Anderson Dock

Summary

A rare example where graffiti is an accepted part of an attraction is at Anderson Dock. A posted sign notes that boaters have "signed" the dockside warehouse walls for years with the'r boats' names and the year that they docked. "We encourage boaters and visitors to continue the tradition by being creative but tasteful." No carving or spray paint, please. There is an Anderson Historic District within the village that includes Anderson Dock, the Anderson Gas Station Gallery, the Anderson Ice House, and the Anderson Family Homestead. It's safe to say that the village of Ephraim might be a much different place without the enterprising spirit of the Anderson family. For many Ephraim residents and visitors alike, the Anderson Dock and all that goes with it – the store, the warehouse (now the Francis Hardy Gallery) – are Ephraim.

More Information

The Anderson Dock story begins in 1858, when Ephraim’s early settlers sold brothers Aslag and Halvor Anderson 166 acres with the understanding that the two would construct a deepwater dock for community use. The Anderson Dock proved to be an excellent idea, for now any vessel sailing the waters of Green Bay could dock at Ephraim. Thirty years later, the Anderson Dock would serve as a standard port-of-call for passing steamships. The Goodrich, Hill, and Hart Line steamers stopped on their appointed rounds, bearing the summer vacationers that would begin to fuel Ephraim’s economy around the turn of the century.