Upcoming Monthly Presentations
Note: Video recordings of the most recent Saginaw River Marine Historical Society (SRMHS) Saturday evening presentations are here.
On the Saginaw River Marine Historical Society (SRMHS) YouTube channel at youtube.com/@srmhs, you will find FREE video recordings of some of the past SRMHS monthly presentations. You can subscribe to the SRMHS YouTube channel to be notified about new presentations and other content.
The Saginaw River Marine Historical Society has seven monthly FREE presentations a year and they start at 6:30 pm on the third Saturday of each month USUALLY at Trinity Episcopal Church, 815 N. Grant St. (and Center Ave.), Bay City, Michigan (unless there is a different location / day / time for a specific presentation). Please use the Fifth Street entrance at the back of the church. A map with the location of the church from Google Maps is here. NOTE: Our regular presentations are open to the public and there is no charge to attend. Customarily, there are no presentations in May, June, July, August, and December.
February 2026 Saginaw River Marine Historical Society presentation...
FREE Program: "Saginaw River and Beyond: A Journey Through My Lens," by Mike Mishler
​Date: Saturday, February 21, 2026
Time: 6:30 pm–8:00 pm
Location: Trinity Episcopal Church, 815 N. Grant St. (and Center Ave.), Bay City, Michigan
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Take a journey through Mike Mishler's photography from shipping on the Saginaw River and around the state including lighthouses, freighters and then he will talk about the historic move of the Holly Union [train] Depot which freight from the Saginaw River area passes by on Canadian National Railway (CN) and Lake State Railway (LSRC) passes by the depot daily.
Mike Mishler is a firefighter/EMT for Holly, Michigan (a village located in northern Oakland County). So far, he has 24 awards for his photography. Mike has been in the "Know Your Ships" book 5 times. He was the first place photographer in the U.S. Army Corps of. Engineers, Detroit District, 2026 calendar (for the photo of the JOSEPH BLOCK leaving the Soo Locks at sunset). As a board member of "Save Our Holly Union Depot," Mike was part of the historic move where they moved the depot with robots. His photography was instrumental in money that was raised for moving the depot. Mike's photography was also used as the cover for the Hollyopoly board game (a localized version of Monopoly), which also was used for fundraising for the depot move.
• You can see some of Mike Mishler's wonderful photography on his "Lincat Photography" Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/lincatphotography
• Link to the free U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District, 2026 calendar (a pdf file) where Mike Mishler was the first place photographer with a photo of the JOSEPH BLOCK leaving the Soo Locks at sunset: https://d34w7g4gy10iej.cloudfront.net/pubs/pdf_76222.pdf
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Map with the location of Trinity Episcopal Church from Google Maps is here​.
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Photo of Mike Mishler, taken during his presentation for the SRMHS on April 9, 2022.
March 2026 Saginaw River Marine Historical Society presentation...
FREE Program: "Valley Girls: Shipwrecks from the Saginaw Valley," by Ric Mixter
​Date: Saturday, March 21, 2026
Time: 6:30 pm–8:00 pm
Location: Saginaw River Marine Historical Society Museum and Gift Shop (located near the center court fountain) in the Bay City Town Center (formerly known as Bay City Mall). Bay City Town Center address is 4101 E. Wilder Rd., Bay City, Michigan
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​Michigan was once a Mecca for shipbuilding, and Bay City led the world in wooden ship building with massive oak freighters reaching over 300 feet in length. Ric dives the remains of these massive ships and shares the stories behind the most famous hulls constructed on the Saginaw River. Featuring stories of the CITY OF BANGOR, SEVONA, PRETORIA, destroyer escort USS RICH, and the largest ship lost on Lake Huron, the DANIEL J. MORRELL. Ric also shares footage of the KNORR, the research ship that found TITANIC.
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Ric Mixter is a marine historian, author, videographer, lecturer.
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Map with the location of the Saginaw River Marine Historical Society Museum and Gift Shop in the Bay City Town Center (formerly known as Bay City Mall) is here.
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Photo of Ric Mixter, taken during his presentation for the SRMHS on April 19, 2025.
April 2026 Saginaw River Marine Historical Society presentation...
FREE Program: "Journey Aboard a Great Lakes 1000 foot Freighter," by Jan McMeans, SRMHS Member
​Date: Saturday, April 18, 2026
Time: 6:30 pm–8:00 pm
Location: Trinity Episcopal Church, 815 N. Grant St. (and Center Ave.), Bay City, Michigan
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Map with the location of Trinity Episcopal Church from Google Maps is here​.
September 2026 Saginaw River Marine Historical Society presentation...
FREE Program: "To Be Announced," by Andrea Guerriero, Bill Kloss (Andrea's Cleveland Editor) and Jon Columbus (Andrea's Duluth/Superior Editor)
Date: Saturday, September 19, 2026
Time: 6:30 pm–8:00 pm
Location: Trinity Episcopal Church, 815 N. Grant St. (and Center Ave.), Bay City, Michigan
Andrea Guerriero's "DRE Designs - Great Lakes Marine Products" Facebook page has over 150,000 followers. LINK: https://www.facebook.com/DreDesignsGLMP.​​​
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Map with the location of Trinity Episcopal Church from Google Maps is here​.
