Edward A. Carter

Edward A. Carter is a native of Massachusetts, born November 17, 1861, son of Thomas and Hester (Roughsedge) Carter, who were residents for many years of Lawrence, that State.

Thomas Carter was born and raised in England. He manufactured files at Lawrence and also at Buffalo, and was among the first to engage in that branch of manufacturing in the United States. He died in Buffalo, February 14, 1893. Edward A. Carter received his education after his removal to Buffalo, in 1865, at Public School No. 19. He was employed for several years succeeding his school days in the Jacobs Brothers Moulding and Finishing Works; as engineer with the Buffalo File Manufacturing Company, of which his father was the proprietor; was with E. P. Washburn, nickel plater and finisher, and was engineer with Hindston & Hill, of the Buffalo Hammer Works. In 1885, Mr. Carter began life on the water as fireman on the new tug International. He remained about nine months in this employ, and the following season acted as oiler on the steamer Rochester, under Robert E. Walker, chief engineer. Until September of the season of 1887 he was first assistant engineer of the steamer Portage, under George Fritchie, who was chief, and his next position was as first assistant engineer of the steamer Lackawanna, on which he remained until September 15, 1888. On that day he became chief engineer of the steamer Grand Traverse, and was with her continuously until October 19, 1896, when she was sunk off Colchester reef, Lake Erie, in collision with the steamer Livingston. The accident occurred about 5:40 o'clock in the morning, the Livingston striking the Traverse about midship, and making an opening in her side about twelve feet deep. The former was loaded with corn, the latter with 850 tons of coal and miscellaneous merchandise, bound up for Green Bay. A singular fact in connection with the occurrence was that it was the first trip in seven weeks for the Livingston, and the first in eight for the Traverse. During the spring of 1897 he was appointed chief engineer of the steamship Arthur Orr (2,329 g. t.), remaining on her in this capacity till August 5, 1898, when he left her to take a similar position on the steamship Appomattox (2,643 g. t.)

Mr. Carter has taken a complete course at the Colliery Correspondence School, of Scranton, Penn., in marine and electric engineering, and is one of the few experts in this particular line of business, and is employed in much complicated and difficult work where the keenest judgment is required. He is well known and appreciated by all his acquaintances.

On August 5, 1885, Mr. Carter was married at Guelph, Ont., to Amy Edith Harvey, and they have two children, Vera G., aged (1898) ten, and Verna, aged six years. Mr. Carter has been a member of the Marine Engineers Beneficial Association for about six years.

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Volume I

This version of Volume II is based, with permission, on the work of the great volunteers at the Marine Captains Biographies site. To them goes the credit for reorganizing the content into some coherent order. The biographies in the original volume are in essentially random order.

Some of the transcription work was also done by Brendon Baillod, who maintains an excellent guide to Great Lakes Shipwreck Research.