H. D. Lighthall

H.D. Lighthall, who has been engineer of the Times building, Chicago, since 1895, was born in Huntingdon, Canada, in 1857, a son of H.S. and Ellen (Crinklaw) Lighthall, the former a native of Troy, N.Y., and the latter of Essex county, the same State. The father now resides in Chicago. Our subject was reared and educated in New York, and when a boy went on the lakes, being identified with the lake marine for many years.

In 1870 Mr. Lighthall began sailing from Ogdensburg, N.Y., as mess boy on the steamer Ada in the United States lake survey, and remained two years in that service. He was then employed as second cook on the steamer Glasgow, but finished the season as first or chief cook. The year 1874 was spent in the East, and the next season (1875) was on board the ferryboat plying between Odgensburg and Prescott - the steamer Transit, of the Grand Trunk and Vermont Central railroads - remaining on her until August of that year. The following three years he was with the Whitney line, of Detroit, on the Albany, and then came to Chicago, where he fitted out the Garden City, plying between Chicago and Ludington, Mich., in the passenger and freight trade. He served as lookout on her for a time, and afterward engaged in firing on the steamer Nashua. He fitted out the Champlain at Cleveland, Ohio, and was on her until July, when he transferred to the Albany, but left her at Odgensburg, N.Y., after one trip, and shipped on the India, making one trip, to Saginaw, Mich., and the same year (1879) he was on the Adirondack for a time.

After a short time spent on the Welland canal, he returned to Ogdensburg as lookout on the steamer Maine, and was later on the City of Toledo. In 1880 he came to Chicago and shipped as wheelsman on the steamer Anna Laura, engaged in the lumber trade, but remained on her only twenty-five days, when he transferred to the schooner William Jones. He then made a trip to Hancock on the steamer Peerless, of the Leopold & Austrian line, after which she was laid up in Chicago. The next season Mr. Lighthall helped to fit out the Game Cock, engaged in the lumber and grain trade, and on her filled the berth of cook. He was next on the Anna Dall, engaged in the lumber and stone trade, and from her went to the City Chicago, laying her up at the close of the season. He was then steward on the Lincoln Dahl a part of a season, also on the Charles Reitz, followed by a season on the schooner Ada Thedora, running to Sandusky and Traverse City in the lumber trade. His next berth was on the Allegheny, of the Anchor line, for a part of a season, and on leaving her at Chicago shipped on the George Dunbar, where he finished the season and remained until October of the following season. After a time spent on the tug Prindiville he transferred to the tug Tom Brown, remaining on her two seasons, and he then accepted the position of assistant engineer for Donahue & Henneberry in Chicago. The following season he was in St. Paul, Minn., until July, when, coming back to Chicago, he shipped in the steamer Worthington and closed the season on her. The next season he was engaged in the lumber business on Cedar River, and then returned to the lakes, shipping on the Hattie Perew for a part of a season, and from her transferred to the Worthington, on which he finished the season and remained the following season. Retiring from the water in 1891, he entered the employ of Mr. Leiter as engineer, and in 1892 was chief engineer of the Lee's estate at Nos. 108 and 110 Randolph Street. On resigning that he accepted his present position as engineer of the Times building. He received his first issue of license as engineer in 1891, and is now a member of the Progressive Stationary Engineers Association No. 3 and of the Knights of the Maccabees.

In 1881 Mr. Lighthall was married in Chicago to Miss Hattie Behnke, and they now have two children: Henry Schuyler and Agnes Ruth.

Return to Home Port

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.