Old Boat Column: Margaret Dawson And Henry C. Ogram
This column has previously detailed vessels built by Petersen & Haecker Ltd., Blair, Neb., a shipyard that was established in the late 1930s on the right bank of the Missouri River at present day Mile 648. After building a few very small vessels, the shipyard built two similar towboats in 1941 for Omaha, Neb.-based Omaha Barge & Towing Company.
The first towboat was named the Margaret Dawson, and according to the early editions of the Inland River Record (IRR), it was named for the wife of Frank Prucka, an organizer of the owning firm. The Dawson was of all-steel construction and had a hull that measured 64.9 feet by 20 feet. The twin-screw vessel was powered by a pair of National Superior 6-cylinder diesels that produced a total of 500 hp. at 750 rpm. The Dawson had a full lower cabin, with a short cabin on the second deck and the raised pilothouse forward of that, pool style. A single smokestack was behind the upper cabin.
The second boat from Petersen & Haecker came out either in late 1941 or early 1942. Both dates are given in various sources. The IRR always listed 1942, but the List of U.S. Merchant Vessels stated 1941. In any case, the vessel was named Henry C. Ogram, and according to IRR, it was named after one of the partners of Omaha Barge & Towing Company. It was slightly larger than the Dawson and a little different. The hull dimensions were 65.9 feet by 22 feet, and it had 640 hp. from two National Superior 8-cylinder engines turning 575 rpm. The pilothouse of the Ogram sat atop the upper cabin, and there were two smokestacks on the roof, oriented one behind the other.
The boats were used initially on the Missouri River, but in 1943, both were sold to Ashland Oil & Refining Company (AO&R), Ashland, Ky. AO&R likely needed the boats to help with the increased movement of oil products due to the war effort. The two small boats appear to have been designed by marine architect A.M. Deering of Chicago, who had a close association with AO&R. Deering had designed AO&R’s four largest vessels.
The two small boats were often used to tow from the AO&R facilities at Catlettsburg, Ky., to the Cincinnati area, lashed together side by side. It is said that the Dawson was controlled from the Ogram pilothouse in this arrangement, and perhaps due to this, only the Ogram had radio call letters assigned to it (KPRP). About 1950, its call letters changed to WA 5791. At some point, AO&R raised the pilothouse on the Dawson and removed the after stack of the Ogram.
In 1952, both boats were sold to separate owners. The Margaret Dawson went to Pfaff & Smith Builders Supply, Charleston, W.Va. Then, in June
1956, it was sold to J.T. Murphy River Transportation Company of Cincinnati and renamed Mike Murphy. It is first shown with radio call letters during this ownership (WD 3058). In 1958, it was sold to Kentucky Towing Company of St. Louis. Just two years later, it was sold to West Fork Towing Company of Fairmont, W.Va., and in 1966, it was sold to Canton Towing Service of Canton, Mo., and renamed Sir Fredrick. In 1968, it was sold for a final time to Musgrove Towing Service Inc., Channelview, Texas. In 1978, it was repowered with a pair of 12V-71N engines that gave it 800 hp. The vessel was last listed in the 1996 edition of the IRR.
The Henry C. Ogram was sold in 1952 to Capt. Robert H. Bosworth’s Point Towing Company, Point Pleasant, W.Va. This was the first of many boats Bosworth owned over the years. In 1959, it was sold to McBride Towing Company of Louisville, Ky., and renamed Donna McBride. The late Capt. Alan L. Bates noted in his book “McBride’s River” that at this time the boat had mismatched engines, with an original Superior on one side and an Atlas engine on the other.
In 1968, the boat was sold to Kujak Bros. Corporation of Winona, Minn., and renamed the Loris Gene. In March 1970, it sold to Ross Drussell, also of Winona, and was renamed Jean Ann. Drussell renamed it again in 1971, this time calling it the Delia Rose. In April 1972, it was sold to Material Handlers, Blytheville, Ark., and in February 1974 it was sold to Barfield Harbor Service at Armorel, Ark., and renamed Fasco. In July 1988, it was sold to Steele Tug Service, Halls, Tenn. In 1990, IRR listed the boat as having GM 12V-71 engines rated at 800 hp. In 1995, it was sold and renamed Crystal King by N-K-G Marine Service Inc., Rosiclare, Ill., and in September 1995, it was sold to Empire Marine, Golconda, Ill.
In February 2005, it was sold to Lonnie Ray Lewis Inc., Cave In Rock, Ill., and renamed Doug K, and in June of that year, it was sold once again, this time to Batson Towing Company of Galatia, Ill., and renamed Gladys B. Batson. In August 2011, it was sold to Universal Marine Transportation LLC, St. Gabriel, La., and renamed Olivia Rose. In May 2012, it partially sank on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway west of Harvey, La. It was raised but remained tied up until it was finally scrapped in September 2015.
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Featured photo caption: The Margaret Dawson new in 1941. (From the author’s collection)
