Oldest ship on Lake Michigan (101-year old steamer)

[kenvlach]

Thought I'd share a 'good news' story:

Great Lakes granddad
Oldest ship on inland ocean gets set for season on Lake Michigan
By RICK BARRETT, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Feb. 26, 2007.

"South Chicago - Six years before the RMS Titanic set sail on its doomed maiden voyage, a Great Lakes steamship was launched, and it's still in operation.

Now called St. Marys Challenger, it is the oldest ship still in service on the Great Lakes. This winter, the 101-year-old Challenger is docked in South Chicago while a maintenance crew from Milwaukee does minor repairs to get it ready for spring sailing...

Challenger still has its original keel, built in 1906, and much of the equipment from the early 1900s. There's an old crank-operated telephone system, still in use, that would work even if the ship's electrical system failed.

Steam spirit
There aren't many steam-powered freighters left on the Great Lakes, but Challenger's engines could last many more years, said David Hollnagel, owner of Becker Boiler, the Milwaukee company that does the boat's winter maintenance.

The steam is created by heating Bunkersea fuel, a substance Rogers said was like "road tar," to 230 degrees. Steam powers just about everything on the ship, including the main engine, steering system, deck winches, generators and heat in the cabins..."

http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=570406

 

[Cheddarcaveman]

As an "old" engineer myself, how I would LOVE to get my hands on this baby! My first introduction to steam was in 1956 on HMS Bigbury Bay, a Bay class frigate sailing around the West Indies. We used to "ride" the crank to oil the top bearings on the con rods, steam and water hissing everywhere! And the smell! Nothing quite like it. Keep her going and thanks for the memories!

 

[Artisi]

Interesting story that brings back great memories - I was an apprenctice in the mid 50's and worked on a lot of steam engines and ancillary equipment.

 

[GBor]

Well, I may be the "last of the dinosaurs". My steam experience came in the 90's with ships UNDER CONSTRUCTION! Hard to believe, but the US Navy was still building steam powered ships near the turn of this century. I helped write test procedures and then took the ships to sea to test the steam propulsion plants...some of the greatest fun I've ever had in my professional career...

 

[Cheddarcaveman]

Ah yes GBor - but those were steam turbines, not bloody big reciprocating monsters spitting steam everywhere! You've got to be able to see and smell the steam! Nothing like the sheer power you feel watching the crank churning round and thrusting the conrods up and down. All hiss and smell!

 

[GBor]

Good Point, but you still have to watch out for the superheated steam drains...

 

[rmw]

One of my first clients pulled a sawmill with a corlyss engine. I could watch that valve action for hours. There is nothing like the sound; chuk-plop, chuk-plop...etc. That monster did nothing but run. Huge flywheel, 3-4 feet wide belt running off under the belly of the mill to the lineshaft.

This was several years after we put men on the moon.

rmw

 

[Cheddarcaveman]

There's many on old steam engineer with fingers missing from trying to find that leak!

 

[unclesyd]

I love steam engines of all types.

Having been raised in a mill town with 2 operating RRs using steam locomotives that made about three passes a day through the middle of town I got to know and appreciate the steam engines as I grew up. During WWII as you can imagine the RR activity was furious. One of the biggest thrills for me was hearing a certain whistle at the mill that signified a wreck on the mainline. This was signal for all of us to make for the RR coming from the mill as in just a few minutes the big railway steam crane, 350 tons, was going to be coming by in a hurry. Depending on the location of the mainline wreck she would be either pushed or pulled by a work engine. As the crane passed the crew would be stoking the boiler getting up steam. I didn't miss many of the runs. In high school I was very fortunate in that I got to actually drive a steam locomotive. My first outing in the cab was an experience as I tried to help fire the boiler I lost two shovels, so it was decided that I would make a better engineer than fireman.

My neighbor was the superintendent of the blowing engines at Woodward Iron Company and for helping rake the yards I got to make several trips into the pit where the giant steam engines and blowers were located. These were beautiful engines painted green and kept meticiously clean and polished when everything else was coated in red fly ash.

