COMPLETE LIST OF RAFT PILOTS, 1840-1913

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    The following facts about raftsmen and rafting and the complete list of all pilots engaged in the work in any part of the period from 1840 to 1913 are taken from an article in the Davenport 'Democrat' and republished in the 'Waterways Journal', December, 1913. {The list was very carefully made up and I had many to help me. If we have missed any one, we have not been reminded of it since. In January, 1928, I only can count thirty of the list above.}

     The towboats are sunken and dismantled and disintegrated hulks, the bones of many being the relics of an almost forgotten industry are strewn along the shores of the river. A few - and what a few they are - are working as sand-boats and towboats and general river craft.

     The great rafting traffic on the big river, in its infancy in 1841, slowly matured year by year, growing larger with each succeeding yearly cycle until in the 1880, the river traffic of rafts was reckoned one of the largest and most profitable industries in the United States.

     Then came the decline. Later in the eighties the rafts coming down the Mississippi began to fall off in numbers, the towboats plying up and down the river to be fewer and fewer and gradually but surely the business dwindled. The falling off of the river traffic has continued until the present year when during the entire season, but three rafts went down.

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TOWED BY THE "OTTTUMWA BELLE"

    These three reminders of the old days were towed through by the 'Ottumwa Belle,' the only survivor of the great fleet of ninety raft-boats that were in the business on the crest of the wave in 1880. The season of 1914 will see the end of the rafting business, when the 'Ottumwa Belle' will take three rafts through, the last three rafts ever destined to go down the river, and the knell of the once great traffic will be rung. The 'Ottumwa Belle' is owned by S. & J.C., Atlee of Fort Madison. The master of the 'Belle' is Walter Hunter, one of the few remaining raft pilots.

    And the masters, pilots and crews who manned the big fleet. Of the army of pilots, numbering over two hundred and fifty, who were the guardians of the fleet in their trips up and down the river thirty years ago, but seventy-three are known to be living. There may be other survivors, but they are not known to Captain W.A. Blair, who has compiled the complete list of those who were engaged in piloting in the early days.

    Of the seventy-three members of the profession, for it was indeed a profession, several have retained high places politically, others have abandoned the river and taken up a less romantic vocation, and still others have drifted to other navigable rivers to continue their chosen work.

OLD RIVER MEN MEET

    Prominent among the one-time raft-boat pilots is Colonel E.W. Durant, who is perhaps one of the most noted members of the body. Colonel Durant, who was once Lieutenant-governor of Minnesota and twice served his state as state senator, at the age of eighty-four years is, hale, healthy and happy.

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     He is an ardent follower of Isaac Walton and likes nothing better than sunning himself with a fish line in hand. He is also a great story-teller.

     On a trip of the 'Morning Star' in 1912 from Davenport to Saint Paul, I had Colonel Durant and Captain S.B. Hanks as my guests and I greatly enjoyed their company and their reminiscences and they aided me in completing and checking up the list of raft pilots which I had prepared with the help of Captains Cyprian and Joseph Buisson and John Monroe. Captain hanks piloted his last raft June, 1844. His death occurred in August, 1917, at the age of ninety-four.

THREE IN OLD GUARD

    Three pilots, S.E. Lancaster of LeClaire, Iowa, O.J. Newcomb of Pepin, Wisconsin, and Morrel Looney, of LaCrosse are still following their chosen profession on the Yukon river in Alaska during the summer months. Others well known are Peter Kirns of Saint Louis, who for years was engaged in that business in Saint Louis.

     John McCaffrey, another of the old-time pilots, is a planter in Louisiana. Captain McCaffrey is a teller of wonderfully interesting stories of the old river and raft-running and is not at a loss for listeners.

     Joseph and Cyprian Buisson, two of the pioneers, are still piloting on the Mississippi. Cyprian was master of the steamer 'Helen Blair' last year and Joseph Buisson piloted the 'St. Paul' during the past season.

     Three of the living river pilots are located in Clinton. Joseph Duley is at the present time engaged in the unromantic calling of liveryman, but secretly his thoughts turn to his first love and enters the sand and gravel business "to get the river smell," he says. O.P. McMahon

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Henry Whitmore Engineer - Fitted out first real rafter

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and A.E. Duncan, also of Clinton, have retired from business with a comfortable fortune, The latter two were designers and builders of the steamer 'Silver Crescent.'

    In the following list of old rivermen, who piloted rafts down the river, those marked with a star (*) are known to be living, while the others which are by far the greater, have run their last line:

