Boatnerd Discussion Forum

Thank you very much, Russ and William, that is exactly the information I wanted.

Dave

The following short article appeared in the January 1949 issue of "Great Lakes news":
"Capt. A. J. Altschwager, skipper of the City of Midland 41, flagship of the Pere Marquette fleet, and who sailed the lakes since the day of the old side wheelers, this week stepped off the bridge of the big ferry at Ludington and retired.

During he years that Captain ALtschwager has sailed he estimated he has traveled some 3,000,000 miles. His oldest son, Arthur, is the skipper of the City of Flint.

The retired skipper will make his home in Ludington.

Captain Altschwager started on the lakes as a deckhand. Later, he was on the sidewheeler passenger steamers of the Godrich company which operated on the west shore of Lake Michigan. He then swiitched to the Pere Marquette line and served on every ferry of the company - nine in all. When he finished up this week at Ludington, he would up over 40 years on the lakes.

The skipper was asked what had been the worst storm he was in. He recalled the blow on Armistice day in 1940."

There was also another son, Arthur Altschwager, who sailed as Captain of the City of Flint in 1948.

That's the same Arthur J. Altschwager. His only other son, Donald, worked as a switchman at the Pere Marquette and C & O yards at Ludington for many years.

I don't have any information on the early sailing history of either Harold A. Altschwager or his dad (Arthur J. Altschwager).

I show the following assignments for Arthur J. Altschwager: Captain, Pere Marquette 18, 1928 - 1931; Captain, Pere Marquette 17, 1932 - 1937; Captain, Pere Marquette 21, 1938 - 1942; Captain, Pere Marquette 22, 1943 - 1944; Captain, City of Midland 41, 1945 - 1948.

I show the following assignments for Harold A. Altschwager: Captain, Pere Marquette 18, 1948; Captain, City of Saginaw 31, 1949 - 1951; Captain, Spartan, 1953 - 1971.

There was also another son, Arthur Altschwager, who sailed as Captain of the City of Flint in 1948.

All of the information came from the Annual Red Book in the respective year.

Captain Harold Altschwager was born 13 January 1910 at Ludington, son of Arthur Altschwager, a Pere Marquette and later C & O master. Altshwager spent his career on the carferries, bringing out the Spartan, his retired father (whose last command was the City of Midland 41) accompanying him in the pilothouse when the vessel arrived from Milwaukee on 23 October 1952. He had previously been master of the Pere Marquette 18 (which his father had also commanded) and City of Saginaw 31. Captain Altschwager retired to Fayetteville, North Carolina, in 1972 and died there 23 October 1982.

I have a 1968 timetable for the C&O/B&O cross Lake Michigan autoferry service using the car ferries Spartan, Badger, and City of Midland. Someone wrote "Spartan - Capt. Altschwager" on the timetable. Russ, do you have any information on this officer? I really appreciate your willingness to research our questions about Lakes sailors, I find their sailing histories to be very interesting.

Dave