Paul Behm: A lifetime on the lakes, tested by one storm

September 30, 2026

Paul Beam when he was a mate on the City of Saginaw 31. Photo from the Sable Points Media Historical Photograph Collection.

This Great Lakes History Log is presented by Filer Credit Union, the Port of Ludington Maritime Museum and Sable Points Media.

Masters of the Ludington Steamers

Stories of Ludington’s cross-lake rail fleet captains and other port mariners

By Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief

On the afternoon of Jan. 12, 1926, Pere Marquette 18 (II) cleared Ludington for Manitowoc, Wisconsin, with Capt. Paul Behm on the bridge and a crew of 45 aboard.

The weather did not initially appear threatening. A southerly breeze of about 26 mph was raising a heavy sea on Lake Michigan, but the sky remained clear as the steel carferry headed west.

By evening, conditions had deteriorated sharply.

Snow began falling heavily at Ludington shortly before 7 p.m., while the wind increased to about 30 mph. Somewhere in mid-lake, Pere Marquette 18 (II) entered the storm.

As Behm approached the Wisconsin shore, the carferry was driving through blinding snow and heavy seas. At approximately 7:10 p.m., Pere Marquette 18 (II) ran aground about three miles south of Manitowoc.

The second ship named the Pere Marquette 18. Photo from the Mason County Historical Society Rose Hawley Archives.

The vessel remained hard on the beach the following morning as two tugs stood by and Pere Marquette officials assessed the situation. Superintendent W.L. Mercereau said the ship was in no immediate danger, though reports indicated a plate may have sprung and the hull was taking water.

The Manitowoc tug Arctic was dispatched to assist while Pere Marquette 17 stood by at Ludington.

The accident carried consequences for Behm. A later account of his life reported that the Coast Guard cited him for failing to reduce speed before the grounding and suspended his license for 60 days.

Friends later remembered the punishment as unnecessarily severe.

The grounding was one dramatic episode in a Great Lakes career that lasted about half a century.

Paul P. Behm was born in 1872 in Kewaskum, Wisconsin. A later account of his life stated that he began sailing in 1887, when he was about 15.

Little is known about Behm’s earliest years on the lakes, including the vessels on which he first sailed. By the early 20th century, however, he had accumulated enough experience to become part of the professional officer corps operating on Lake Michigan.

Mate Behm, right, with Capt. Charles Robertson on the City of Saginaw 31.

Historian James Cabot later included Behm among the prominent winter-navigation captains of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, along with several other Ludington mariners.

Behm joined the Pere Marquette carferry operation in 1910 and remained associated with the fleet for the rest of his life.

That same year, he married Veronica Frances Ulrich. Their daughter, Evelyn Veronica Behm, was born in 1915, and the family made its home at 703 W. Ludington Ave.

A 1915 Ludington city directory listed Behm as a vessel mate, as did the 1919 directory.

By then he was serving aboard some of the Pere Marquette fleet’s most important vessels.

A 1918 listing of carferry officers placed Behm aboard Pere Marquette 18 (II) as first mate under Capt. Esten Bahle. Another Pere Marquette publication later identified him as second mate aboard flagship Pere Marquette 21 under Capt. Charles E. Robertson.

Robertson became an important figure in Behm’s career.

A later biography stated that, except for periods when Behm served as master of Pere Marquette 18 (II), he sailed with Robertson from 1917 until 1937. During those years, Behm reportedly served as mate aboard Pere Marquette 19, Pere Marquette 21 and City of Flint 32.

The 1920 federal census identified the 47-year-old Behm as a first mate in the carferry industry.

By the early 1920s, however, he was also serving as captain.

Records from the Historical Collections of the Great Lakes at Bowling Green State University identified Behm as captain of Pere Marquette 20 in 1921, 1922, 1923 and 1924. Ludington city directories also identified him as a vessel captain during that period.

City of Saginaw 31 entering Ludington channel. This photograph was taken after the ship was refitted. Photo from Mason County Historical Society Rose Hawley Archives.

By the middle of the decade, Behm had become closely associated with Pere Marquette 18 (II). A Ludington newspaper item in April 1925 referred to him as captain of the carferry, and historical fleet records also listed him as its captain that year.

