with its eas tern counterparts, and po rts like M arquette o n Michigan's U pper Peninsul a. Bowlus begins with a brief histo rical ove rvi ew that takes the reader through to the 1840s, when American settlement and development of rhe shores of Lake Superior commenced. The author carefull y pl aces hi s story within the large r co ntex t of Am eri can history, such as rhe growing divide between Southerners and No rtherners. Congressmen from rhe South o pposed spending federal tax money o n G reat Lakes proj ects that they saw as only benefirring regional interes ts. He also looks to technological developments such as the ad vent of th e steam engine and evolving iron and steel producti o n methods. In so doing, Bowlus is also careful to explain the ro le of sailing vessels o n tl1 e Grear Lakes during rhe antebellum period. H e provides especial ly good insight into rhe rapid development of the maritime infrasrrucrure rhar suppo rred G reat Lakes trade, such as canals. H e makes a good case in explaining char rhe lack of interest in developing the mineral deposits known to exist around Lake Superior was due to the remo teness and expense of rranspo rrari o n. The Sr. M ary's falls rhat connected Lake Superior to Lake Michiga n we re an eighteen-foot drop rhar prevented large r vessels from passing back and forth . N umero us diffi culties had to be overcome before engin eers com pieced a majo r canal in 1855. This seeming breakthrough presented a new set of problems to rhe companies attempted to rake advantage of Lake Superior's commercial potential, es pecially the iron mining companies of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. In particular rhe loading process was too slow, often raking four days to load a mere 300 tons a fore. Special docks were developed thar allowed o re robe stored in packers m ar could feed directly into a vessel's hold, a process char could be com pieced in mere hours. The story wends its way th ro ugh the C ivi l Wa r, which created a greater dema nd for iron a nd steel, and the increasing mechanization of rhe transportation process, with steamers increasingly replacing schooners, including the development of the first vessel designed specifi ca lly fo r the ore trade, the R.j. Hackett, launched in 1869. Posrbellum Congresses also proved more interested in supporting the la kes' maritime infras tructure, fundin g ca nal locks and dredgin g as never before. A look ar the technological 52
improve ments in unloadin g ships, such as rhe early stea m-powered "whirleys," demonstrates that with changing technology cam e cha ng ing anxieties among workers, who increas ingly sought to unioni ze rhe Lakes. The book moves on to rhe heroic period of G reat La kes shipping and rhe steel industry, includingAlexa nder M cDougall 's innovative rurdebacks, rhe m assive Hullett unloaders, rhe opening of the rem arkably pro ductive Mesabi R ange in M innesota, and the emrance of business giants like Andrew Ca rnegie a nd J.P. Morga n. Bowlus concludes w ith a look at this industry in the early twentieth century, a period when shipp ing was standardi zed to conform to the needs of the sreel industry, the cha nges and decline rhat ca me after rhe Second Wo rld W ar, and the growi nge nvironmental concern fo r the Lakes. This book is a fi ne example of an academic monograph . Ir is well-resea rched and organized, and rhe author's a rgument about the symbiotic process of development as opposed to a heroic approach rhat emphasizes one individual or industry is well taken. The im ages are appropriate a nd useful to understa nding rh e tex r, which is stra ightfo rwa rd and ja rgo n-free. Ye t at rhe end of the day it is an academic monograph, a nd not written with a popular audience in mind. The publishers ackn owled ge its intended ma rker by pricing it at a steep $45 for a soft-cover book, a price clea rly designed for rhe library m arker. H owever, for scholars attempting to understa nd rhe development of G reat Lakes shipping, and more especially irs infras rrucrure, chis thorough account provides a mea ningfu I com exr and analysis, and the author sho uld be commended for chis ve ry solid contribution to the g rowing corpus of G reat Lakes history. JosHUA M. SMITH, PttD US M ercha nt M arine Academy Kin gs Point, New York The Power ofthe Sea: Tsunamis, Storm Surges, Rogue Waves, and O ur Quest to Predict D isasters by Bruce Pa rker (Palgrave M acmilla n, New York, 2010 , 292pp, fi gures, notes, ind ex, ISB 978-0-230-61637- 0; $28hc) "If we could have predicted that on 26 D ecember 2004, a tsun ami would strike the coasts of the Indian O cean, 300,000 lives would not have been lost in twelve nations," claims oceanographer Bruce Parker
in his new book, The Power of the Sea. A former chief scientist with the Nation al O cea nic a nd Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Dr. Pa rker draws on the wea lth of information a nd k nowledgeable personnel within NOAA in his engaging srud y of the disasters that arise from the sea. He analyzes efforts to mu re the impac t of tsunamis and other threats to humans through prediction, including rhe use of early wa rning systems develop ed by N OAA and ochers. H e stares char prediction is rhe very essence of science, since we do not believe scientific theories unless they ca n predict specific phenom ena. The prediction of ocean phenom ena began with the tides. The development of reliable tide tables and predictions of rides could mea n success or failure in mi lita ry operations waged by Alexander rhe G rear in Ind ia in 325 BC , N apoleon in Egy pt in 1798, and Eisenhower at Normandy in 1944. Those same predictors are esse ntia l for shipping, a nd, in some cases, survival; tidal bores have brought many seafarers to a disastrou s end. The Chinese understood rhe relationship of rhe ride ro rhe ph ases of the moo n as early as rhe 2nd century BC. Today, there a re only two large tid a l bo res (about 25 fee t)-on the Qianta ng Ri ver and rhe A mazo n River. The sea's greates t killer ashore is storm surge, and rhe numbers a re staggerin g. Adva nces in forecasting provide a reason able wa rnin g period and can predict the path of a hurricane and its resultin g storm surge, but this information has to be impl em ented in a res ponse plan to ameliorate the destructive consequences. For in stance, m ereorologisrs at NOAA's N atio na l Hurricane Center predicted rhe path of Hurrican e Katrina four days before it hie la nd , just east of N ew Orleans on 29 August 200 5, bur chis did nor prevent the ca rn age caused by the coas tal storm surges char reached as h igh as 28 feet. The author suppo rts the conclusion rh ar rhe impact of Katrin a was th e resulr of the "government's i nadequare prep aration for and response to this predicted narural ca la mity." The range of this work is an appea lin g fea ture. The impact of the sea on historica l events is insightful, as a re the discussio ns of e fforts to pred icr the behavior of the s e a and related atmospheric conditions. They provid e a fram ework SEA HISTORY 134, SPRING 20 11