The Calumet Shipyard & Dry Dock Company

This story map casts light on the life of James Andrew Rogan (1878 - 1949) and the Calumet Shipyard and Dry Dock Company he founded on the South Side of Chicago. Details are shared through objects and photographs preserved in the collection of the Chicago Maritime Museum.

James Andrew Rogan was born in Glasgow, Scotland and immigrated to the United States in 1885, at the age of seven, with his father, James Rogan.

The Rogans carried on the family tradition of shipbuilding that extended back at least four generations.

Upon arrival to the Midwest in the early 1890s, James Rogan, James Andrew's father, worked at the American Steel Barge Company in Superior, Wisconsin. At that time, Alexander McDougall was building whaleback steamships at the American Steel Barge Company. It is likely that James Rogan was involved in the construction of the only whaleback used for passenger service - Christopher Columbus.

Launched in 1893, the steamer was used as a shuttle for the World's Columbian Exposition. After the fair, Christopher Columbus became the primary passenger-carrying vessel between Chicago and Milwaukee.

James Andrew and his family moved to Chicago's East Side where he attended Bowen High School. Upon graduating, he worked as a riveting apprentice at the Chicago Shipbuilding Company. James completed his apprenticeship and married Lillian Kurtz on June 12 of 1901.

James Andrew's real start in shipbuilding began at Marine Iron Works, builders of marine machinery and steam craft, located on the North Branch of the Chicago River.

While employed at Marine Iron Works, he helped build the steamer packet Frank H. Kirby, to be delivered to Beaumont, Texas, which was no small task. With a length of 97.5 feet and a beam of 21 feet, the guards on the Frank H. Kirby had to be removed to fit through locks on the Illinois and Michigan Canal. The locks measured 100 feet in length and 18 feet in width.

In 1903, Rogan quit his job at Marine Iron Works and traveled with his wife Lillian to Frontera in the state of Tabasco, Mexico, where he built steel hulls for the Chiapas Trading and Transportation Company.

Rogan supervised construction of Sanchez Marmol, to be used for transporting cattle, cargo, and passengers. The hull and deck that supported a wood burning boiler, were all made of steel.

James and Lillian returned to the states and started a family in 1905. The couple welcomed their first son, James Francis Rogan, on August 27, 1906, in Chicago.

The Rogans relocated to Iowa as James Andrew was appointed superintendent of the Dubuque Iowa Boat and Boiler Works to oversee construction of the largest sidewheel railroad transfer ferry -  Albatross .

Three more children would join the Rogan family in Dubuque; daughter Evelyn - born September 18, 1911, daughter Meryl - born April 23, 1914, and son Lawrence - born December 14, 1915.

The Rogans returned to Chicago in 1917 as the population neared three million. Congestion at Chicago's harbor led to the development of a second commercial port at Calumet to accommodate for the expansion of  waterborne freight in the metropolitan region .

Calumet Harbor received large freighters carrying iron ore, coal, and stone needed to make steel, and as a result, more steel producers and shipbuilders moved south.

James Andrew Rogan was hired on as chief hull designer of the Kraft Shipyards, owned and operated by Captain Clarence Kraft, and located at 9367 South Harbor Drive.

This photograph documents his successful restoration of the replica Santa Maria, Columbus’s flagship, that was showcased at the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893.

Rogan was involved in another proposed restoration of the Santa Maria in the late 1940s. That project was scrapped as years of neglect had taken its toll. An attempt to raise her from Jackson Park in 1952 left her in pieces.

Traffic at the Calumet Harbor grew upon completion of the Calumet-Saganaskee (Cal-Sag) Channel in 1922, linking those waterways to the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal and the Mississippi River.

Kraft Shipyard was reorganized in 1927 to form the Calumet Shipyard and Dry Dock Company, located on the same site, now owned and operated by James Andrew Rogan in partnership with August Hausler.

The opening of the Illinois Waterway in 1933 initiated prosperous activity and construction. The port of Calumet was a natural location for an active shipbuilding plant due to the availability of inexpensive land.

Barges and towboats are the backbone of the inland waterways, suitable for transporting any type of bulk cargo.

The Calumet Shipyard specialized in lake and ocean going tugs, barges, and river towboats of every size and type. All were admired for their quality in design and performance on the water.

Shortly after war broke out in Europe, Lillian Rogan passed away, on June 10th, 1941. In addition to raising four children, she was active in the Bryn Mawr Women's Club and St. Francis de Sales Church.

James Andrew lived with his daughter, Evelyn, following the passing of his beloved wife.

CALSHIP NEWS was a Calumet Shipyard and Dry Dock Company monthly publication established to share Yard activities and progress during the war effort. 400 employees were working at the Yard that year and an additional 200 were hired on to meet the demands of production.

On May 22, 1942, American Seamen's Memorial Day honored the men who were lost in the attack on Pearl Harbor. Hundreds were in attendance to watch the launching of the Port Elizabeth, a one-hundred foot oceangoing tug. Mrs. James F. Rogan, did the honors of christening Port Elizabeth, one of five tugs built at the Calumet Shipyard for the U.S. Maritime Commission.

The first ship construction order placed in Chicago under the National Defense Program during WWII was awarded to the Calumet Shipyard and Dry Dock Company for four Distribution Box Boats.

Distribution Box Boats followed mine layers, planting boxes that contained terminals and wires for connecting the mines and shores stations. They were 65 feet long and carried a crew of six at 9.5 knots. Twelve Distribution Box Boats were built at the Calumet Shipyard & Dry Dock Company from 1941-1943.

The Calumet Shipyard & Dry Dock Company built eight ocean-going tugs between November 1943 and May 1944 for the U.S. Army.

