I was a deckhand onboard the Str. Reiss Brothers in summer, 1967 and I can testify to the seamanship of the men on board the ore boats. My father recalled seeing the whalebacks in Cleveland around 1930. I loved Cleveland's steamship community; so many large SS companies headquartered in the Terminal Tower and downtown (with executives who lived like kings in Shaker Heights and dined in the English Oak Room), and also the Union Hall on W. 25th Street south of Lorain Ave; a grimy place where men holding Coast Guard ID's could sign up for work on the boats. Sailing the south shore of Lake Erie at night and passing Cleveland was a sight and a thrill I'll never forget. The Daniel J. Morrell had sunk the previous year; the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald hadn't yet happened. Cleveland still had a fishing fleet and also one or two ship chandleries on River St (?) on the east bank of the Flats at the foot of Superior. I actually saw women on the third or fourth floor of chandler who were sewing enormous sails out of canvas. One or two restaurants/bars like Kindler's and the Flat Iron catered to sailors, as well as railroaders, truckers and shop hands; lots of shops in the Flats back then. The hardest physical work I have ever done was aboard that ore boat, but I am so glad I did it and got a little taste of that community and culture.
I don’t live near the Great Lakes Region, however I am Fascinated by the OreBoats of the Great Lakes. Their Design is unique, and in my opinion, better looking than regular ocean going ships & other vessels with standard designs.
That was quite a storm. I was surprised at the alertness of the crews of the rescue vessels, they did a great job figuring out the distress of the sinking vessel. Great video!
Love this stuff. How come it's always broken catch covers that sinks these freighters though? It's weird, it seems like it should only happen a few times before they made them close to invincible. I don't know enough about them but it seems a little ridiculous.
I've yet to visit the Lakes in my 4 and a half decades on this earth..but I feel drawn to them. If my employer ever opens a store on them I will have my sailboat moved there or sail there myself through the Panama Canal and live on it there instead of Puget Sound.
Black Friday this year... Exposing that the sales were actually a lie, as many places got caught either just renaming existing sales (like Target) or caught marking up items so the original price was the Black Friday sale price (Amazon)
I don't know why I'm fully drawn to stuff like this but I love the stories can't wait to hear more
The Stories are Great because the Boats are Good Looking (and Yes, LakeFreighters are called Boats by tradition).
I was a deckhand onboard the Str. Reiss Brothers in summer, 1967 and I can testify to the seamanship of the men on board the ore boats. My father recalled seeing the whalebacks in Cleveland around 1930. I loved Cleveland's steamship community; so many large SS companies headquartered in the Terminal Tower and downtown (with executives who lived like kings in Shaker Heights and dined in the English Oak Room), and also the Union Hall on W. 25th Street south of Lorain Ave; a grimy place where men holding Coast Guard ID's could sign up for work on the boats. Sailing the south shore of Lake Erie at night and passing Cleveland was a sight and a thrill I'll never forget.
The Daniel J. Morrell had sunk the previous year; the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald hadn't yet happened. Cleveland still had a fishing fleet and also one or two ship chandleries on River St (?) on the east bank of the Flats at the foot of Superior. I actually saw women on the third or fourth floor of chandler who were sewing enormous sails out of canvas. One or two restaurants/bars like Kindler's and the Flat Iron catered to sailors, as well as railroaders, truckers and shop hands; lots of shops in the Flats back then.
The hardest physical work I have ever done was aboard that ore boat, but I am so glad I did it and got a little taste of that community and culture.
I don’t live near the Great Lakes Region, however I am Fascinated by the OreBoats of the Great Lakes. Their Design is unique, and in my opinion, better looking than regular ocean going ships & other vessels with standard designs.
That was quite a storm. I was surprised at the alertness of the crews of the rescue vessels, they did a great job figuring out the distress of the sinking vessel. Great video!
Thumbs up for this one for sure!
Thanks for watching!
tracking down the old photos is amazing...I love this history lesson
Love this stuff. How come it's always broken catch covers that sinks these freighters though? It's weird, it seems like it should only happen a few times before they made them close to invincible. I don't know enough about them but it seems a little ridiculous.
I've yet to visit the Lakes in my 4 and a half decades on this earth..but I feel drawn to them. If my employer ever opens a store on them I will have my sailboat moved there or sail there myself through the Panama Canal and live on it there instead of Puget Sound.
Black Friday this year... Exposing that the sales were actually a lie, as many places got caught either just renaming existing sales (like Target) or caught marking up items so the original price was the Black Friday sale price (Amazon)
Amazing that everyone got safely off the Butters
I like this whaleback design. Left too it's original blueprint it would have prevailed