Rail and water interface: Pt. I–Whaleback vessels
has the Captain’s wife, Emmeline, turning to her sister-in-law at the launch and quipping, “There goes our last dollar!”7
As the design rapidly proved its sea- worthiness and economic value, invest-
ment capital began to flow to Mc- Dougall’s young enterprise, the Ameri- can Steel Barge Company. As we’ll mo- mentarily see, John D. Rockefeller was one of ASBC’s early investors. The com- pany was organized in New York City
and a shipyard site was selected on Railroad Street near Elevator D in Du- luth.
Six whalebacks rapidly followed, among which was the first whaleback steamship, the Colgate Hoyt.
Table 1a: Whaleback steamships list of merchant steam vessels of the United States, 1899 Name
Colgate Hoyt Joseph L. Colby
Charles W. Wetmore(1) A.D. Thompson E.B. Bartlett
Thomas Wilson James B. Colgate Samuel Mather Washburn(2) Pillsbury(3) Pathfinder
Christopher Columbus City of Everett(4) John B. T
revor
Frank Rockefeller 1John Ericsson
Alexander McDougall K.M.C.Q.
Signal Letters Launch Date June 9, 1890
K.H.J.F.
K.J.P.S. K.J.P.V.
November 15, 1890 1245 May 23, 1891 June 6, 1891 July 9, 1891 April 30, 1892
1399 1399 1713
September 21, 1892 1713 May 21, 1892 June 25, 1892 June 25, 1892 July 16, 1892
1713 2234 2234 2424
December 3, 1892 1511 October 24, 1894 May 1, 1895 April 25, 1896 July 11, 1896 July 25, 1898
2504 1713 2759 3200 3686
1008 914
1075 1075 1318 1318 1318 1571 1571 1761 945
1858 1318 2013 2378 2662
Notes: 1. First transatlantic passage by a whaleback. 2. Renamed James B. Neilson when sold by the Soo Line Railroad in 1896 to Carnegie interests. 3. Renamed Henry Cort when sold by the Soo Line Railroad in 1896 to Carnegie interests. 4. Served in Pacific coastal trade.
276.5 265.0 265.0 265.0 265.0 308.0 308.0 308.0 320.0 320.0 340.0 362.0 346.0 308.0 366.5 390.0 413.0
36.1 36.0 36.0 38.0 38.0 38.0 38.0 38.0 42.0 42.0 42.0 42.0 42.1 38.0 45.0 48.0 50.0
18.6 22.0 22.0 24.0 24.0 24.0 24.0 24.0 25.0 25.0 25.0 24.0 13.7 24.0 26.0 27.0 22.0
Gross tonnage Net tonnage Length Beam Draft 1252
Indicated h.p. -- --
1,200 1,200 1,200 1,200 1,200 1,500 1,500 --
2,800 2,300 1,200 1,850 -- --
Table 1b: Whaleback barges: list of unrigged merchant vessels of the United States, 1899 Launch Name
Renamed
101 102 103 104 105 201 202 107 109 110 111 15
116 117 118
Sagamore 126 127 129 130 131 132 133 134 137
Alexander Holley
Sir Joseph Whitworththen Bath John Scott Russellthen Berkshire Note 1.
Baroness Cassie Fannie
Bombay Baravia Badger Ivie
Britannia Providence
Note 2. Baden
Jeannie then Dallas
Launch Date June 23, 1888 July 18, 1889
October 5, 1889 February 6, 1890 April 22, 1890 April 30, 1890 April 30, 1890 August 16, 1890
Gross tonnage Net tonnage Length 455
437
1192 1192
1295
1295 1295
November 15, 1890 1227 April 28, 1891 April 28, 1891 1891
August 29, 1891
November 14, 1891 1310 December 5, 1891 July 23, 1892
Portsmouth Bangor
December 17, 1892 1128 October 29, 1892 May 13, 1893 June 3, 1893 June 3, 1893 June 17, 1893 June 17, 1893 June 10, 1893 May 9, 1896
August 12, 1896
1227 1227 1169 1169
1310 1601
1128 1310 1310 1310 1310 1310 1310 1310 2721
1132 1132
1230
1230 1230 1167 1167 1167 1110 1110 1265 1265 1557 1083 1083 1265 1265 1265 1265 1265 1265 1265 2553
178.0 253.0 253.0 276.5 276.5 244.0 244.0 276.5 265.0 265.0 265.0 265.0 265.0 285.0 285.0 308.0 264.0 264.0 292.0 292.0 292.0 292.0 292.0 292.0 345.5 377.0
Notes. 1. Barge 104 was the first whaleback vessel to be lost on the Great Lakes. It sunk after running aground near Cleveland on November 10, 1898. 2. The whaleback barge Sagamorewas lost after being rammed in Whitefish Bay on July 29, 1901.
72 OCTOBER 2012
Beam Draft 25.1 36.1 36.1 36.1 36.1 32.2 32.2 36.1 36.1 36.1 36.1 36.1 36.1 36.0 36.0 38.0 38.0 38.0 36.0 36.0 36.0 36.0 36.0 36.0 45.5 46.0
12.7 18.8 18.8 18.8 18.8 16.6 16.6 18.8 22.0 22.0 22.0 22.0 22.0 22.0 22.0 24.0 22.0 22.0 22.0 22.0 22.0 22.0 22.0 22.0 26.0 22.0
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