LT 60, the Calumet built ocean-going tug, participated in the Normandy Invasion.

The Calumet Shipyard stands proudly on its wartime record of the construction of thirty-seven steel hulls delivered to the Maritime Commission and U.S. Army during the war.

In addition, vital repairs were completed on numerous vessels, including LST 512 - another veteran of the Normandy Invasion, and the converted aircraft carrier USS Sable - used to train pilots stationed at Glenview, Illinois.

Efficiency resulting from the collaboration amongst seasoned shipyard personnel during the war soon carried over to peacetime enterprise.

The towboat A.M. Thompson was built in 1948 for the Central Barge Company and the mold used to cast the propellers is currently on display at the Chicago Maritime Museum. Propellers are cast of molten brass or steel. The finished blades are then bolted to the end of the vessel's propeller shaft.

At 10:50 A.M. on June 30, 1949 a blast rocked the Calumet Shipyard. The explosion shook buildings throughout the neighborhood and launched thirteen workers off the boat they were working on.

The vessel was a 195' barge under construction for the John Hay Company. The cause of the explosion is believed to have been the ignition of Naphtha, used to thin paint while a welding crew was working in close proximity.

Forty-one-year-old James Shea died instantly after being thrown into the water. Howard Haight Sr., forty-two years old, succumbed to third degree burns eleven days later. Workers aboard nearby vessels experienced serious injuries including burns and bone fractures.

A coroner's jury returned a verdict of accidental death in the South Chicago court. The Calumet Shipyard and Drydock Company was found innocent on all counts.

In the opinion of Rogan's doctor, the heart attack he suffered a few weeks later was caused by worry and anxiety arising from the explosion, resulting loss, and injuries. The shipyard had been accident free prior to the June 30th event.

James A. Rogan passed away on July 27, 1949 at the age of seventy-one at the Jackson Park Hospital.

Work at the Calumet Shipyard was truly a family affair. James F. Rogan fulfilled the role of president after his fathers passing. His sister Evelyn served as the shipyard's office manager, bookkeeper, and contributing editor of CALSHIP NEWS. Meryl was on the board of directors, while brother Larry worked as a loftsman.

In addition to preserving objects that represent the Calumet Shipyard, the Chicago Maritime Museum is committed to establishing and sharing stories of human connections.

Viewing the A.M. Thompson propeller mold or James A. Rogan's personalized card set can transport you directly to the Calumet Shipyard.

Duties as President were wide in scope; all launchings were under Rogan's supervision; all checks general and payroll were signed by him; questions of executive policy were made by him; he very seldom missed a day at work; working six or seven days per week; he presided at all directors and stockholders meetings.

All the while, he took a great deal of interest and joy in recreational activities - mainly cards, horticulture, and reading.

The "Calshippers" were a tight-knit community working to reach a common goal of producing high-quality vessels. Camaraderie developed from working together daily was strong enough that most opted to participate in Calumet Shipyard bowling leagues, golf tournaments, and dances after hours.

After sinking eight allied ships, the German submarine U-505 was captured by a U.S. naval taskforce. On June 28, 1954, U-505 was towed by the Coast Guard tug Arundel to the Calumet Shipyard and Dry Dock Company to be prepared for display at the Museum of Science and Industry. The preparation process involved draining the fuel, cleaning, and stabilizing the vessel.

In preparation for the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway in 1959, an international shipping terminal was added at the Calumet Harbor to accommodate ships as large as 700 feet in length.

In addition to the harbor project, the channel was widened to facilitate larger vessels and national defense plans. James F. Rogan was heavily involved in the efforts, as noted in a thank you message on the back of this photo from the chairman of the Cal-Sag Development Committee.

The Calumet Shipyard and Dry Dock Company continued to excel at building and repairing an array of vessels. This hull model 736 was used for ice breaking demonstrations and was featured in the company's promotional materials.

The shipyard's equipment was sold at auction in 1963 and the property was purchased by Commonwealth Edison in 1971, ending a chapter of shipbuilding history in Chicago. This story will live on at the Chicago Maritime Museum as we aim to preserve and remember the ambition, industriousness, and patriotism of those involved with the Calumet Shipyard & Dry Dock Company.

Provenance:

Marilynn Bickley and Nancy Stanford, granddaughters of James Andrew Rogan, donated the Calumet Shipyard & Dry Dock Collection featured in this story map to the Chicago Maritime Museum in 2022. The objects were bequeathed to them by their mother, Meryl Rogan Scholl (James A. Rogan's daughter).

The A.M. Thompson propeller mold was donated to the Chicago Maritime Museum by Fred and Patricia Beckman in 2009. Patricia Beckman is the daughter of James Francis Rogan.

Additional Reading and Resources

Bauer, K. Jack. (1982, Summer). Inland Seas and Overseas: Shipbuilding on the Great Lakes During World War II. Inland Seas 38, No. 2: 84-94.

Chicago to Texas Via the Fox and Wisconsin Rivers. (1949, March 12). The Waterways Journal.

First of Three Pictures of Three Unusual Boats. (1949, March 5). The Waterways Journal.

Gowran, Clay. (1971, May 16). Follow that Barge. Chicago Tribune Magazine. Section 7: 26-43.

James A. Rogan Sr., Built This Boat in 1903 With Mexican Labor. (1949, March 19). The Waterways Journal.

Lanyon, Richard. (2020). Calumet First and Forever: Draining the South Area of Chicago and Territorial Expansion. Lake Claremont Press.

Smith, Jerry. (1951). Aetna-Louisville. The Work Boat: The Authority of the Waterways, Annual Review, No. 13.

Triple-Screw Diesel Towboat. (1952, March 15). Maritime Reporter.