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|title=The Marine Record October 1, 1891
|title=The Marine Record October 1, 1891
|work=[http://www.hhpl.on.ca/GreatLakes/HomePort.asp Maritime History of the Great Lakes]
|work=[http://www.hhpl.on.ca/GreatLakes/HomePort.asp Maritime History of the Great Lakes]
|accessdate=2007-08-18}}</ref><ref name= "mhgl2">[http://www.hhpl.on.ca/GreatLakes/search/results.asp?q=Christopher+Columbus&i= Search] the Maritime History of the Great Lakes site for all records related to the ''Columbus''.</ref><ref name="wiscmhs">[http://www.wmhs.org/html/links.html Wisconsin Maritime Historical Society] directory of marine resources.</ref> The ship's name honored the explorer [[Christopher Columbus]] as did much else of the World's Columbian Exposition, timed to coincide with the 400th anniversary of his first voyage to the New World.<ref name="chipub">{{cite web|url=http://www.chipublib.org/digital/lake/CFDWCE.html
|accessdate=2007-08-18}}</ref> The ship's name honored the explorer [[Christopher Columbus]] as did much else of the World's Columbian Exposition, timed to coincide with the 400th anniversary of his first voyage to the New World.<ref name="chipub">{{cite web|url=http://www.chipublib.org/digital/lake/CFDWCE.html
|title="A gleaming City on the Lake"
|title="A gleaming City on the Lake"
|work=Chicago Public Library Digital Collections
|work=Chicago Public Library Digital Collections

Revision as of 00:48, 25 March 2008

Sprague painting
SS Christopher Columbus
A painting by Great Lakes marine artist Howard Sprague showing the ship in white livery, as she appeared in 1893
History
United States flagUS
NameChristopher Columbus
Ownerlist error: <br /> list (help)
Columbian Whaleback Steamship Company (1893–1906)
Milwaukee & Chicago Transportation Co. (1906–1909)
Goodrich Transit Co. (1909–1921)
Goodrich Transit Co.(1921–1933)
William F. Price (1933–1934)
Chriscarala Corp. (1934–1936)
BuilderAmerican Steel Barge Company
Yard number00128
Laid downSeptember 13 1892
LaunchedDecember 3 1892
ChristenedMay 13 1893
In service1893
Out of service1933
HomeportChicago, Illinois
Statusscrapped 1936
General characteristics
Tonnage1,511 GRT GRT uses unsupported parameter (help)
Length362 feet (110 m)
Beam42 feet (13 m)
Depth24 feet (7 m)
Propulsionlist error: <br /> list (help)
Six steel return tubular Scotch boilers, 11-foot (3 m) diameter by 12-foot (4 m) long, powering two reciprocating triple-expansion steam engines (three cylinders of 26-inch (66 cm), 42-inch (107 cm) and 70-inch (178 cm) diameters in a common frame with a 42-inch (107 cm) stroke) driving one four-bladed, 14-foot (4 m) diameter, 19-foot (6 m) pitch propeller
Engine builder: Samuel F. Hodge & Co., 1893, Detroit, Michigan
Boiler builder: Cleveland Shipbuilding Company, 1893, Cleveland, Ohio
Speed17 knots ([convert: unknown unit])
Capacity5,000 passengers
NotesOnly passenger whaleback ever built

The S.S. Christopher Columbus was an excursion liner on the Great Lakes, in service between 1893 and 1933. She was the only whaleback ship ever built for passenger service. The ship was designed by Alexander McDougall, the developer and promoter of the whaleback design.[1]

Columbus was built between 1892 and 1893 at Superior, Wisconsin by the American Steel Barge Company. Initially, she ferried passengers to and from the World's Columbian Exposition. Later, she provided a general and excursion service to various ports around the lakes.

At 362 feet (110 m), the ship was the longest whaleback ever built, and reportedly also the longest vessel on the Great Lakes when she was launched.[2] Columbus is said to have carried more passengers during her career than any other vessel on the Great Lakes.[3] She was scrapped in 1936 by the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company at Manitowoc, Wisconsin.[3][4][5]

Background and proposal

Main article: Whaleback

The history of the Columbus is linked with the history of the whalebacks, an innovative but not widely accepted ship design of the late 1880s, and of their designer, Alexander McDougall.

