Special to the Daily Tribune

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The Rouse Simmons, known as "The Christmas Tree Ship," sank in Lake Michigan in 1912, ending a beloved Chicago tradition.

In 2000, the U.S. Coast Guard revived the tradition by using the USCGC Mackinaw to deliver Christmas trees to Chicago.

Volunteers in Cheboygan, Michigan, including local students, help load 1,200 Christmas trees onto the cutter each year.

The trees are distributed to families in need throughout Chicago by various community organizations.

Even though the Rouse Simmons sank in 1912 in choppy Lake Michigan waters, its legacy continues to live on every holiday season.

In the early 1900s, Wisconsin native Herman Schuenemann captained a Great Lakes lumber shipping vessel called the Rouse Simmons , a three-masted schoon

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