

While there are numerous people who were part of molding Sturgeon Bay, a name that quickly and rightfully comes to mind is Leathem D. Smith, who is considered by many to be the most prominent industrialist in Sturgeon Bay’s history and an ardent supporter of the city's progress.

Born in Sturgeon Bay on Sept. 7, 1886, Smith was one of seven children. In 1909, he graduated from the University of Wisconsin and became actively engaged in shipbuilding when he formed the Leathem Smith Dock Company. Located on Sturgeon Bay's waterfront, the company later became known as Bay Shipbuilding (builders of the newest Staten Island Ferry).

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Because of his innovative forward-looking designs, he became known as "the Frank Lloyd Wright of the maritime industry." He invented the self-unloading vessel and container shipping, both of which were lightning bolt innovations that revolutionized the shipping industry around the world and made international shipping what it is today.

He employed 7,400 men and women during World War II, supplying ships to the United States Navy. He was a man of integrity, purpose and drive who was involved in banking, politics and the future of the city and its residents.

A man of vision, Smith had the courage to plunge into enterprises where others feared to venture, and when he did something, he did in a big way.

On June 23, 1946, Leathem, 59, president and general manager of the Smith Shipbuilding Co., was sailing back to Sturgeon Bay from a sailboat regatta in Marinette. With him were his daughter, 19-year-old Patsy; her college roommate Mary Loomis, also 19; Elton A. Washburn, 44, head of the production control department of the Smith yard; and Howard Hunt, 29, former plate shop superintendent and later in charge of cargo container production.

They were aboard Smith’s 38-foot sloop Half Moon. Suddenly, while only five miles from the mouth of Sturgeon Bay, they were hit by a fierce, astonishing squall on the waters of Green Bay. They were caught unaware and had little time to react as the boat was battered and whipped by the unexpectedly fierce storm.

The girls were in the small cabin resting when the squall struck. As they rushed into the cockpit, they quickly realized the danger they were in as the sails were shredded and breakers swept over the boat. Then Leathem's sailboat overturned in the cold, heavy seas.

The conditions were intense, and keeping each other in sight was difficult. The one life preserver that hadn't drifted out of reach was offered to Mary since she was not a strong swimmer. Both Leathem's employee and business friend succumbed to the cold water and disappeared in the waves.

Leathem’s quick mind realized that at his age, he had little chance of survival, but the two young women might just make it if they acted before hypothermia set in. The girls were ordered to strike for the shore, which was five and a half miles away in the waning daylight.

It was an amazing feat of endurance as Patsy swam toward shore in the frigid, stormed-tossed water while towing her friend Mary, who was wearing the life preserver. Approximately one-half mile from shore, Mary was exhausted and became hysterical. At that point, she slipped from the life preserver towed by Patsy.

After nearly five hours, at 1:30 a.m., Patsy reached the shore and was assisted by the occupants of a home whose lights were her beacon during her grueling swim.

Suffering from extreme exposure and badly bruised from her climb over the rocky shore, she revealed the details of the tragedy at the Hood home and later at Door County Memorial Hospital where she was taken.

As the story unfolded, Patsy credited her father with a noble act when she described him wrapping the lone life preserver around Mary and telling the girls to try and make it to shore.

Once notified, the Coast Guard immediately began a search of the area and was soon joined by tug boats. At dawn, planes began searching from the air. The search was intensive, and by 2:05 in the afternoon, the body of Leathern D. Smith was recovered. On Sunday morning, search parties found the body of Howard Hunt.

The search crew became exhausted in the nonstop attempt to find the bodies of Washburn and young Mary Loomis. Locals began to comb the shoreline as well as search the waters from shore. Local boaters and businesses came out in force to assist in the search. Shipyard boats continually sought signs of the missing.

Door County came out in force for the man that meant so much to them. They identified with the towering industrialist, and, in their sorrow, they were determined to bring all of those that had lost their lives home.

Before long, the body of Elton Washburn was found. Like the bodies of Smith and Hunt, his body was found close to the Half Moon. While Mary Loomis had slipped below the water about half a mile from shore, it was not until July 5 that her body was recovered.

The tragic deaths were a cautionary tale of the dangerous, mercurial nature of the waters around Door County. The loss and pain ran deep in the wake of Smith's unexpected death. Grief in Sturgeon Bay and Door County was real and powerful, but whatever comfort was found in the tragic situation was summed up in what Patty related about her father.

Just before he pushed the two girls away from the boat, Smith had winked confidently to his daughter and said calmly, “Patty, take care of Mother.” Leathem Smith died as he had lived: boldly and thinking of others. He had been called many things in his life, but by the end day, he would add the title "hero" to his legacy.



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