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Christmas Tree Ship
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Vermilion's own re-enactment of the 1887 Rousse Simmons arrival will carry trees ashore on December 1st at 11 am at the Vermilion River. The trees will be available for purchase. Community bands, lunch with Santa and more will provide fun for the entire family throughout the day, sponsored by Main Street Vermilion, Inc.
A special, celebrity guest each year brings to life true stories and legends from a wealth of Great Lakes history for the enjoyment of contemporary audiences.
Lunch with Santa at Red Clay on the River from 12 pm till 2 pm. Main Street Vermilion Pumpkin Rolls will be available. Children’s coloring contest winners will be on display.
HISTORY OF THE CHRISTMAS TREE SHIP
A ship loaded down with freshly cut spruce trees, its deck covered with festive holiday decorations. The captain jovially welcomes children and their families aboard to select that perfect tree that will greet them Christmas morning.
For more than a century, this scene has played out along the Great Lake's waterfront, first aboard 19th century schooners, now aboard modern-day vessels. It’s all part of the legend of the Christmas tree ship, guided by a man who died at its helm, carried on by the wife and daughters determined to honor his legacy, and embraced by communities that refuse to let the tradition die.
The story begins with Herman Schuenemann, a mariner in the lumber trade whose business combined with his love of Old World traditions leads him to sell Christmas trees from the deck of his ship docked along the Chicago River. In time, his wife and three daughters join him in the annual enterprise, bringing their holiday cheer to the thousands who welcome the season with a visit to the Christmas Tree Ship.
As its popularity grew, the practice of selling trees from the ship took on increasing importance to Schuenemann’s business, and at the end of a rough year in 1912, he needed the financial boost the sale of the Christmas trees would bring. Sailing from the Michigan shore to return to Chicago, Schuenemann couldn’t know that it would be his last trip. Caught in gale force winds and laden with thousands of trees, Schuenemann’s ship, the Rouse Simmons, strained in Lake Michigan’s turbulent waters. As the gale turned into blizzard conditions, the crew struggled to keep the schooner afloat. Rescuers searching the following day found no sign of the boat, or of any wreckage. The Rouse Simmons was gone.
Knowing what her father would want, the eldest daughter, Elsie, immediately rented a ship and set to selling trees from that ship. For that and twenty years after, his wife and daughters continued the legacy that Herman Schuenemann had started in the late 1800’s.
Years later, the U.S. Coast Guard resurrected the tradition of the Christmas tree ship, loading one of its own icebreakers with trees cut from the forests of northern Michigan and giving them away to needy families from the decks of the boat docked at historic Navy Pier in Chicago. So now, more than a century later, wide-eyed children are again invited to experience a majestic sailing vessel and select the tree that will greet them Christmas morning…and the legend and tradition of the Christmas tree ship is introduced to another generation.
