November 2013 marked the final voyage of historic freighter St. Marys Challenger, a 1906-built cement carrier regarded as the oldest operational vessel on the Great Lakes. But the ship is now being prepped to enter a new life—as a barge. The 562-foot steamship, which operated for more than 100 years on the Lakes, has already been stripped of its fuel tanks, pilot house and a portion of its deck as part of the conversion process, according to the Chicago Tribune. Port City Steamship Holding, the vessel’s owner hopes the barge will enter work this spring.