Telling the tale of shipping in America

The Great Lakes Seaway Partnership today launched American Anchor, a series of short films highlighting key transportation supply chains and illustrating the global and regional impacts of Great Lakes Seaway shipping. Each year, waterborne transportation in the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence region is responsible for supporting over 237,000 jobs and $35 billion in economic activity by moving necessary cargos that support the agriculture, construction, automotive and energy industries.

“There is no one hero in the story of the Great Lakes and the North American economy. We’re proud to do our part and share the ways Great Lakes-Seaway shipping interacts with and affects every citizen. American Anchor represents the idea that we are all participants in the supply chain ranging from shippers to manufacturers and ports to end-users - each plays a critical role in lifting up one another and building a future of prosperity for all,” said Steve Fisher, Executive Director of the American Great Lakes Ports Association and Managing Director of The Great Lakes Seaway Partnership.

The American Anchor series artfully captures the impact of Great Lakes shipping, the Saint Lawrence Seaway, Great Lakes ports, foreign and domestic vessels, manufacturers, labor and the relationship of each to their local communities. The first American Anchor short film tells the tale of the steel-making supply chain, beginning at the iron ore mines of Minnesota, then moving through Lake Superior and the Soo Locks on a freighter destined for the steel making complex at Burns-Harbor, Indiana. From there, the iron ore is followed through production as it’s made into steel that’s used to construct the world around us.