One of my railroad jobs was being a bridge operator, and i would never stop a freighter or a “salty” if i could help it. The train could stop easier than a ship with 2 tugs on it. Anyway we had a Conrail bridge near by and he could not open his bridge without a dispatcher pushing some buttons.So the op was helpless.That CR bridge would get fined all the time by the Coast Guard. But we always said what was the point. The fines were being paid out of tax dollars anyway. It would be into the thousands of dollars at times. Thank you !
There was a whole gang of drawbridges on the Calumet river in the late 1950s Five of them if IRC (and I probably don`t) when one would raise for our ship the two next to it would come down.
Those bridges turned a four hour trip up the river into an eight hour trip every time.
Just hanging out in the middle of the river with our thumb stuck up our Kiester for four hours…
I was sailing on the SS Clemens Reiss with Capt. Louis Messenger about 1962 and we were going up river for coal at 100th and commerical and those bridges came down as usual.
I was on the wheel with the thrd mate in the pilothouse when Captain Louie came bounding up the steps from his cabin. Steam was coming out of both his ears.
He was agitated and cussing up a blue streak at the bridge operators through the megaphone.
The kid third mate was just standing there with his mouth open, and I figgured the old man had finally gone nuts.LOL.,
Anyhoo Capt. Louie threw the Megaphone at the bridge operators and gave them the finger with both hands.
He then stomped into the pilothouse and grabed his single shot .410 and a box of shells and went back out on the bow deck. The mate and I could do nothing to stop him. We were on watch and in charge of the ship.
Capt. Louie put two shots in the air and then shook that old .410 at the bridge operators till they let us by.
Still cussing to beat the band, but he had already sent the Megaphone over the side. (the messman managed to save it from Davey Jones)
The cops showed up at the dock but Louie left orders not to put the ladders down. I think that ticked the cops off worse than a little extra lead flying through the air in Chi-Town.
Nothing bad happened to anyone involved in this incident.
Capt Louie died at home in Newberry Mi. in 1968.
Thanks sanvtoman for the topic.
Kurt
sanvtoman, can you tell us which city was trying to fine the crew. I worked for CSXT out of Walbridge to Detroit, and was told by a copin Plymouth, Mi to “move this train or go to jail” after I told him it would take another two hours to get another engineer he quickly reconsidered.