William P. Wenner

William P. Wenner is an engineer of good reputation on the lakes and one thoroughly acquainted with that branch of the marine industry. At the present time he resides at No. 664 Clinton avenue, Detroit, and during the season acts as engineer of the Gettysburg for Alger, Smith & Co., in whose employ he has been for many years.

Mr. Wenner was born June 13, 1854, at Marshall, Mich., but at that place lived only one year, his parents removing to Decatur, same State, where he received his education and resided for fifteen years. Having completed his schooling he came to Detroit and entered the Frontier Iron Works, where he served an apprenticeship of four years to the machinist's trade, and he has since been engaged in the engine rooms of various boats. He spent three seasons in the tug Torrent as second engineer and then went on the Manistique in the same position, remaining one and a half seasons and finishing his second season in the same position on the Kitty M. Forbes. After two years' service on the Merrimac, of the Inter Ocean line, and one season on the Volunteer, he came into the present employ, shipping on the Gettysburg at the very beginning. While on the Kitty M. Forbes he was shipwrecked on Outer island, Lake Superior, but otherwise he has been exceedingly fortunate as to accidents of a serious nature.

In 1875 Mr. Wenner was married to Miss Jessie Cronenweth, a daughter of John Cronenweth, a marine engineer of Detroit, and to their union have been born six children: John, William, Earl, Harold, Jessie and Isoria, all of whom reside at home. Mr. Wenner is a member of the Marine Engineers Beneficial Association and the Stationary Engineers Association, of Detroit.

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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.