Lawrence D. Weeks

Lawrence D. Weeks, who was chief engineer of the steamer J.C. Lockwood during the season of 1896, was born in Vermilion, Ohio, in 1869, his father being Captain Leeds H. Weeks, a well known vessel master. He attended school in Vermilion until he was fourteen years of age, when he commenced sailing. From that time until twenty years of age, he studied in Cleveland every winter, first in the Spencerian Business College and then in the Case School of Applied Science. He continued to live in Vermilion until he was twenty-two years of age, when he removed to Cleveland.

The first vessel on which he sailed was the schooner B.F. Bruce, of which his father was master. Then he became wheelsman on the steamers Horace B. Tuttle, Oregon, and J.C. Gilchrist in turn, later going on the Gilchrist as oiler while his father was master of her. Then for two years he was oiler on the steamer John Craig, receiving his papers as first assistant engineer the winter he was twenty-one years of age. The following season he was second engineer of the Craig, serving during the ensuing winter as mechanical draughtsman for the Frontier Iron Works, of Detroit. During the season of 1892 he was second engineer of the Cumberland. While the World's Fair was in progress in Chicago, he was at the head of the mechanical department of the exhibit of Charles P. Willard & Co. This firm operated eight launches and yachts on the World's Fair grounds, and Mr. Weeks was responsible for the proper operation of all the machinery contained in them. After the close of the Fair, he became second engineer of the steamer A.P. Wright, holding this position through the season of 1894. He went as chief engineer of the steamer A.L. Hopkins, in the early part of the season of 1895, in July of that year becoming chief engineer of the steamer Olympia. That winter he was mechanical draughtsman for the Cleveland Ship Building Co., and in his leisure time he took up the study of electricity and theoretical mechanics. He was chief engineer of the J.C. Lockwood during 1896.

In January, 1896, Mr. Weeks was married to Miss Mary McAulay, of Cleveland.

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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.