Walter Hunter

Walter Hunter, chief engineer of the ferryboat Ariel, plying between Detroit and Walkerville, Ont., is a marine engineer, and one well acquainted with the several departments of the marine industry, standing high in the estimation of his employers and associates. He was born May 13, 1835 at Norfolk, England. While an infant he was brought to America by his parents, who settled in Montreal, Canada.

In that city he spent his childhood days and there attended school until the family moved to Hamilton, at which place he began the marine life, to which he has since devoted the greater part of this time and attention. His first experience was upon the propeller St. Lawrence, running from Montreal to Chicago, where he acted a second engineer for over five years. From this boat he went to the City of Hamilton, running between the same ports, and acted in the same capacity for two years, then joined the Brantford, running from Hamilton to Montreal, spending on her five years as second engineer; then went on the tug Hero, running out of Hamilton, and upon her remained six years as chief engineer. The following year was spent upon the John S. Noyes, as chief engineer, after which he returned to the tug Hero, and remained three years, when he accepted a position on the Hiawatha, a passenger boat, running on the St. Clair river, where he remained five years. He then entered the employ of the D.B.I. & W. Ferry Company, serving one season on the Victoria, three seasons on the Garland and ten seasons on the Fortune. In 1895 he went as chief engineer on the ferryboat Ariel, his present position. Mr. Hunter has had sixteen issues of American papers; also holds stationary engineer's papers, as well as a life issue of Canadian paper, and has always filled his position to the utmost satisfaction of his employers, thus winning their confidence and meriting the respect of his fellow-laborers. He is a member of the I.O.O.F. and the M.E.B.A., of Detroit.

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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.