During WWII there were still steam powered paddle wheel pushers on the river pushing coal barges. I got to make several trips from Birmingham Port to Lock 17 on the Warrior river, about 45 miles. These boats had several types and sizes of steam engines. I was able to look up the different types in my fathers Audel and ICS Books.
I got to where I could speak the lingo of boat's engineer.

When I got out the Military everything had changed to Diesel, so I thought. When I went to work for real the first day as I was walking to my office through the plant I thought I heard and felt some steam engines. When I got the nerve to leave the office and check out the area I found the steam engines, 5 steam driven IR CVE Hyper Compressors compressing Hydrogen. Then when I walked across the street here again was 5 steam engines, Ajax Marine Engines, driving anhydrous NH3 pumps.
The Audel books came into play again when it became necessary to reverse the AJAX engines.

I've been able to give my grandchildren the opportunity to see a steam locomotive. When I took my granddaughter age 7 to see a steam engine she was quite enthralled, even when more so when I got the engineer to give a whistle. On the way home she asked several questions about trains and all of a sudden she asked "Grandpa how do steam engines turn around". She went on to graduate with honors from collage at age 17 with a double major, physics and math.

 

[IceStationZebra]

I caught that story in the paper and thought it was pretty cool. When I watch Titanic (by James Cameron) I just wish I could see the huge 8ft reciprocating steam engines in person. ISZ

 

[unclesyd]

An interesting paper comparing steam engine safety and software engineering.

http://www.safeware-eng.com/system and software safety publications/High Pressure Steam Engines.htm

 

[Artisi]

As an apprentice some time back - I would like forget how far back - I got to work on a number of occasions on a triple expansion engine installed in the Lady Houpton, a small vessel owned by the Sydney (Australia) harbour authority. Anyway after reading this post I decided to google "triple expansion steam engines"and came up with this interesting site -

http://www.carferries.com/triple/

-- some interesting info for all the steam buffs.

 

[Artisi]

Have found the site for the Lady Hopetoun - (correct spelling) worth a look for those interested.

http://www.australianheritagefleet.com.au/LdyHpt/LdyHpt.html

 

[atlarson]

Can anyone clarify for me how this ship is powered? The article says, "The steam is created by heating Bunkersea fuel, a substance Rogers said was like 'road tar,' to 230 degrees." I assume that the author is confused, and it is actually water that is heated to 230 degrees by burning the Bunkersea fuel. Is this correct?

Andy

 

[TVP]

The following is a funny quote that appeared in the Sunday (March 4, 2007) edition of the Detroit Free-Press:

"In boat-nerd land, the Challenger is a big deal."

George Wharton, a Canadian retiree who spends his time "chasing" and photographing ships.

 

[MikeHalloran]

The reporter wrote what (s)he heard. The correct name for the fuel is "Bunker C", which is basically what's left after you've distilled gasoline and Diesel fuel out of crude oil:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_oil

You really do have to heat it up to pump it. Once you've done that, you can spray it into an oil burner, use that to fire a boiler, and use the resulting steam to propel the ship.





Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

 

[IceStationZebra]

How do you heat the fuel when you light the fire for the first time? I assume that under normal power waste steam is used. Guessing a "pony" tank with a couple hundred gallons of something less viscus to get things started. ISZ

 

[MikeHalloran]

Or maybe a pony boiler.



Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

 

[swall]

Unclesyd--it may interest you to know that Northwestern Steel and Wire in Sterling, Illinois used steam locomotives for in plant switching operations well into the late 1970's. I took some pictures there around 1978.

 

[plasgears]

Reminds me of what my old steam power prof confessed in class. He was evaluating (circa 1940) various means of powering a process, and he chose a stationary recip steam plant. He lost his job because his boss thought that a small steam turbine would have done the job more efficiently at the time. Lousy boss; no romance.