The early years of commercial fishing on Lake Superior started out with the American Fur Company, the first commercial fishing operation in the area, fishing near the shore of Grand Island in 1836. Across from Grand Island on the mainland is Powell's Point, where the first fishing family worked from the late 1870s through the 1940s. Several hard working families have made Munising their home port over the years, all bringing delicious Great Lakes fish to dinner tables across the country. In 1906, a young Philip VanLandschoot immigrated from Knokke, Belgium, to the United States and settled in Gladstone, Michigan, on the north shore of Lake Michigan. After various laborer jobs, he became a fisherman's helper with the Schowy Brothers Fish Company in Gladstone. In 1914, Philip started his own fishing enterprise, and for the next thirty years successfully operated from Gladstone. "During summer," VanLandschoot said, "I would fish from my boat and in the wintertime I fished through the ice and hauled my gear by horse and sleigh." Working with Philip were his four sons, Paul, Joe, Jerome, and Francis. In 1942, the family moved to Munising, Michigan, where they built docks and boat houses on the west side of Munising Bay--initially leasing land from the Cleveland Cliffs Company. Brothers Paul, Joe, and Jerome continued the family business into the second generation. Begining in the mid-eighties, Jeome's sons Jerry, David, and Gary carried on third generation operations. Today, VanLandschoot & Sons carries on the same legacy it was founded on--consistent quality Lake Superior fish all season long. We only use trapnets (no gillnets) so our fish are hand dipped and brought up as fresh as possible, and delivered to our state-of-the-art facility that processes the fish into boneless filets. Along with our famous whitefish, we also sell trout, salmon, smoked products, homemade fish sausage, and our famous fish dip.
