Gone but still around
By James Heinz
There are many traces of these historic fireboats left that you can view. The first are the boat hydrants. There are four of them on the south side of Michigan Street between Broadway and Jefferson in downtown Milwaukee, and one of them at the southwest corner of St. Paul and Jefferson in Milwaukee’s Third Ward, as well as the one on display at the Milwaukee Fire Museum (1615 W. Oklahoma Avenue). If you know where any others may be found, please let me know.
The City of Milwaukee Water Department website shows that fire hydrants are color coded. A green hydrant signifies a hydrant that is not connected to the city water supply and for which the Water Department is not responsible. This explains why the boat hydrants are painted a dull dark green color, since the Fire Department was responsible for them.
I noticed that recently many modern fire hydrants had been painted a bright shade of green on their tops. These hydrants, which are all over the city, should not be confused with the few remaining boat hydrants. The Water Department website explains “Hydrants with green tops, or bonnets, are attached to water mains that are 12 inch in diameter or larger. When a fire department responds to an emergency, personnel can easily find a hydrant with the capability to support and maintain additional hookups to meet fire suppression needs.” In addition, the old boat hydrants are taller, with a conical top and two hose connections.
The Third Ward has another reminder of the fireboats: the fireboat house at 105 North Water Street where Water Street crosses the river. One fireboat or another was stationed at this location from 1892 to 1984. The quarters that housed the fireboat crews between alarms is still there. It was built in 1915 and still carries the words “Fire Department” and “No 15 Engine-House” carved in stone over the Water Street door. The last I heard it was occupied by an architectural firm that keeps IT equipment in the original built in lockers.
The anchor from the TORRENT, being held in this photo by Norman Hundt, is on display on the front lawn of the South Shore Yacht Club, right next to the propeller from the lightship NO. 57 that I wrote about in a previous posting.
And just because something lies on the bottom of the lake does not mean it no longer exists. According to Milwaukee’s Historic Fireboats, on January 10, 2005, legendary Milwaukee dive store owner and shipwreck hunter Jerry Guyer was hunting shipwrecks on the bottom of Lake Michigan with his newly acquired side scan sonar. Just south of the 1954 wreck of the Dutch freighter PRINS WILLEM V, he scanned a target. Guyer dove down into the cold January lake waters and examined the wreck.
Guyer consulted legendary Great Lakes shipwreck historian Brendon Baillod. Based on Jerry Guyer’s description, including the fact that the wreck showed signs of charring from fire, they concluded that it was the wreck of MFD 23.
Guyer and Baillod then teamed up with State Underwater Archeologist Tamara Thomsen, the Wisconsin Underwater Archeology Association, and yet another legendary shipwreck hunter, Kimm Stablefeldt and his Great Lakes Shipwreck Research Association. Together they conducted an archeological survey of the wreck in the summers of 2007 (19 volunteer divers making 8 dives), 2008 (26 divers making 10 dives), and 2009 (25 divers making 15 dives).
Their report concludes: “The MFD 23 is today in a fairly concentrated debris field in about 70 feet of water just south of the site of the PRINS WILLEM V. Her main hull bed is relatively intact and features her massive boiler and condenser as well as her very substantial propeller, which is still standing upright beneath her stern posts.”
“The boiler is mid-wreck and does not look like it was displaced in the sinking. Both the port and starboard sides of the vessel lie open from the vessel’s hull, these are large sections extending most of the length of the vessel. There are also small parts of the structure that have broken off during the wreck formation process. The stern area has collapsed exposing the lower hull and keel. The rudder is lying on its port side. The propeller lies in the lake bottom with one blade embedded in the lake bottom, two partly exposed and the fourth fully exposed. The propeller drive shaft is still in place.”
According to Kimm Stablefeldt, the wreck of MFD 17 has yet to be found. A mystery wreck off Milwaukee may be that of MFD 17 but Stabelfeldt does not believe it is. However, Jerry Guyer does believe what he found is MFD 17 and has provided the photo.
And finally, there is one old fireboat you can visit without having to swim. Remember MFD 15? WMHS files show that on November 18, 1952 she was sold to the Great Lakes Towing Company. She was rebuilt and her steam engine replaced with a diesel. On June 2, 1954, she was christened LAURENCE C. TURNER, the name of the owner of Great Lakes Towing, and put into service as a tug. In 1973, she was renamed OHIO and continued in service as a tug until October 18, 2018, when she arrived at the National Museum of the Great Lakes in Toledo, Ohio, where she was restored by volunteers and is on display today as a museum ship.
We conclude this story with words from the Milwaukee Fire Department web site: “The MFD Boat Team has been proudly and dutifully serving the citizens of, and visitors to, the City of Milwaukee for over 120 years. They provide fire, EMS, and rescue services for the many waterways, shorelines, and off-shore areas extending 40 nautical miles east into Lake Michigan.
“The Marine Unit has over 60 members and is further divided to include the specially-trained units; Boat Pilots of the MFD Trident fireboat and the Dive Rescue Team. The Dive Rescue Team and the Trident Pilots operate out of the quarters of Engine 2 (located at James Lovell and Wells).
“The MFD Boat Team is an important part of the service the City of Milwaukee is obligated to provide for its citizens. The City of Milwaukee is fortunate to have such beautiful natural resources as lakes and rivers, and the people utilizing these natural resources can rest safely knowing the well-trained and equipped men and women of the MFD Boat Team are there should they be needed.”
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Check out the other chapters of this story
THE BOATS THAT KEPT MILWAUKEE SAFE
- Once there were over 250 of them
- The beginning
- What’s its name again?
- Out with the coal, in with the diesel
- Gone but still around
Photo at top of page:
Fireboat House at 105 S. Water Street, Milwaukee, Wis. Photo by James Heinz.
Other photos:
PHOTO CREDIT: Great Lakes Marine Collection of the Milwaukee Public Library and Wisconsin Marine Historical Society unless otherwise noted.
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James Heinz is the Wisconsin Marine Historical Society’s acquisitions director. He became interested in maritime history as a kid watching Jacques Cousteau’s adventures on TV. He was a Great Lakes wreck diver until three episodes of the bends forced him to retire from diving. He was a University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee police officer for thirty years. He regularly flies either a Cessna 152 or 172.
