CITY OF CHICAGO (1890, Steamer)

Description


Identification
Vessel name:
CITY OF CHICAGO
Also known as:
CITY OF ST.JOSEPH
Year of Build:
1890
Official Number:
126627
Construction and Ownership
Built at:
W. Bay City, MI
Vessel Type:
Steamer
Note: Passenger & fruit trade. First steel vessel built in Saginaw Valley.
Hull Materials:
Steel
Number of Decks:
2
Hull Number:
68
Builder Name:
F.W. Wheeler & Co.
Original Owner and Location:
Graham & Morton Transportation Co., Benton Harbor, MI
Power
Propulsion:
Sidewheel
Engine Type:
Vertical Beam (Walking Beam)
# Cylinders:
2
# Boilers:
2
Propulsion Notes:
Two stacks. 11 x 14', 110# steam firebox boilers; Lake Erie Boilerworks, Buffalo. 22 1/4' diameter feathering wheels, 10 buckets each wheel.
Hull Dimensions
Length:
211.6'
Beam:
34'
Depth:
15'
Tonnage (gross):
1073
Tonnage (net):
628
Capacity:
1200 passengers
Final Disposition
Final Location:
Near Eagle Harbor, MI, Keweenaw Peninsula.
Lake Superior.
Date:
22 Sep 1942
How:
Sank in storm.
Final Cargo:
Pulpwood.
Notes:
Sank in storm while under tow of tug JOHN ROEN.
History
Chronology:

1890, Mar 19 Launched, cost $185,000.

1890 Chicago & St Joseph / Benton Harbor, MI route.

1890, Jul 4 Caught in storm on Lake Michigan; reached Chicago safely.

1891 Lengthened to 226'; 1,164 / 737 tons.

1898 - 99 New Fletcher beam engine, 36 + 54" cylinders, 80" stroke, 1650hp at 30rpm.

1898, Jun Made record time of 3 hours, 21 minutes from Chicago to St Joseph.

1900 third deck added.

1905 Lengthened to 254'; 1,439 / 1,012 tons.

1914, Fall Caught fire on Lake Michigan; reached Chicago pier where fire doused.

1914 - 1915 Rebuilt at South Chicago, 1 stack; Renamed CITY OF ST JOSEPH.

1929 Idled by Depression, St.Joseph.

1933 Bought by B.P. Merrick from bankrupt Goodrich Transit Co.

1935, Dec Purchased for scrap by Woodmere Scrap Iron & Metal Co.

1936 Owned Capt. John Roen, Sturgeon Bay, WI.

1937 Made a barge.

1942, Sep 22 Sank.

Notes
From the Collection of:
C. Patrick Labadie
Sources:
American Bureau of Shipping
Donald V. Baut
Board of Lake Underwriters Marine Directory
Edward J. Dowling Collection, University of Detroit - Mercy
Great Lakes Register
Inland Seas, Great Lakes Historical Society
William MacDonald Collection, Dossin Great Lakes Museum, Detroit
Ed Middleton
Newspaper Clippings
Steamboat Era in the Muskokas by Richard Tatley
Contact
Contact
Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library
Email:specialcollections@alpenalibrary.org
Website:
https://www.alpenalibrary.org

Agency street/mail address:
211 N. First Ave.
Alpena, Michigan 49707
USA
(989)356-6188
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