P. W. Whelan

P.W. Whelan is a marine engineer of wide experience and one who, by faithful work and merited success, has won the greatest confidence of his employers. He was born March 10, 1846, at Cleveland, Ohio, and has resided there all his life. At the age of seventeen years he entered a machine and repair shop and served a three years' apprenticeship to the machinist's trade, after which he began his marine life, going as oiler on the Arctic, on which boat he remained one season. He then went on the revenue cutter Fessenden and acted as oiler three months, subsequently, for a period of four years, remaining ashore, employed at his trade. Next entering the employ of the Northern Transportation Company, he spent about six months as second engineer of the steamer Michigan, finishing the season on the propeller Maine, of the same line. He then spent about three months as second engineer of the Equinox, on which boat he afterward became chief engineer, continuing in that capacity two seasons. The winter following Mr. Whelan was employed in the Globe Machine Shops, and in the spring he shipped on the tug Clematis, remaining only a short time, however, as he returned to the Globe Iron Works, working there until the following spring. The next two seasons he spent on the H. D. Coffinberry, and for the seven years following he was engaged as engineer of the Worthington block, in Cleveland. He has since been on the boats Republic, St. Paul, Bessemer, Joseph Fay, R. P. Ranney, Corona, Frontenac and Escanaba, coming in 1896 to the Aragon, upon which he remained throughout the season.

Mr. Whelan was married November 27, 1873, to Miss Anna Marr, of Cleveland, and six children have been born to them, namely: Margaret, Grace and May, who reside at home at the present time; and Thomas, Gertrude and Edward, deceased.

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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.