An aerial view of the Lower Harbor in Marquette showing the Spear Coal Dock, taken July 23, 1964, is shown. (Photo courtesy of the Marquette Regional History Center)

MARQUETTE — The 1918 dock map identifies three of Marquette Harbor’s four active docks as “Spear’s:” the coal dock at the foot of Main; a merchandise dock at the foot of Baraga; and a second merchandise dock south of Ripley’s Rock. A final “Spear’s Dock” would be the coal unloading facility in what is now Mattson Park.

This large space was purchased because of the increased market for coal, and also the desire to construct a dock which did not rest upon piles or extend out into the harbor.

The huge piles of coal, which today would be viewed with horror, were seen quite differently in 1925. As for the prospective dock, the Mining Journal’s glowing prediction was, “Its completion will mean a decided improvement in appearance of the Lake Street water front as it will mean the removal of several unsightly boathouses and fishing shacks, some of which have been abandoned, and the clearing away of the old Grace Furnace dock.”

First, piles were driven to support the concrete face, or bulkhead, as well as the south line of rail for the “coal bridge.” The interior of the site, which was dimensioned 800′ in length by 250′ in width, and mostly under water, was filled with dredged material scooped from off the bulkhead. This was then capped with heavy wood planking. The coal bridge’s other rail traced the northern perimeter. Today, two concrete buttresses remain on the west side of the park to mark the termini of these lines.

The coal bridge itself, the site’s dominating feature, stood 75 feet above the dock it spanned. Manned by a single operator, powered by two steam engines, it slid up and down the bulkhead, back and forth over the coal piles, and used a clam-shell bucket to unload a ship’s cargo and distribute it onto storage piles or the hopper which was used to load the railroad cars of either the DSS&A or LSS&I. A good operator could do this three times a minute. Lake in its life, the railroad’s primary destinations were either the Presque Isle Power Plant or the pelletizing plant at Eagle Mills. During the late 1950s, about 20 ships a year were unloaded; the empty vessels then usually took on a cargo of iron ore from the LSS&I Dock at Presque Isle.

The dock operated until the Bicentennial Year, when it was partially replaced by the unloading facility at Presque Isle.

As for the property, it was Mr. Spear’s wish that the City have the first opportunity to buy the 17.1 acres for recreational purposes. A federal grant paid for half the purchase price, while the sale of the Old City Hall and a grant from the Shiras Institute took care of the remainder. The transformation from industrial to recreational facility began in 1978. Dedicated as Mattson Park in 1989, it was named after Ellwood Mattson who had spearheaded fundraising for the project. Yet the memory of the dock lingers on, in the attics of the houses atop Ridge Street, where the black dust has settled.

Lower lake levels have caused some concern here, as the wooden pilings under the bulkhead have been exposed. When not submerged in the cold preserving waters, they have been subjected to the corrosive effects of the atmosphere. The result has been some deterioration, as demonstrated by the occasional potholes which are sometimes sunk into the road.