"SRMHS Annual Memorial Service for men and women from the Saginaw Valley who lost their lives while working on boats on the Great Lakes"
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On Saturday, October 17, 2026, at 4:00 pm, the Saginaw River Marine Historical Society will hold its Annual Memorial Service for men and women from the Saginaw Valley who lost their lives while working on boats on the Great Lakes. This short service will be held at the USS EDSON. The public is welcome to attend.
(Since May 7, 2013, the USS EDSON has been located just inside Bay County's Bangor Township, permanently moored in the Saginaw River. A map from Google Maps showing the location of the USS EDSON is here.
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The postal address for the Saginaw Valley Naval Ship Museum, home of the USS EDSON DD-946: 1680 Martin St, Bay City, Michigan.)
October 2026 Saginaw River Marine Historical Society presentation...
FREE Program: "To Be Announced," by Roger LeLievre
Date: Saturday, October 17, 2026
Time: 6:30 pm–8:00 pm
Location: Trinity Episcopal Church, 815 N. Grant St. (and Center Ave.), Bay City, Michigan
Roger LeLievre has been editor and publisher of the annual “Know Your Ships” book since 1995 but has been involved in its publication much longer than that – he was 14 when his first boat picture was published in the 1968 edition. He has been president of the Marine Historical Society of Detroit for over 20 years, he is editor of its monthly publication “The Historian” and was recipient of the group’s Historian of the Year Award in 2006. He is also involved with the non-profit Web site BoatNerd.com as editor of the daily news page. In addition, he is an associate member of the International Shipmasters’ Association (Port Huron Lodge #2) and is on the Soo Locks Visitor Center Association board of directors.
Map with the location of Trinity Episcopal Church from Google Maps is here​.​
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November 2026 Saginaw River Marine Historical Society presentation...
FREE Program: "Title to Be Announced," by Thomas (Tom) Trombley
​Date: Saturday, November 21, 2026
Time: 6:30 pm–8:00 pm
Location: Trinity Episcopal Church, 815 N. Grant St. (and Center Ave.), Bay City, Michigan
Thomas (Tom) Trombley is Vice President & Chief Historian of the Castle Museum of Saginaw County, a presentation about Houseboats that were on the Saginaw River from the end of the Civil War to the 1960s.
Map with the location of Trinity Episcopal Church from Google Maps is here​.
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January 2027 Saginaw River Marine Historical Society presentation...
FREE Program: "Title to Be Announced," by Kristin Benghauser
​Date: Saturday, January 16, 2027
Time: 6:30 pm–8:00 pm
Location: Trinity Episcopal Church, 815 N. Grant St. (and Center Ave.), Bay City, Michigan
Kristin Benghauser, president of Alcona County Historical Society, will do a presentation on Sturgeon Point Lighthouse and nearby (but no longer existing) Life-Saving Station.
Map with the location of Trinity Episcopal Church from Google Maps is here​.
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February 2027 Saginaw River Marine Historical Society presentation...
FREE Program: "Title to Be Announced," by Ron Bloomfield
​Date: Saturday, February 20, 2027
Time: 6:30 pm–8:00 pm
Location: Trinity Episcopal Church, 815 N. Grant St. (and Center Ave.), Bay City, Michigan
Presentation about prefab homes (with a maritime connection). Ron Bloomfield is a thirty-plus year veteran of the museum field. He is the Manager of Museum Collections at Central Michigan University's Museum of Cultural and Natural History and an instructor and mentor in the Museum Studies Program.
Map with the location of Trinity Episcopal Church from Google Maps is here​.
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March 2027 Saginaw River Marine Historical Society presentation...
FREE Program: "Sole Survivors," by Ric Mixter
​Date: Saturday, March 20, 2027
Time: 6:30 pm–8:00 pm
Location: Saginaw River Marine Historical Society Museum and Gift Shop (located near the center court fountain) in the Bay City Town Center (formerly known as Bay City Mall). Bay City Town Center address is 4101 E. Wilder Rd., Bay City, Michigan
Ric Mixter is a marine historian, author, videographer, lecturer.
Map with the location of the Saginaw River Marine Historical Society Museum and Gift Shop in the Bay City Town Center (formerly known as Bay City Mall) is here.
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April 2027 Saginaw River Marine Historical Society presentation...
FREE Program: "Title to Be Announced," by Carol Injasoulian
​Date: Saturday, April 17, 2027
Time: 6:30 pm–8:00 pm
Location: Trinity Episcopal Church, 815 N. Grant St. (and Center Ave.), Bay City, Michigan
Carol is with Saginaw River/Bay Area of Concern (AOC) Public Advisory Commission (PAC).
Map with the location of Trinity Episcopal Church from Google Maps is here​.