1943 J. Burton Ayers
Steel Great Lakes bulk freighter
Built at Lorain OH by American Ship Building Co., Hull 828
Keel laid Nov 20, 1942, launched May 15, 1943
Built for U. S. Maritime Commission, Class L6-S-A1 under its World War II vessel construction program. Delivered at commissioning to Great Lakes Steamship Co., taking in trade (for this vessel and str. J. H. Hillman Jr.) five older vessels of the fleet for part of the purchase price
620’ LOA, 605’ LBP, 60’ beam, 35’ depth
1 deck, arch cargo hold construction, 18 hatches @ 24’, coal-fired boilers, compound engine, 2500 IHP
Enrolled at
604.8 x 60.2 x 30.2, 8758 GT, 6472 NT US 243772 to:
Great Lakes Steamship Co., Cleveland OH (home port Oswego NY)
Entered service Aug 19, 1943 clearing Lorain OH light for Duluth MN
Sold 1957 to Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co., Milwaukee WI, Wilson Marine Transit Co., Cleveland OH, Mgr. (under charter)
Sold 1966 to Wilson Marine Transit Co.
Sold 1973 to Kinsman Marine Transit Co., Cleveland OH
Sold 1974 to Columbia Transportation Division, Oglebay Norton Co., Cleveland OH
Converted to self-unloader at Toledo OH by American Ship Building Co.
Remeasured to 8796 GT, 6436 NT
Boilers converted to oil firing 1975 at Cleveland OH by G & W Welding
Laid up Dec 16, 1979 at Toledo OH and did not operate again for this fleet
Sold 1995 to Lower Lakes Towing Ltd., Port Dover ON and renamed Cuyahoga.
Enrolled Canadian Can 815560 (home port to Nanticoke ON)
Repowered 2000 with diesel engine at Sarnia ON
IMO 5166392
In service 2012 for Lower Lakes Towing
4310
Isn’t this the ship that you were on in 1943?
Sure is. I boarded her upbound in the Detroit River in August 1943 on the second trip of her career.
My father-in-law was chief engineer on her at that time.
Hi Sterling, I am from the Thumb of Mi, and I am wondering if you could help me find some info from the I Burton Ayers in the years of 1956-1960 for my friend who was on the freighter those years. He would be thrilled! I would like to surprise him, he speaks fondly of those bygone days! Thanks!
I assume she sailed uneventfully all those years, for Great Lakes and then for Wilson after they bought the Great Lakes fleet.
I have some personal history with this vessel. I boarded her in the Detroit River in August 1943, climbing up her side on a rope ladder from the mailboat to start a job as a deckhand on the upbound part of the second trip of her career. I thought I’d died and gone to heaven after just getting off the old Colonel E. M. Young with her wooden hatch covers, the need to ride her cargo down to get it on to the scraper tunnel during the unload and the cleanup around her leaking elevator of the cargo to the unloading boom after every unload.
My father-in-law was chief engineer at that time. Do you have any kind of a list of the crew at that time? I don’t want that piece of family history lost. My F-I-L was an 8th grade graduate who worked his way up to chief. As we are all getting older, I would like to be able to keep this history in a written form. My F-I-L has been gone for some time, and his great-grandson is showin g some interest in freighters and history.
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Did you know Robert, Bob, Abbey? He was my father. He sailed on the J Burton Ayers for several seasons. He worked in the engine department.
Mike Abbey
Someone on a Facebook group just updated my knowledge of my grandfather’s career by claiming he was on this boat in 1973. Just found that out today, pretty cool.
I came across a photo of this ship in storage. I think my father might have sailed with her. His name was Ross Stevens. Does anyone know if there is a roster of men who might have sailed on the ship.
The information regarding lay-up of December 16, 1979 is correct however, the vessel did fit out again in 1980. This was a difficult time in the history of O/N Columbia due to poor economic conditions. I have a discharge certificate dated 6/25/80 in Toledo, Ohio signed by Captain Delmar Webster.
As for personnel records, they’re available via the U.S. Coast Guard for a fee or you can search in person at the Bowling Green University archives.