Less than a year later came the grounding south of Manitowoc.

Behm and his crew remained aboard while salvage operations were organized. Pere Marquette 18 (II) was eventually freed and returned to service.

It was not the ship’s only grounding that year. Cabot later wrote that Pere Marquette 18 (II) grounded again in 1926, this time north of Milwaukee with Capt. John Thorpe in command. The second grounding caused considerably more damage, including a hole in the hull.

After serving his 60-day suspension, Behm returned to the Pere Marquette fleet.

By 1929, the Ludington city directory again listed him as a mate. The 1930 federal census described him as a first officer in the Great Lakes carferry trade.

Behm was 58 and continued to live on West Ludington Avenue with Veronica and Evelyn.

Bowling Green records placed him in command of Pere Marquette 15 in 1931.

SS City of Saginaw 31 passing through Tenth Street Bridge, Manitowoc, Wisconsin prior to docking at the Soo Line Railway slip. Photo from Mason County Historical Society Rose Hawley Archives.

That assignment came as the Ludington fleet was contracting during the Great Depression. The expansion of the 1920s had culminated with construction of Pere Marquette 21 and Pere Marquette 22 in 1924, but declining freight traffic following the 1929 stock market crash led to older vessels being removed from service.

By September 1930, Pere Marquette 15, Pere Marquette 17, Pere Marquette 19 and Pere Marquette 20 had been taken out of service.

Behm nevertheless remained with the fleet.

His personal life changed dramatically in January 1932 when Veronica died unexpectedly following surgery.

At her funeral at St. Simon Catholic Church, floral tributes included numerous pieces from Behm’s friends aboard the carferries.

Behm continued living at the family home and continued sailing. A later account stated that he found consolation in hunting and fishing and through his affiliation with the Ludington Elks Lodge.

During his final years, Behm again sailed with Robertson, this time aboard City of Flint 32.

A newspaper account published after Behm’s death stated that he was serving as mate aboard the vessel when illness forced him to leave the ship several weeks before his death.

In March 1937, Behm was admitted to St. Mary’s Hospital in Milwaukee with pneumonia.

He died shortly after 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 17. He was 64.

Two days later, City of Flint 32 carried Behm across Lake Michigan one final time.

His body arrived in Ludington aboard the vessel March 19. Evelyn accompanied her father’s remains, along with Capt. Charles Robertson, Frank Cabot and other friends and relatives.

Funeral services were held March 22 at St. Simon Catholic Church. Behm was buried beside Veronica in Pere Marquette Cemetery.

Behm had spent approximately 50 years sailing the Great Lakes and 27 years with the Pere Marquette fleet.

His career took him from the mate’s berth to command and included service aboard several generations of Ludington carferries.

The night of Jan. 12, 1926, offered one of the clearest surviving glimpses of Behm at work. In a blinding Lake Michigan snowstorm, he stood on the bridge of Pere Marquette 18 (II) as the ship fought its way toward Wisconsin.

The vessel grounded. Behm was disciplined.

Then he went back to work.

Eleven years later, his final crossing of Lake Michigan came aboard the carferry on which he had last served.

The Pere Marquette fleet brought Capt. Paul Behm home.

Masters of the Ludington Steamers series to date:

In search of information

Editor’s Note: I am seeking historical artifacts and stories from people whose family members worked as ship captains or in Ludington’s maritime industry. While this project focuses on the Ludington carferry fleet, I am also interested in items related to anyone from Mason County who worked on the Great Lakes or oceans.

This series has three goals:

To share Ludington’s rich maritime history with readers of the Mason County Press.
To publish a biographical book about the Ludington fleet captains.
To create an interactive kiosk exhibit at the Port of Ludington Maritime Museum for historical research.

I am looking for artifacts such as photographs, written documents, or digitized materials. Items will be placed in the Mason County Historical Society archives, and donors will receive documentation of their contribution.

If you have items or stories to share, please email editor@mediagroup31.com or call/text 231-757-3202.

Note: I am also interested in collections related to the Mason County railroad industry.

If you would like to financially contribute to the book project, please click here for more information.

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