William Carrick

William Carrick, chief engineer of the steamer Keystone State, was born in Buffalo, N. Y., in the year 1852, son of Charles and Julia (Carley) Carrick. The father has been a fisherman the greater part of his life and still goes out in his small boats from Buffalo. The son also followed this occupation for six years after leaving school, and then for a season served as oiler on the steamer City of Traverse. The following season he shipped as second engineer of the steamer City of Grand Rapids, and he remained in that vessel four years, becoming chief engineer before he left. Then he was chief of the T. S. Faxton, the J. J. Morley and the Leland in turn, his term of service in the last-named craft being suddenly ended by the vessel burning to the water's edge and sinking while at her dock in Huron. The next season Mr. Carrick fitted out the tug Hercules and operated her engines until August, when he removed to Cleveland and finished the season in the propeller V. Swain. Following this he spent two years as chief engineer of the steamer Huron City, was in the Nahant and the George W. Morley during another season, and put in two years as engineer of the tug C.E. Benham. The Benham experienced a very peculiar accident while he was employed on her. She ran out to the propeller Ketcham, which was towing the barges Aberdeen and Becker, and in some manner came into collision with the Aberdeen, which was the next steamer. Being temporarily disabled, she drifted into the wake of the Aberdeen, and under the tow-line running to the Becker, and, as she was unable to extricate herself, the Becker hit her also and she lost the top of her cabin, her smokestack and her exhaust pipes, and received a general shaking up that proved disastrous, a member of her crew losing his life in the accident. The next season, 1895, Mr. Carrick became chief engineer of the steamer Keystone State, which position he has retained up to the present time.

In 1872 Mr. Carrick married Miss Isabel Bauld, of Buffalo, and they have four children: Hattie, William, Laura and David. One daughter, Julia, died in infancy.

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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.