W. D. Turnbull

W.D. Turnbull, of Detroit, Mich., was born in 1854, in Hamilton, Ontario, and went to Detroit at an early age. He has lived at Detroit ever since, and is well known there.

Mr. Turnbull served an apprenticeship as machinist at the Detroit Dry Dock Engine Works, beginning in 1871, and from the time he finished his trade until 1880 he worked at it steadily. In 1880 he went on the lakes as second engineer of the William Cowie. He did not sail in the season of 1881, but remained ashore, and worked in a machine shop. For the two following seasons he was chief engineer of the barge Abercorn. After leaving the Abercorn he was engaged by the Interocean Transportation Company of Milwaukee, and remained with them eleven years. During the first three seasons he acted as second engineer of the steamer Merrimac, and for three years following was chief engineer of the same vessel. He then was given charge of the steamer Manhattan, and his last five years with the Interocean Transportation Company were spent as chief engineer of that vessel.

Since leaving the lakes, after the season of 1894, Mr. Turnbull has not sailed. He was chief engineer of the Chamber of Commerce building, Detroit, from March 1, 1895 to April 1, 1896, and has held his present position as engineer of the Union Trust Building since May 1, 1896. In June, 1898, Mr. Turnbull was married to Miss Mary E. Kelly, of Muskegon, Michigan.

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Volume I

This version of Volume II is based, with permission, on the work of the great volunteers at the Marine Captains Biographies site. To them goes the credit for reorganizing the content into some coherent order. The biographies in the original volume are in essentially random order.

Some of the transcription work was also done by Brendon Baillod, who maintains an excellent guide to Great Lakes Shipwreck Research.