Captain Frank Weinheimer

Captain Frank Weinheimer is in the prime of life, and with a good future before him if he is to be judged by his past record. He is a son of George B. and Caroline Weinheimer, the latter now deceased. George B. Weinheimer is a baker by trade, and now resides at Derby, New York. He was formerly a steward on the lakes. The other four children of his family are George, steward of the America for the seasons of 1896-97-98; Edward, mate of the Scranton for the seasons 1896-97-98; Frederick, second mate of the Lackawanna for 1896-97-98, and William, in the wholesale grocery establishment of Race & Kingsley, being all residents of Buffalo. The subject of this sketch was born September 11, 1857, at Buffalo, where he attended school about three years. He then, when about nine years of age, moved to Milwaukee with his parents, in which city he also attended school, leaving school when twelve years of age. He began his sailing career out of the latter city with the well-known Goodrich Transportation line, in the season of 1871, as third porter on the steamer St. Joe, in the passenger trade between Chicago and Green Bay. After three months on the St. Joe, he was transferred to the steamer G. J. Truesdale, of the same company, a passenger boat on the same route, on which he finished that season. During the early part of the following season he was in the Oconto, same line and route, plying also to St. Joe and Benton Harbor, and closed that season on the side-wheel steamer Manitowoc, running between Chicago and Manitowoc. He was next out of Milwaukee in the steamers ironside, Lac La Belle, Bertchy and Messenger for several seasons Ironside, Lac La Belle, Bertchy and Messenger for several seasons, and then went into the service of the Black line on the steamers Amazon and Minneapolis for one winter and part of the summer following. Succeeding that service he was wheelsman of the Argonaut, consort of the steambarge Inter Ocean, for part of a season, was then on the Inter Ocean in the same capacity, subsequently returning to the Argonaut. They were owned by the Detroit Dry Dock Company.

The next service rendered by Captain Weinheimer was in the employ of the Western Transit Co., as wheelsman and second mate of the Fountain City for seven consecutive seasons. He was then second mate, respectively, of the steamers Idaho, Badger State and Colorado, and mate of the Saginaw Valley, Lackawanna and America. In the spring of 1889 he began a period of three seasons as master of the steamer Russia, and in 1892 transferred to the Lackawanna, of which he has been master six consecutive seasons, including the season of 1897. The only accident of any importance that Captain Weinheimer has experienced occurred May 1, 1891, while he was on the Russia, she colliding with the Canadian passenger steamer Celtic in a very dense fog off Morpeth, which is located ten miles from Rondeau Point. The Celtic, which was bound down with a cargo of corn, becoming a total loss, one of the employees on her, the chambermaid, being drowned. The Russia was bound up laden with coal and package freight; her bow was so badly damaged that she was run on the beach and later towed to Buffalo for repairs.

Captain Weinheimer was married at Buffalo, to Miss Anna Black, by whom he has three children: Ethel, Edwin and Madge. The family reside at No. 452 Prospect avenue, Buffalo, N. Y. The Captain is a member of Erie Lodge No. 161, F. & A. M. of Buffalo, and of the Western New York Masonic Insurance. He has received his promotion on his own merits, and is one of the self-made men of the lakes.

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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.