Dossin Great Lakes Museum

History:

In 1949, the Detroit Historical Commission opened the City’s Maritime Museum aboard the landed wood schooner J.T. Wing, which was the last commercial sailing ship on the Great Lakes. By 1956, however, the Maritime Museum was closed due to the deteriorating condition of the J.T. Wing. The Dossin family generously stepped forward with funds for a new maritime museum and on July 24, 1961, the Dossin Great Lakes Museum opened on the J.T. Wing’s former Belle Isle site.