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TELESCOPE Page 10 The whaleback METEOR was lways a popular Author's Photo . She was a regular visitor until being scrapped in 1969. States Oil Company first announced in 1960 that they would be receiving petroleum pro- ducts by water, it meant that yet another facet of boat watching would be coming to our little city on Lake Michigan. Construction of a mile-long pipeline from the city terminal at the harbor to the storage facilities generated much interest for most of the spring and early summer. The large pipelines had to cross several streets, a creek and many other obstacles before reaching the large storage tanks. Before the first ship docked, the oil com- pany began a promotional campaign. They knew that there was some potential opposition from local residents to the prospect of dan- gerous tankers docking almost in the heart of the Port Washington business district. Some opposition was expressed that the pipeline and tankers could explode and vir- tually wipe out most of the harbor area of the city. Although the fears were real, publicity helped allay the anxieties by helping explain that the dangers were protected by many safeguards. Perhaps even more vocal in their opposition than those fearing possible con- flagration were those opposed for reasons of free fishing areas at the harbor. Anglers at the lakefront were vehement in their opposi- tion because they were fearful that the tankers would somehow cause the perch to disappear from the harbor. Eventually the perch did leave. . .but not necessarily because of the tankers. Fisher- men, who are not usually credited with being overly conservative in those days, more or less overfished the area, and the perch left on their own. Most of the dismay, however, was expressed by fishermen who had to give up about 400 feet of their fishing area each time a tanker would come in to the dock. The local harbormaster and other authorities occasionally had to oust these people when they simply refused to move. It was cane poles versus steel hulled tankers. The cane poles lost, but not without much grumbling. Fishermen can be a rather stubborn breed. But, for the boat fans amongst us, it was indeed a period of anticipation. For over a hundred years ships of all types had been coming to Port Washington with various cargoes. In the 1800's it was farm produce and passengers. In the mid-1900's it was coal, sometimes over a million tons a year. But suddenly it was 1960. Tankers with petroleum would be added to the shipping ledger. As construction neared a point where the tanks could be filled for the first time, there