake Michigan storm in November 1912.
The ill-fated eneterprise was run by Herman Schuenemann, known affectionately as "Captain Santa," who sold his trees on the docks near Clark Street bridge.
When the ship left the dock at Thompson, Michigan, eyewitnesses noted that the schooner, packed with over 5,500 Christmas trees, looked like a floating forest.
The schooner's anchor was salvaged and now welcomes visitors at the entrance to the Milwaukee Yacht Club.
--Cooter
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