A GREAT LAKES SAILOR
Part 4
by Janis Stein

Join me in the conclusion as our featured sailor secures the wheelsman position aboard the Ball Brothers and shares his memories from 1960.

Sailors were a motley crew, and it was always interesting to see the differences in people. Each and every spring, the sailor was surprised by the looks of some of his shipmates. Many were bums, sleeping under bridges in Toledo during the winter before looking to the lakes for a job in the spring. Some of these men were pretty rough looking characters, dirty and unshaven. Others were so weak, they almost had to be helped up the ladder to board the boat, and compassion filled the sailor for this frail lot - that is until four weeks later when they began to complain about the food. It was difficult too understand how these men could possibly grumble when they had just spent the winter living underneath a bridge!

One of these bums, though, the sailor found most entertaining for he always had something comical to say. On one such occasion, their freighter was passing beneath the Mackinac Bridge. The bum turned to the sailor and, pointing to the bridge, stated the Mackinac sure would be a cold bridge to sleep under!

Rather than save his sailing wages for lodging for the upcoming winter months, the bum chose to spend his money on the drink. During one drunken evening, the bum complained at length and loudly, too, about his boss. In his stupor, the bum didn't realize he was standing next to an open port hole, and the Second Mate - boss of the bum and standing on the deck above - heard every word! Needless to say, the bum was promptly fired and, while never seen again by the sailor, his memory lingers still!

The sailor noticed another shipmate had little stripes on his pants. Inquiring about his wardrobe, the sailor was told by his shipmate he had been a guard at a Virginia prison. The sailor shared that information with the First Mate, only to find out he wasn't exactly a guard but a prisoner participating in a work release program!

As time went by, the sailor worked his way up to the position of wheelsman. In 1960 he was wheeling the Ball Brothers freighter, owned by the Tomlinson Fleet Corporation. The sailor was continually amazed each time he sailed under the Mackinac Bridge, because when he had first begun sailing, the bridge was nonexistent.

One night the Captain had gone to bed, but before retiring he had instructed the First Mate to awaken him before they traveled through the Straits of Mackinac. The sailor had previously guided another freighter through these straits, leaving Lake Huron and entering Lake Michigan, and had gained a bit of experience in the process.

Shortly after 4 a.m. the Captain was rousted from his slumber, rubbing his sleepy eyes all the way to the pilothouse. Upon his arrival, the Captain looked at his surroundings and promptly gave a vicious tongue lashing to the First Mate, telling him the Ball Brothers was way off course. Now, the wheelsman knew the area had previously changed some of the lighting, and thought the Captain was perhaps confused because of it. In trying to set the Captain straight without ruffling his feathers, the wheelsman suggested they contact the ship ahead. The Captain did not want to hear it and, giving the wheelsman the evil eye, the wheelsman spoke not another word.

The First Mate really should have been more aggressive in trying to persuade the Captain the Ball Brothers was precisely on course, but for one reason or another, he took his tongue lashing and remained mute. The Captain then instructed the wheelsman to put a lot of right on the wheel. Against his better judgment, the wheelsman followed the Captain's orders. The Captain did indeed get the Ball Brothers steering right - right into the break wall lining the Straits of Mackinac at Mackinac Island!

Upon impact, the crew dropped a ladder down and walked to shore. Shaken from the incident, the Captain couldn't believe what had happened. The Ball Brothers stayed where it was for a few days, the crew right along with her. Her cargo had to be lightened, followed by a thorough inspection. The Coast Guard's Board of Inquiry was notified, the wheelsman and all parties involved thoroughly questioned.

The wheelsman answered their questions for 30 minutes before being released, his nerves causing his palms to sweat and his stomach to churn. The accident should have been easily avoided. The Captain had clearly not been fully awake, and the First Mate should have backed the wheelsman up, insisting they at least call the ship visible just five miles ahead, confirming the Ball Brothers was indeed on course.

After the inspection and the inquiries were over, the Ball Brothers was authorized to make one more trip back to Lake Erie. The ship was then put into dry dock in Chicago to be inspected and repairs were made in Cleveland over the winter months.

Meanwhile the sailor had decided he had given the lakes more years of his life than was necessary. His last day sailing fell on November 12, 1960. His brother and sister-in-law brought Janet to Detroit, where they all had dinner aboard the boat. Janet married her sailor just one week later on November 19th, and the pair embarked on a new adventure together - on land. The name of this Great Lakes sailor is Melvin Bischer.

I would like to thank Melvin Bischer for sharing his time and memories, providing all of us another view of life aboard the freighters. Melvin sailed from 1954 to 1960 with the exception of his time spent in the U.S. Army. Information presented in this article is as accurate as his memory would allow.

© 2006 Stein Expressions, LLC