LETTERS fenseofwhathe knew to be the truth. When we were working on an exhibit dealing with the history of the maritime industry in the US, he commented on a script I was writing: "There's too damn much romance in this thing . The age of the tea clippers , the adventure of deep-sea whal ing, all that Melville, Dana stuff, very exciting-but do you know what the real long-term profit-making history of the American maritime industry was and still is all about? Inland waterways, the lakes and rivers, boy-that's where it's always been! " He was a crackerjack seaman , first-rate scholar and a good friend. PETER COPELA ND
Arlington, Virginia
Needed: An Historian at MARAD It is worr isome news that the Maritime Adm inistration does not have a staff historian. As you may know, the logs of World War II merchant ships have already been destroyed. Presumably, this was because they were not considered "sufficiently significant" for permanent record. Despite this loss, MARAD does sti ll have a large amount of records which should be retained for posterity. At the present time there are one or two persons at MARAD who, albeit nearing
retirement , have an appreciation of the historical value inherent within this material. The problem is that once those people retire, there apparently will not be any staff member remaining who is interested in seeing that this material is shepherded into archival depositories. Obviously, there should be a MARAD historian . Without one, muc h of the maritime history which still exists regarding World War II and before wil l be lost. I hope we can use the Society's good offices to inves ti gate and help correct this. CHARLES D. GIBSON Boca Grande, Florida A distinguished former MARAD official points ow that he was involved with the repository of World War II ships' logbooks . "!#?provided a service giving access to the books for hundreds of people. One day I found out to my horror that they had been shredded on a schedule approved by some Washington administrative type." He asks whether an historian's "chair" might be set up with private citizen support andfunding -a quest ion we are prepared to pursue with anyone prepared to he/pc- ED
A Couple of Errors I first got onto your organization when I met some ship restorers and researchers in the
Falkland Islands in 1978. I might call to your attention some errors in SH 32. " The Last Dreadnought " refers to the USS Texas bringing President Hoover to Havana in 1928, but Calvin Coolidge was President in that year. Hoover was President-elect from the election in November 1928 until March 4, 1929, when he assumed office. And on page 55, 1911 is shown as the date of the Titanic sinking, but she went down in 1912 . Keep up the good work! I am a stickler for details-that comes with less frenzied activity in retirement. WM. E. ROBERTSON Wilmette, Illinois
Not the First The SS Energy Independen ce was not , as you state (SH29:30), " th e first coal-fi red steam-powered cargo carrier built in this country since 1929." Coal-fired steam turbine cargo carriers were built for Great Lakes service all through the 1950s, among them the late, we! I known SS Edmund Fitzgerald (1958). At 729 feet, the Fitz was one of the largest vessels flying the Ame rican flag. It is true, however, that all but two of these ships were later converted to oil firing. AW. SWEIGERT C leveland, Ohio
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SEA HISTORY, SUMMER 1984