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30 TAE MarRINeE REVIEW DEATH OF STEPHEN R. KIRBY. the Indians at the Sault, to take them to Mackinaw Stephen Russell Kirby, one of the grand old men of the - and: thence to' Green Bay.' While a the voyage or when we great lakes, died at his'home in New York city this week were on-our way back, we Werte signaled when -off the at' the age of eighty-two years. Mr. Kirby had been identi- mouth of the Menominee river, which is the boundary fied with lake trade from the early days, practically from between Wisconsin and Michigan. We ran on the beginning of steam navigation on' the- lakes. He i shore and found that a party of government sur- veyors wanted passage to Mackinaw or to Mil- waukee. We concluded to take them to Milwaukee, where we thought a good freight could be obtained for Buffalo, The party consisted of William A. Burt, and eighteen men. They had been all the sea- son surveying the boundary line and also running preliminary lines necessary to survey the upper peninsula of Michigan. They reported that iron ore was abundant all along the south shore of Lake Superior, causing great disturbance to the compass needles (hence the discovery). After reaching Milwaukee we fixed up our ship and took on board 4,000 bu. of wheat at 24 cents a bu., plus twenty tons of pig lead and a dozen casks of potash, at tee St equally good prices. We had a good run to Buffalo ee oe 3 and back to Cleveland for winter quarters. This a ended my having anything more to do with the pioneer screw ships. These ships burned wood for fuel, twenty-five to thirty cords being taken on board every thirty-six to forty hours. It was piled on the upper deck from end to end of the ship, ; : 3 : ~ : the watch on deck passing it down to the fireman fee ed eu ae Gs the Ses crop tse adits oe from time to time during the watch. This occupied great lakes. She was first intended for a small vessel; but altered to a them nearly all the time on deck--one man steering screw boat before she went into commission---in fact before she was pedorall dha vast amusing A larccloce handling wood Na launched. : . ; coal was used in those days. In fact coal was not used was first of all a sailor and later a ship builder. He - ee PLANE was a member of the firm. of Campbell, Owen & Co. ; from which developed the Detroit Dry Dock Co.' After leaving the lakes Mr. Kirby was:inspector of hulls at New York and later was the constructing engineer ERASER POOR Gears 24" Dia. 2h" Pitch x 5" Fate: 2 of the mammoth elevator at Newport: News, Va. - His' Coe ae ne son, Frank E. Kirby, is a famous ship 'builder, having ; ae P i designed the leading passenger steamers on the great Cabin on = Sg Main Deck 2A} Ih | lakes. : mn i] 'In 1901, Mr. Stephen R. Kirby wrote a brief account = \. 7 of his early life on the lakes for the -Martne. REVIEW. i in the form of two letters, one devoted to the pioneer screw boats on the lakes and.the other to the brig¢: Ramsey Crooks, in which he also sailed. The. sketch of these vessels published herewith: was drawn by me Mr. Kirby when he was past: seventy-eight years old. ELEVATION His first letter is as follows: Rope Netting 7 "Thinking that perhaps you would like to see and @& Renee ee hear something about the pioneer screw boats on the | lakes, I enclose you some pen sketches of the very (BT first boats which were fitted out with screws. I re- & sided in Oswego when these hookers, as the boys - called them, were built, and afterwards during the . seasons of 1845 and 1846 was-chief mate of the Chicago. We traded between Cleveland and the Sault. RA CSOT [ - 16" x 24" Engine | | == Lae Z LS This was during the excitement. caused by the dis-:! eo oat et = 2 covery of copper on Lake Superior. By the 'way, it a oo oe : a was in the fall of 1846 that we chartered the Chicago Ba wi Sy cs Ny. to the Indian payment commission who were paying" : , erect a= SKETCH OF THE ENGINE AND BOILER LOCATION OF THE PRO- PELLERS VANDALIA, CHICAGO AND OSWEGO. until about 1852 and not generally until about 1857 or 1858." The second of Mr. Kirby's letters is devoted to a description of the brig Ramsey Crooks of the American Fur Co., which was built in 1836, and also the other Lengthwise View Cast iron former for shaping the buckets when bent out of shape "About every port or woodyard we visited," wrote Mr. Kirby, "one or vessels Comemparaty witty it. Describing -the wens more of the screw buckets had to be refitted, put in true shape, shipped Mr. Kirby says: in place as best we could with water 2 to 3 ft. over the hub of i i i This former was carried on board as part of the vessel's outhit." ae "I was two years on this ship, 1843 and 1844, with