White livery

McDougall, a Scottish immigrant, Great Lakes captain, inventor,[6] and entrepreneur, developed the idea of the whaleback as a way to improve the ability of barges to follow a towing vessel in heavy seas.[1] Whalebacks were characterized by distinctive hull shapes with rounded tops, lacking conventional vertical sides. Waves thus broke across their hulls with considerably less force than when striking a conventional hull. Water could also flow around the rounded turrets on which were mounted the passenger decks, cabins, and other fittings; these structures were named turrets because of their resemblance to gunhouses on contemporary warships.[7] The rounded contours of whalebacks gave them an unusual appearance.[1]

McDougall's proposed barge and ship designs were received with considerable skepticism, resistance, and derision.[6] As they had porcine-looking snouts for bows, some observers called them "pig boats".[7] After McDougall was unable to persuade existing shipbuilders to try his designs, he founded the American Steel Barge Company in Superior, Wisconsin in 1888, and built them himself. McDougall actively promoted his design and company by sending the SS Charles W. Wetmore to London, and starting another shipyard in Everett, Washington, which built the SS City of Everett.[8] When the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition, to be held in Chicago, Illinois was in the planning stages, McDougall recognized another opportunity to publicize his design. The Columbus, conceived as an elaborate ferry, was intended to demonstrate that the whaleback design would work well in passenger service,[1][6] and would be able to travel at high speed.[9] The ship's name honored the explorer Christopher Columbus as did much else of the World's Columbian Exposition, timed to coincide with the 400th anniversary of his first voyage to the New World.[10]

Construction and initial operation at the Columbian Exposition

Template:ImageStackRight The World's Fair Steamship Company ordered the construction of the Columbus at an estimated cost of $360,000. The job was undertaken at McDougall's American Steel Barge Company works in Superior, Wisconsin, starting in the fall of 1892.[11]

The hull framing, which included nine bulkheads, was completed on September 13 1892. Six Scotch boilers were then installed[12][13], and two triple-expansion steam engines, followed by the rounded hull top and the six turrets. The ship was launched on December 3 1892, after which two superstructure decks were added. They were mounted on the six relatively large (compared to whaleback freighter designs) turrets along the centerline of her hull,[1] which afforded access to her two internal decks, one in the turrets and one in the hull below.

She was fitted out over the remainder of late 1892 and early 1893. Electric lighting was used, and she was elegantly furnished. Her grand saloon and skylighted promenade deck contained several fountains and a large aquarium filled with trout and other fish of the lakes. The cabins and public spaces were fitted out with oak paneling, velvet carpets, etched glass windows, leather furniture and marble. Shops and restaurants were provided for the passengers.[11][14]

McDougall's American Steel Barge Company had committed in the contract that the Columbus would be built and delivered in three months, making her one of the fastest-built large ships of her time. The builders further promised rapid loading and unloading, predicting that the vessel would be able to embark 5,000 passengers in five  minutes, and disembark the same passengers in even less time. The Columbus was specified to be able run the 6 miles (10 km) from the dock downtown to the fairgrounds at Jackson Park and 64th Street in 20 minutes.[11][15]

McDougall set up another holding company, the Columbian Whaleback Steamship Company of Duluth, Minnesota, to own and operate the Columbus. She was commissioned on May 13 1893. Her first captain was John McArthur, who had captained other whalebacks for McDougall's firms, starting with the first powered whaleback, the Colgate Hoyt, built in 1890. McDougall was quoted as having said to McArthur, "There is your steamboat; take her down to Chicago and make a success of her."[16]

McArthur did just that. Painted in all white livery, the Columbus made multiple trips per day, sailing from the Randolph Street/Van Buren Street dock to the Jackson Park, site of the World's Columbian Exposition's Beaux arts "White City" exposition fairgrounds, and back, a 6-mile (10 km) trip along the Lake Michigan shoreline. A contemporary souvenir booklet called her "the greatest marine wonder of its time",[1] and another publication dubbed her the "Queen of the Lakes".[2] She had an estimated capacity of 4,000–5,000 passengers on her four decks, but it was reported that she carried 7,000 on her maiden voyage.[17] The Goodrich Transit Line steamer Virginia (later the USS Blue Ridge) is said to have raced against her.[18]

The Columbus carried between 1.7 and 2.0 million passengers (sources differ) during the exposition, with only one fatality, a crew member.[16] In recognition of that success, the commissioners of the Exposition presented Captain McArthur with a gold watch engraved with a representation of the ship. McArthur went on to captain other whalebacks including the Frank Rockefeller, which became the SS Meteor, the only whaleback surviving today.[16]

Regular service

Template:ImageStackRight After the exposition ended the Columbus entered passenger service, and had an additional (third superstructure, fifth total) deck added during the 1899–1900 winter season.[3] Despite the Columbus' success at the exposition, and McDougall's promotional efforts, the whaleback design never caught on. By 1900, the last whalebacks had been built in Superior: the Alexander McDougall in 1899 (the last powered ship), and the John Smeaton, the last whaleback barge. The American Steel Barge Company was sold to the American Ship Building Company, becoming their Superior Works, and switched to more conventional laker designs.[19]

