Joseph A. Weber

Joseph A. Weber, a marine engineer who has come to the front in his profession very rapidly, is an ambitious young man, and has alrady attained to a position of responsibility as chief of the fine passenger steamer Georgia, owned by the Goodrich Steamship Company, of Chicago. Mr. Weber was born March 3, 1868, in Manitowoc, Wis., a son of Peter and Stephanie (Burkhart) Weber. His father, who is a native of Luxemburg, Germany, has sailed the lakes for many years in the capacity of marine engineer, and he is now in the employ of the Goodrich Steamship Company as chief of the steamer City of Racine.

Joseph A. Weber acquired a liberal education in the public schools of Manitowoc. He began at the foot of the ladder, as coal passer in the side-wheel steamer Chicago, of the Goodrich line, for two months, and after firing in the same steamer about three years, he secured his license as engineer, on May 27, 1889, and was appointed first assistant in the steamer Depere; he closed that season in the steamer Mary Mills. In the spring of 1890 he was appointed second engineer in the steamer Chicago, making three trips a week in the passenger trade between Manitowoc and Chicago, and the next season transferred to the steamer Indiana, of the same line, serving as second engineer of her until September, when he joined the wrecking tug Monarch. He finished the year in the steamer Menominee, which has since been rebuilt and named the Iowa, plying all winter. In 1892 Mr. Weber was appointed chief engineer of the tug Arctic, following with a season as second in the steamer Chicago. In 1894 he joined the fine steamer Virginia as first assistant, and the next spring was appointed chief engineer of the steamer Sheboygan, plying between Chicago and Green Bay ports, holding this berth three seasons; when the Georgia was rebuilt and came out in 1898 he was transferred as chief to that steamer, plying between Manistique and Chicago.

Mr. Weber is an honored member of the Marine Engineers Beneficial Association, and when the branch was organized in Manitowoc he was elected financial and corresponding secretary; he has also filled the office of vice-president, and was president for two terms, performing the duties of that incumbency with ability and discretion. He lives with his parents in Manitowoc.

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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.