Introduction | Vessel History | Scope and Content | Series Description | Inventory

Introduction

This 1.5 cubic foot collection was donated to the Institute on February 22, 1979 by the Connelly Brothers Company of Buffalo, NY. Literary and property rights are dedicated to the public. Photocopying is permitted for the purposes of conservation and research.

Vessel History

The THOMAS E. MILLSOP (U.S. 224662) was built as the WILLIAM C. ATWATER, at River Rouge, Michigan by Great Lakes Engineering Works in 1924-1925. Hull 249 was launched on April 14, 1925. The original dimension for this steel hulled vessel were 589'2" X 60' X 27'7".

The Wilson Transit Company of Cleveland, Ohio was the first owner of the ATWATER and had this vessel sail under the original name into 1936 when the company changed the name to E.J. KULAS. This name was used until 1953 when BEN MOREELL was made the new name.

In 1955 the Nation Steel Corporation of Cleveland bought the MOREEL, and changed the name to THOMAS E. MILLSOP, the subject of this collection. The vessel remained the MILLSOP until March 1976 when the Reoch Transports and Robert Pierson Holdings firm from Ontario bought the vessel and changed the name to E.J. NEWBERRY. Pierson Steamships owned the NEWBERRY from 1977 to 1982. P & HS Shipping of Mississauga, Ontario bought the NEWBERRY in 1982 and changed the name to CEDARGLEN. In 1986 Goderich Elevators Ltd. of Goderich, Ontario bought the CEDARGLEN and used it as a storage barge.

The name THOMAS E. MILLSOP was derived from Thomas Elliot Millsop, chairman of the board of National Steel Corporation. Millsop was born December 4, 1898 in Sharon, Pennsylvania. Millsop started his business career as a riveter for the Standard Tank Car Co., in 1919. He switched companies to work for Weirton Steel in 1927. Millsop worked steadily upward and became president of Weirton Steel in 1936. In 1954 Millsop became president of Weirton's parent company, National Steel Corporation.

The THOMAS E. MILLSOP had the distinction during its career to have been the first Great Lakes freighter built with one-piece hatch covers. As the E.J. KULAS this vessel rammed the Livingston Channel Lighthouse in fog on September 11, 1952. In 1981 the E.J. NEWBERRY grounded in Lac St. Francois near Valleyfield, Ontario on August 12.

Scope and Content

This 1.5 cubic foot collection documents daily activities in the engine room of the THOMAS E. MILLSOP (U.S. 224662) and general vessel inspections. Engine room logs in 8 volumes cover, in scattered form, the years 1957-1975. The chief engineer assigned to the MILLSOP on each trip during the shipping season was responsible for the entries in this log. Engine performance and ballast water monitoring are two primary items examined daily through these logs.

Year-end reports document in 6 volumes the condition of the vessel after its winter layup inspections from 1967-1973. Needed repairs to the hull and interior structural supports are identified.

Inventory sheets for equipment from 1965-1966 are present to provide a view of the complete list of electrical, kitchen, and other types of devices used for operations on the vessel. The condition of the equipment is noted and repair recommendations are made.

Certificates issued from 1953-1975 by the U.S. Coast Guard note the successful completion of the inspection process for the MILLSOP.

Series Description

REPORTS

ENGINE ROOM LOGS
1957, 1963, 1966-1968, 1971, 1973-1975
Arranged chronologically
Box 1
Series contains engine room logs for the THOMAS E. MILLSOP (US 224662). These logs were maintained by the chief engineer and were designed to record engine performance data, ballast information, and data regarding passages through rivers between the Great Lakes.

The engine room log section contains location information recorded at intervals of several hours throughout the day. A geographical feature was named as the location and the time of arrival was noted. Engine speed information appears along with r.p.m. figures and fuel consumption data. Weather remarks accompanying many entries are also included.

Ballast measurements appear in the ballast pump record and the record of ballast as to sounding gauges. The pump record notes any use of the port or starboard pumps to balance the vessel. Locations and times of use are noted. Ballast was also measured to see that it held the vessel at recommended clearance depths to ballast measurements. River logs were similar to the engine room logs and were kept to document passages in connecting waterways between lakes. Worksheets also appear to provide areas for notes to be recorded by the chief engineer.

YEAR END REPORTS
1967-1970, 1972-1973
Arranged chronologically
Box 2, Folders 1-6
Series contains bound records noting the condition of the THOMAS E. MILLSOP at its inspections conducted during the winter lay-up period. Some inspections occurred at other points in the shipping season but most occurred when the vessel was out of active service. The condition of each section of the vessel was examined to list needed repair work on everything from hull plates to interior ladders.

INVENTORY
1965-1966
Arranged chronologically
Box 2, Folder 7
Series contains inventory record books used to identify equipment throughout the THOMAS E. MILLSOP and to reflect any damage to those items that required repairs. This series differs from the year-end reports in concentrating on equipment, rather than hull or superstructure items.

PRINTED MATERIAL

CERTIFICATES
1953-1975
Arranged chronologically
Box 2, Folder 8
Series contains certificates from the US Coast Guard issued to the Captain of the THOMAS E. MILLSOP after inspections were completed. General inspections and specific examinations of such items as load lines are documented.

Inventory

Box 1: Reports Engine Room Logs

Folders

1. 1957
2. 1963
3. 1966-1967
4. 1968
5. 1971
6. 1973
7. 1974
8. 1975

Box 2

Folders

1. Year End Report, 1967
2. Year End Report, 1968
3. Year End Report, 1969
4. Year End Report, 1970
5. Year End Report, 1972
6. Year End Report, 1973
7. Inventory, 1965-1966
8. Printed Matter: Certificates, 1953-1975

HCGL Manuscript Checklist | Vessel Design | Vessel Logs