In 1899 the Columbus was leased to and operated by the Goodrich Transit Line,[20][21][22][23] whose steamer Virginia had been a perennial racing rival.[24] She changed hands in 1905 to the Milwaukee & Chicago Transportation company – possibly a Goodrich holding company[4] – and again in 1909 to Goodrich Transit Line.[4] Her livery was at some point between 1906 and 1909 changed to a black hull with yellow accents, and she was placed in service on the route between Chicago and Milwaukee. The Columbus remained with the Goodrich line for several years. Although she was used for excursions elsewhere around the Great Lakes, her regular schedule was a daily trip to Milwaukee, leaving Chicago mid-morning, sailing to Milwaukee for a two-hour stopover, and then returning (as the advertisement (pictured) illustrates).[25]

Columbus had at least three accidents. In June 1895 she suffered an explosion caused by a steam pipe becoming disconnected while she was underway.[26] Accounts differ, but some claim that this happened during a race with her rival, Virginia.[27] In July 1905, she collided with the schooner Ralph Campbell in the Chicago River.[28] On June 30 1917, she was involved in her most serious accident, a collision with a water tower. The collision happened in Milwaukee while she was being maneuvered by tugs away from her dock. The Milwaukee River current caught her, spinning her sideways, and her bow sheared off two legs of the Yahr-Lang Drug Company's water tower, toppling it and flooding Columbus' decks with about 25,000 US gallons (95,000 L). The collision killed 16 passengers and severely damaged her pilot house, putting her out of service for the rest of the year.[29][30]

The Columbus was one of the first ships to be fitted with an on-board radio, installed by 1909, when she was allocated the call letters "KC".[31] Columbus and the SS Chicago used radio to help coordinate the rescue of over 200 passengers from the Goodrich liner City of Racine when the Racine was disabled off Waukegan, in Lake Michigan.[32]

In 1915, the SS Eastland capsized while docked in the Chicago River, with the loss of over 800 lives. Officials subsequently ordered many passenger ships to undergo stability testing, which the Columbus passed easily. Even with 7,500 sandbags (simulating passengers) piled on one side, and tugboats pulling in that direction, she listed only 12 degrees.[33][34] Columbus was featured at the Century of Progress exhibition in Chicago in 1933–34.[6]

Disposition

The Columbus was taken out of service in 1933, and changed hands twice during the Great Depression, in 1933 and again in 1934.[4] She was scrapped in 1936 at the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company in Manitowoc, Wisconsin.[4]

Having carried so many passengers (some sources say over 2 million in total),[2][6] the SS Christopher Columbus was one of the most photographed passenger ships on the Great Lakes. Souvenir postcards of her are still widely available. One of her anchors (the design was patented by McDougall on February 3 1891)[35][36] is displayed at the Mariners' Museum in Newport News, Virginia.[1]