Surname	First Name		Surname	First Name		Surname	First Name
Adolph	Christ		Hanks	David		Parker	John
Alexander	Silas		Hanks	S.B.		Parmelee	David
Allen	Nelson		Hanks	Samuel		Payne	W.A.
Allen	Washington		Hawthorne*	Jos.		Pearson*	John
Badwin*	Russell		Herold	Geo.		Peavey	H.L.
Barlow	Aug.		Herold	Pembroke		Peel	Thos.
Barnes	Charles		Hill	Albert J.		Pell	Vincent
Bernard	Frank, Sr.		Hire	Peter		Penney	George
Biglow	Vol. A.		Hitchcoc	Samuel		Penny	Wiley
Blair*	W.A.		Hollinshead	Al		Perro	Jos. (Big Jo)
Blair*	W.H.		Hollinshead	Horace		Philamulee	David
Blow	Jos.		Hoy	John		Philbrook	Caleb
Bradley	C.G.		Hoy	Thos.		Quinlan*	John
Bradley	John		Hugunin	Harry		Register	Samuel
Brasser	George		Hugunin	James		Rellis	Jas.
Brazee	Hiram		Hugunin	John		Ressor	Jacob
Brown	Sherman		Hunter*	Walter		Rhoads	Bradley
Bruce	Surveyor		Huttenborn*	Ed.		Rhoads	Charles
Buchanan	Wm.		Irwin	Robt.		Rice	Daniel
Buisson	Cyprian		Jenks	A.T.		Roman	C.B.
Buisson	Henry		Jenks*	I.B.		Rook*	John
Buisson	Joseph		Johnson	Samuel		Root	Ed.
Burrow	Vetal		Jonson	Hugh		Roque	Antoine
Butts	James		Kerz	Adam		Roundy	Robt.
Carlton	Peter		Kerz	Paul		Rutherford	George
Carpenter	Alf.		King	Cyrus		Ryder	H.L.
Carpenter	Chris		Kirns	Peter		Savage	Wm.
Carpenter	Geo.		Knapp	Cornelius		Schmidt	John
Cassidy	R.M.		Knippenberg*	Al		Schricer	C.W.
Chacey	E.J.		Kratka	Wm.		Seabring	John
Chacey	I.L.		Lamb	David		Seeford	Christ
Chapman	A.J.		Lambert	Andrew		Shaw	Albert
Cheshire	John		Lancaster	John		Shea	Daniel
Cobb	Hiram		Lancaster	S.E.		Short	A.M..
Coleman	James		Langford	John		Short	Charles
Corcoran	Owen		Langford	Perry		Short	G.L.
Cormack	John		Larivere	Peter		Short	I.H.
Cratt	David		Larkin	Andrew		Short*	Harry
Darling*	Lysander		Law*	D.C.		Short*	J.E.
Davidson	Chas.		Lawrence	Phileas O.		Short*	Lee
Davis	Jack		Laycock*	John		Simmons	William
Davis*	Gordon		Leach	John		Sloan	Jos.
Davis	Wm.		LePoint,	Frank		Slocumb	Henry
Davison	Daniel		Lindley	J.T.R.		Slocumb	W.R.
Day*	A.O.		Looney	Carl		Slocumb	Wm.
Day*	L.A.		Looney	Frank		Smith	Harvey
DeCamp	Ira		Looney*	Morcell		Smith	Peter
Denberg	Gary		Lucas	N.B.		Smith	Russell
Denvier	Joe		Macey	Samuel		Smith	Wm.
Desmond	Wm.		Martin	Al		Socumb	Chas.
Diamond	Frank		Martin	French		Stafford	Henry
Dixon	E.D.		Martin	Geo.		Thompson	O.J.
Dobler	Wm.		McCaffrey	Hugh		Trombley	Geo.
Dodds	Robert		McCaffrey	John		Trombley	Geo. Jr.
Dolson	Thos.		McCaffrey	Wm.		Trombley	R. H.
Dorr	Wm.		McCall	R.B.		Turner*	Jerry
Duley*	Jos.		McCarty	John		Walker	Henry
Duncan	Thos.		McCarty	John (Mushrat)		Walker	Jack
Duncan*	A.E.		McDonald	D.A.		Wallace	George
Dunham	Edward		McDonald	John		Wasson	Isiah
Durant	E.W.		McDonald	Toliver		Weir*	Wm.
Efnir	Edwin		McGinley	O.E.		Wetenhall	Frank
Egan	Lafe		McIntyre	Frank		Wheeler	Harry
Elliott	Wm.		Mcinzie	John		Wheeler	R. J.
Flynn	Daniel		McKane	John		Whistler	James
Follmer	James		McLarney	Robt.		Whistler	Nelson
Forbush	Thos.		McLean	Daniel		Whistler	Wm. H.
Fox	Patrick		McMahon	O.P.		White*	Charles
Fuller	Henry		McPhail	Sandy		Whithrow*	Alfred
Fuller	Ira		Miliron	Herbert		Whitney	Edward
Fuller	John		Miller	edward		Wild	Frank
Gabriel	John		Mitchel*	Abram		Wilson	Thos.
Gainor	John		Mitchel*	Brainerd		Winans	Aaron
Gainor	Patrick		Mitchel*	W. S.		Winans	George
Ganley	Wm.		Monroe	John		Winans	Mahan
Gerlach	paul		Moore	J.G.		Withrow	Steven
Germain	St.		Newcomb	Boyd		Withrow	Thos. C.
Gilbert	John		Newcomb	W.B.		Wooden	Wm.
Gleason	James		Newcomb*	Frank		Woodward	Asa
Goodnow	John		Newcomb*	Isaac		Wray	David
Gordan	WW.		Newcomb*	James		Wray	John
Grant	Ed.		Newcomb*	Rufus		Yonker	Adam
Guardapee	Joe H.		Nichols*	George S.		York	Wm.
Haggerty	James		O'Connor	John		Young	A.R.
Hallam	Sherman		O'Rourke	Peter		Young	Jack
Hampton	John		O'Rourke	Thos.		Young*	Joe H.
Hanford	John		Owens	Rueben		Young	Wm.

    Of the thirty pilots in the foregoing list who were alive January 1, 1928, one nine were still in service on the Mississippi during the season of 1927, viz:

     J.M. Hawthorne on the United States towboat 'Louise'.

     J.H. Laycock on the United States towboat 'Minneapolis'.

     Isaac Newcomb and William Weir one trip on the 'Altair' of Wabasha.

     W.L. Hunter in Streckfus Line and on United States towboat 'Genl. Ashburn'.

     Harry Short on the steamer 'Kalitan'.

     Joe Young on the towboat 'Lone Deer.'

     Chas. White on the United States towboat 'Gen. Ashburn.'

     WA. Blair in the Streckfus Line and on the United State towboat 'C.C. Webber.'