This Great Lakes Boat Blog is presented by House of Flavors Restaurant of Ludington.
Photos and story by Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief
LUDINGTON — The Port of Ludington was visited Sunday evening, Aug. 3, 2025, by the tug/barge Defiance/Ashtabula, which unloaded road aggregate at the Reith-Riley Construction dock.
The Defiance is an articulated tub that was built in 1982 by Marinette Marine of Marinette, Wis. It was originally named the April T. Beker and owned by Beker Transportation of Tampa, Fla.
The Ashtabula was built by Bay Shipbuilding Co., Sturgeon Bay, Wis. in 1982, and also was originally owned by Beker Transportation. It was originally named Erol Y. Becker. The tug and barge have been paired since they were built. They initially operated out of Tampa.
In 1987, the tug/barge pair was acquired by Gulfcoast Transit Co. of Tampa. The tug was renamed Beverly Anderson and the barge was renamed Mary Turner.
In 2002, the company name was changed to TECO Ocean Shipping. The tug/barge were purchased by U.S. United Ocean Services in 2007, which retained the names and kept the pair on the same route out of Tampa. Also that year, the combo was upgraded with a new Bludworth coupler system to mate them as an articulated pair.
Grand River Navigation Co. of Traverse City, a subsidiary of Rand Logistics, Inc. of Jersey City, NJ., purchased the pair in 2011, relocated them to the Great Lakes. Bay Shipbuilding performed a major refit on both vessels for most of 2012. Late that year they entered service with new names, the Defiance and the Ashtabula.
The Defiance is 145 feet long, 44 feet wide, with a depth of 21 feet. It operates with two EMD 20-645-E7 engines that can operate at 7,200 bhp and a top speed of 12.8 mph. The Ashtabula is 610 feet long, 78 feet wide, with a depth of 49 feet. The paired length of the two is 705 feet.
They work on the Great Lakes carrying stone, sand, salt and coal.
To view more photos, visit www.greatlakesboatblog.com.
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