Captain D. W. Matteson
Captain D.W. Matteson, of Marine City, Mich., has a record of over thirty-six years on the Great Lakes. He was born in Oswego, N.Y. in 1839, son of Capt. Sylvanus Matteson, an expert ship carpenter, who sailed for eleven years and then returned to work in the shipyards.
David W. Matteson spent his early years on a farm, beginning his sailing career in 1859 in the schooner O. V. Brainard. In 1860 he was on the schooner Lively, remaining on shore part of that season. He was in the schooner Stephen A. Douglas when she foundered off Point Betsy, Lake Michigan, on October 30, 1862; this vessel was lost after she had been pumped out and floated, a false bulkhead which had been fitted in her hold to confine the water, giving way and causing the pumps to choke. The accident occurred while the tug Leviathan was towing her to Milwaukee, and all on board escaped with the exception of the cook, who was lost, the crew being taken to Chicago in the propeller Plymouth; Captain Matteson returned to Oswego in the schooner Thornton. The next season he served in the schooner Republic, in 1864 being employed in turn on the bark Margaret R. Goff, the schooner Yankee and the schooner Idaho. The next season he helped to fit out the schooner Eagle Wing and served in her for some time during the summer, remaining on shore part of the season. During the next few years he served as follows: 1866, schooner Ida; 1867, schooner Winnie Wing; 1868, brig St. Joe; 1869, mate of the tow barge Forester; 1870 master of the Forester; 1871, master of the schooner John F. Rust; 1872, master of the schooner C. G. King; 1873 to 1877, inclusive, master of the schooner L. C. Butts. Subsequently he sailed the barge Gardner and the schooners Hoag, Spademan, A. T. Bliss and Nellie Mason. He brought out new the schooner Alverson, sailing her for two years, after which he commanded the barge Godfrey three years, became mate of the steamer Birckhead for part of one season, second mate of the steamer William B. Morley, and mate in the Everett and Norwalk. The season of 1896 was his second year in the last-named vessel.
Captain Matteson in 1862 married Miss Mary Watson, of Oswego. They have had three children, Adele, Eva and Emma, of whom Eva is the only one now living; she is the wife of W. T. Young.
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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.
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