Captain Dugald McLachlan

In Detroit and vicinity Capt. Dugald McLachlan is well known among marine men, having spent many years of his life in that occupation, but has not sailed since 1895, having last been in the command of the City of Cleveland of the D & C line. He was born January 1, 1845, at Dunoon, near Glasgow, Scotland, and in that country spent the first ten years of his life, after which he came to America and settled in Canada. He is the son of Donald and Anna (Cameron) McLachlan, natives of Scotland, who died in 1855 and 1894, respectively.

In early life Captain McLachlan had a desire to be a sailor, and in gratifying this desire shipped on the propeller Montgomery as a deckhand, when he was nineteen years of age. He then shipped on the Morning Star of the D & C line, there acting as deckhand a short time, after which he spent two years on sailing craft, among which were the schooner C. J. Roeder and the barge City of Milwaukee. he sailed on the Surveyor and the Search, both government boats and steamers; then was on the Coquette, which went ashore at Rock Island, Green Bay, in a snowstorm, and was left there a wreck. he then spent one year on the tugs Sampson and Metamora, as wheelsmen, second mate and mate; the tug Sampson was burned at Amherstburg, and all on board being asleep when she took fire they had to jump for their lives; later he went on the propeller Chicago as wheelsman.

After a season spent on the Fountain City as wheelsman, he returned in 1868 to the Morning Star, which was lost the same year on Lake Erie, in a collision with the bark Courtland. In the place of this boat the North West, now called the Greyhound, was chartered, and upon that he finished the season and spent the following year. After spending four years on the R. J. Hackett as second mate, he entered the police force, and there spent about thirteen months. He then returned to the North West as mate and pilot, and finally became master, remaining four years; after which he brought out the City of Cleveland in 1866 and sailed until 1895.

Captain McLachlan stood high in the estimation of his employers, who knew him to be a man thoroughly acquainted with his business, and one who exercised the greatest thought and care in all matters under his direction.

January 4, 1873, he was married to Miss Elizabeth McKellar, a native of Canada, who died April 12, 1891. They had four children: Harry S., born July 21, 1875, who died February 14, 1883; Donald L., born September 26, 1878, and is sailing at this writing; Katie, born September 22, 1880, who died February 5, 1883; and William, born April 17, 1888, who is attending school at the present time.

On December 20, 1893, Captain McLachlan was married to Jeanette Campbell, and resides with his family at No. 185 17th street.

Donald L. has been sailing for two years, in 1897 went on the City of Cleveland, and for the last two seasons has been on Lake Superior.

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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.