Barge Manitowoc

[Coalburner]

Yes I was on that trip. Very interesting, but kinda spooky down below. Larry and I put many hours into Chief engine. I was the one who automated it with Allen Bradley equipment.

[Terry]

The barge Manitowoc is the last floating Wabash Railroad hull in existence. The carferries also worked at the Port Huron and Sarnia river crossing/rail tunnel. This 1943 picture is the Detroit tunnel and carferry rail yard from Wikipedia. The carferry Huron is sunk at the Nicholson’s slip at the former GLEW. The carferry Transport may be a sunken wreck near Eagle Harbor MI. The other Wabash hulls (Transfer, Detroit, and Windsor) are scrapped. Pere Marquette Railroad also operated carferries (PM14, PM12, and PM10) at the river crossings. The PM14 and PM12 are scrapped. The PM10 was reported at Lasalle ON in 2011 with an engine/boiler room/tools in very good condition.

[Shawn]

So where did the Manitowoc work? What runs did she make? With the railroad cars exposed was she used on the open lake?

She was not an open-lake ferry, but was built for the crossing between Detroit and Windsor for the Wabash Railroad.

[Patrick]

So where did the Manitowoc work? What runs did she make? With the railroad cars exposed was she used on the open lake? In the open lake way back when I would imagine in could get real ugly real fast when a summer squal came out of no where. Thoughts?

[Caitlin]

The Wisconsin Maritime Museum has a couple photos of the Manitowoc as a working ferry, and quite a few detailed photos of its construction in Manitowoc.

Coalburner, did you go up there for parts for the Chief's engine with Bob and Larry then?

[GBGuest]

They did have plans to use it to lighter saltys when K&K was recieving wood pulp several years ago, however they ran into a snag with the USCG because the barge has no load line, it was used once or twice on a limited basis with prior USCG approval and one of the times was only because another salty loaded with pig iron ran aground because a sand bar formed at the mouth of the river so to avoid any potential problems they used it to off load the next salty at the end of that season. Other than that it just sits around and gets moved or dragged up or down the dock at K&K...

[Guest]

I wouldn't say it was unsuccessful, just of limited use

[Guest]

The railferry Manitowoc was built in 1926, transferred to N & W railway from the Wabash railway in 1968, reduced to a carfloat in 1969, idled in the Frog Pond at Toledo, sold to K&K in an unsuccessful idea to lighter salties for Menominee or Marinette because of load line issues. Picture credit as a working ferry is to the BGSU database. Manitowoc is missing any love, photographs, or rememberances for the 40 years of railferry service from the ports, owners, or crews, on the Boatnerd discussion boards.

[Coalburner]

Well, that must have been quite a project (asbestos too). We managed to salvage some brass oilers and greasers from the engines. These were used on the Chief Wawatam engine in Manitowoc. All gauges and chadburns were gone before us.
I bet they found out (after removing the boilers) the boiler beds were rotted out like the City of Midland (that condemmed her to PM41 barge). Those beds are structural. Years of coal ash mixed with bilgewater (although Manitowoc was converted to oil) eats metal. Is there any history or pictures of Manitowoc operating as a ferry?

[Guest]

Yes, I am sure of it... I saw it happen. Deck plates were removed, and it was a major project. They were going to get an ABS load line for the barge. Eventually the idea was killed as their is alot of poor steel in her to where it was decided to not be worth the money, but not until much of that stuff was removed.

[Chris]

Not if they chopped up the engines & boilers where they sat. Then they would only need to take out a couple hull plates.

[Coalburner]

Are you sure of that, they would have had to remove a lot of the deck plates to get all that equipment out, probably 75%? Would have been a major project for something that doesn't get used much.

[Guest]

All the boilers and engines have since been removed, in 2009 i think.

[Coalburner]

I had a chance to go below on the barge Manitowoc a few years back for a Maritime museum and that thing still has 4 double expansion engines (compound) and 6 (or maybe 8) oil burning boilers down below. It had 4 props, 2 in the bow and 2 in the stern. The engines were all mounted in one engine room with the forward shafts going under the boilers to the bow of the ship. Kind of strange being down below without any power (we had to take lights and power with us) and we had safety air checks before going down below. Most of the brass "goodies" were gone, but we could still see the cables for the old engine room telegraphs.

[GBGuest]

Dis-regard that I found her later in the evening tucked in the far back corner of the ship yard hidden behind the LCS at the yard.

[GBGuest]

Where has the Barge Manitowoc that was/is owned by K&K in Menominee gone? It was moored at the K&K Dock all winter and is now gone from Marinette Menominee harbor