Additional images

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Ebeling, Charles W. (2001). "You Call That Damn Thing a Boat?". Invention and Technology Magazine. 17 (2). American Heritage Publishing. Retrieved 2007-08-31. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  2. ^ a b c Bertuca, David J. (1996). The World's Columbian Exposition: A Centennial Bibliographic Guide. Greenwood Press. p. 146. Retrieved 2007-10-15. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ a b c Bailod, Brendon. "Columbus information page". Ship-wreck.com. Retrieved 2007-08-18.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Christopher Columbus page of Vessel Index". Historical Collections of the Great Lakes. Bowling Green State University. Retrieved 2007-08-18. Note: follow URL, then search by vessel name "Christopher Columbus" to find page with stats cited.
  5. ^ McNeil, William R. "The Great Lakes Vessel Extracts". Maritime History of the Great Lakes. Retrieved 2007-08-18. {{cite web}}: External link in |work= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ a b c d e "Remember the Whaleback Steamers". About the Great Lakes. Retrieved 2007-08-18. {{cite web}}: External link in |work= (help)
  7. ^ a b Duerkop, John (July 2007). "Some Marine Terminology". Research Resources. Marine Museum of the Great Lakes at Kingston. Retrieved 2008-03-22. (definition 65, ‘’Whaleback’’).
  8. ^ "Charles W. Wetmore arrives". www.historylink.org Washington State online history encyclopedia. {{cite web}}: External link in |work= (help); Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ "The Marine Record October 1, 1891". Maritime History of the Great Lakes. Retrieved 2007-08-18. {{cite web}}: External link in |work= (help)
  10. ^ ""A gleaming City on the Lake"". Chicago Public Library Digital Collections. Retrieved 2007-10-19.
  11. ^ a b c Wilkens, Steven A. (2004). "Last of the Whalebacks". Sea Classics. Retrieved 2007-11-09.
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference mhgl-green was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ "Scotch Boiler description". History of the Steamboat. Retrieved 2007-10-16.
  14. ^ Bancroft, Hubert Howe (1893). "Chapter XVIII. Transportation". The Book of the Fair (Cygne Noir edition ed.). The Bancroft Company, Publishers. {{cite book}}: |edition= has extra text (help)
  15. ^ "The Whaleback Steamship". The Dream City: a portfolio of photographic views of the World's Columbian Exposition. intr. by Halsey C. Ives. St. Louis, Missouri: N. D. Thompson Publishing Co. 1893.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  16. ^ a b c "Marine Captain's Biographies, Volume II - Captain J. McArthur". Maritime History of the Great Lakes. Retrieved 2007-08-18. {{cite web}}: External link in |work= (help)
  17. ^ "Other Whalebacks". Superior Public Museum site (Google Cache). Retrieved 2008-02-05. {{cite web}}: External link in |work= (help)
  18. ^ "LCC 19 Blue Ridge - SP 2432 section". globalsecurity.org forces and ships information. Retrieved 2007-10-15.
  19. ^ "The American Ship Building Company (Superior WI) record of ships built". Maritime Business Strategies, LLC aka Coltoncompany.com. Retrieved 2008-02-05. {{cite web}}: External link in |work= (help)
  20. ^ "Marine Captains Biographies Vol 2 - Captain A. E. Goodrich entry". Maritime History of the Great Lakes. Retrieved 2007-10-16. {{cite web}}: External link in |work= (help)
  21. ^ Blue Book of American Shipping  : Marine and Naval Directory of the United States. Cleveland, Ohio: Marine Review Publishing Co. 1903. p. 160. Retrieved 2007-08-18. Listing shows the Columbus as "owned or managed by" Goodrich.
  22. ^ Blue Book of American Shipping : Marine and Naval Directory of the United States. Cleveland, Ohio: Marine Review Publishing Co. 1903. p. 412. Retrieved 2007-08-18. Image of the Columbus in Goodrich livery.
  23. ^ Blue Book of American Shipping  : Marine and Naval Directory of the United States. Cleveland, Ohio: Marine Review Publishing Co. 1903. p. 426. Retrieved 2007-08-18. This advertisement features the same image as above.
  24. ^ "Ministers in a Steamboat Race.; It Was on Lake Michigan and They Rejoiced Greatly to Win". The New York Times. 1896-07-05. Retrieved 2007-10-15. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Tells of another racing exploit in 1896.
  25. ^ "Excerpts from "Bucket Boy" by Ernest L. Meyer, 1947". Joseph Schlitz Brewing Co. : A Chronological History 1881-1907. Retrieved 2007-10-19.
  26. ^ "Thirteen Were Injured". The New York Times. 1895-06-24. Retrieved 2007-10-15. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  27. ^ "Public Transportation and Sport Don't Mix - Especially with Steamboats". Retrieved 2007-10-15. This blog cites the Washington Post archive of the story.
  28. ^ "Vessel Extracts: Campbell, Ralph". The Buffalo Evening News. 1905-07-25. Retrieved 2008-02-06. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  29. ^ "Damaged "Christopher Columbus" Cruise Vessel". Wisconsin Historical Society site. Retrieved 2007-10-19.
  30. ^ "Ship hits water tower. (Milwaukee 1917)". Tower Accidents and other stories. Retrieved 2007-10-19. Note, the site gives "unknown" for the attribution, but partially the same text is found at boatnerd.com and gives "Great Lakes Ships We Remember" as a possible source.
  31. ^ "List of Merchant Steamers and Private Yachts". List of Wireless Telegraph Stations of the World. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1908-09-01. Retrieved 2007-10-15. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) The 1908 edition does not show her having assigned call letters so the inference is that she did not have one then.
  32. ^ "[[Modern Electrics]]". 1910: p. 315. N5.2:M74/909. Retrieved 2007-10-15. {{cite journal}}: |page= has extra text (help); Cite journal requires |journal= (help); URL–wikilink conflict (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  33. ^ "Redfield Halts Eastland Inquiry". The New York Times. 1915-08-06. Retrieved 2007-10-19. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  34. ^ "Some Marine Terminology - by John Duerkop". Research Resources - Marine Museum of the Great Lakes at Kingston. Retrieved 2007-10-19."Even with tugs trying to pull her over she hardly heeled"; quote attributed to Ships and Sailing May 1952.
  35. ^ "McDougall Anchor Object Description page". Mariners' Museum website, Collections section. Retrieved 2007-10-16.
  36. ^ "Anchor Alexander McDougall". Google Patents page. Retrieved 2007-10-16.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to SS Christopher Columbus and World Columbian Exposition.
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