A. B. Fraser

A.B. Fraser is the youngest of five sons and one daughter, children of William and Isabella (Cameron) Fraser, who were natives of Inverness, Scotland. They emigrated to the United States in the early 'sixties, settling in New York State. Those of the children now living are James A., a miner in Alaska; D. R., a carpenter at Gainesville, N. Y.; and a son, an engineer in Texas; and the subject of this sketch.

The latter was born at York, Livingston Co., N.Y., and when about sixteen years of age went to El Paso, Texas, where he entered the L. P. C. railroad machine shops as an apprentice. Here he remained nearly three years, and then returned home on account of illness. After recovering, in 1890, he came to Buffalo and secured employment in the New York, Lake Erie & Western railroad machine shops, leaving there in the spring of 1891 to begin steamboating as oiler on the Philadelphia. In September he went onto the Alaska, where he finished that season. Owing to injuries from which he did not recover until October, he did not secure a berth the next season until the 4th of that month, at which time he went on the Mahoning as oiler, and remained on this vessel and in this position until 1895, when he was promoted to second engineer, and officiated in that capacity during the season of 1897.

Mr. Fraser is a single man, and resides at Gainesville, N.Y. He is a member of Local Harbor No. 1, Marine Engineers Beneficial Association, Buffalo.

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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.