Renault at the Port of Monroe

On September 12, 1961, the steamship Vire called on the Port of Monroe. The arrival of the French Line vessel was heralded as “International Day” at Monroe, with over 200 people on hand. 

The event was held to celebrate the new international shipment, Monroe’s first through the St. Lawrence Seaway, but more importantly provide the public with an opportunity to see the facilities.

In June 1961, the Port signed an agreement with Renault-Great Lakes Inc. making Monroe the port of entry for all Renault cars for the Chicago subsidiary of the French automaker. 

This immediately put the Port of Monroe on the map in a way it had never been before. Monroe was a seaport.

The Vire delivered the first shipment, a total of 1,045 automobiles. They were unloaded by cranes of the Monroe Welding Co., and then driven to a fenced area to be amalgamated with other cars. Toledo Overseas Terminals provided the stevedoring services for the operation. Some cars were directly offloaded and others were in crates.

The ceremony was held in a partially completed 100 by 300 warehouse that would be immediately leased to Renault upon completion. Monroe mayor L. A. Frost presented Vire captain Jacques Thibaud with a key to the city. He was also gifted with a La-Z-Boy chair by Edward Knabusch. Special Monroe Shock Absorber plaques were distributed to the captain, Hon. Alian Chaillou, French Consul, and Vincent Grob, Vice President and General Manager of Renault, by William D. McIntyre, Vice President and General Manager of Monroe Auto Equipment Company.

Of the 60,000 automobiles that Renault planned to export to the United States in 1962, 10,000 was to be routed through Monroe and distributed to nine different states. 7 to 10 trucks would leave the Port daily carrying six cars each to distributors. More cars were coming in by rail that had been imported through coastal ports. In 1964, Renault renewed its lease at Monroe for another three years. 

Renault was the top import brand in the US for a brief time, but imports began to slump in the late 1960s. By 1970 they fully withdrew from the U. S. market- conditions outside of Monroe’s control.

How did Renault end up at Monroe?

The year before Monroe’s service started, French Line vessels loaded with Renault Dauphines were forced to turn around in the Atlantic Ocean due to massive overcongestion at docks in New York City. Perhaps it was this, combined with the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway that made Renault take a hard look at the Great Lakes.

Renault officials stated that Monroe was selected over Detroit and Toledo because it had the greatest potential to expand the facilities Renault required for the operation.

Michigan Maritime Gateway

Fast forward to the present day. For more than ten years, the Port of Monroe has advocated for a modern container service that will benefit Michigan cargo owners. We’re building that infrastructure now- the Michigan Maritime Gateway will be the first container inspection facility of its kind in the State of Michigan, screening 100% of international containers.

In the future, it won’t be Renault automobiles inbound but perhaps Michigan-assembled cars outbound. And we proved we can do that.

In 2014, in partnership with Green Shipping Line, CFR-Rinken, and other stakeholders, the Port of Monroe demonstrated that Ford Mustangs could be efficiently containerized at Monroe. That pilot was successful but limited in its success because the Port of Monroe was not cleared to export the containers on the water. Having a container inspection facility changes that.

In November 2016, a Spliethoff vessel loaded 130 empty containers at Monroe that had been consolidated from around the region during the season, the largest single volume handled by any port except for Cleveland.

We look forward to the opening of the Michigan Maritime Gateway and establishing Monroe as a maritime container capable port, but we used to be. We have to change our way of thinking. This used to be how we did everything. Factors worked against the Great Lakes but perhaps there are others working in our favor today.

Renault saw Monroe’s potential in 1961. In 2025, we sit at an even greater moment of potential — this time backed by container-handling infrastructure that can redefine Michigan’s role in global trade. The question is the same now as it was then: who will recognize that potential, and act on it?

Who will recognize that same potential?

Written by Samuel C. Hankinson, Port Development Coordinator