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XS The LoG Old Man Winter hit the Great Lakes region early, prompting Seaway officials to close the waterway Dec. 7. The closing caught four salties west of the Iroquois Lock, the greatest number in the six-year history of the Seaways Aacelied are American Export- Dee ou GORM, Nationalist cnipereeeiog and Greek-flag ORIENT MERCHANT. The Am— ice at in winter quarters at Toledo, the three others at Toronto. The Welland Canal closed with the passage into Lake Ontario of CSL's BURLINGTON (a.HENRY W. OLIVER, beS.sH.ROBBINS) on Dec. 15. Next day the Ree closed artered J.CLARE (LLER (aeHARVEY D. GOULDER) downbound from Du- eh to Buffalo with lightship moved from the Lake Huron cut int winter berth on the Black River at Port Huron on Dece 22. 16,056 passages were registered at A total of past season, an increase of 1,561 Detroit this transits over 1963. Of the 1964 total, 1,102 salties were counte The last two whaleback steamers on the lakes ave fi i news recently. Upper Lakes’ leveland Tankers! ROCKEFELLER, b.SOUTH PARK) iathachs chat service ei the late fa’ ia on Lake Michig She had been in lay-up at Manitowoc since 1962. * * * Fire broke out in the forward end of CSL's DON- IA (a.W.GRANT MORDEN) on Dec. 16 while she was downbound with storage grain for Walker- ville. She was Loved on the th to Walkerville where her superstructure has bee! moved. Metalwork and electrical repai: e be Windsor and 20 men will come from Collingwood to finish the reconstruction. a Huron Cement's venerable SAMUEL MITCHELL Dad lost her identity as a steamboat. Her wheel has been removed at the American Lakehead where she has been used as a barge, moving cement between Duluth and Superior. Fraser shipyard’ s | conversion of the \ferry ANN OR NO. 7 has been delayed by the General Mo- teen peices originally scheduled resume service in December, she will now be out of ac- tion until spring. Inland Steel's CLARENCE B. RANDALL ii (a.J.J.SULLIVAN) is being equipped with a 500-hp Bird-Johnson bowthruster at Fraser Shipyards during this winter lay-up. Collingwood Shipyards' HULL 181, a 730-foot die- sel-powered bulk carrier Steamship Lines w: - 30 will be christened RIMOUSKI. Davie shiseetiains HULL 649, a diesel package freighter for CSL, will be named FORT WILLIAM. Canadian Vickers, Ltd., Montreal, launched their HULL 285, the stern section of the steamer DON DE DIEU, on Dec. 9. Building for Seagram's Ltd. the bow section is on the ways a’ d at Quebec city ei noe * spril with formal christening set f ye The 730- footer will be operated by Decacntiseiats Cos, Wilson Marine Transit has chartered Shenango JAMES M. SCHOONMAKER for the com- season bowthruster this n has chartered their WILTRANCO I (a. HORACE S. WILKINSON ii) to Small, Inc., a coal forwarding firm, for undis- closed us SCe Unconfirmed reports indicate that salvage ef- ore. The Foundation Co., Ltd., is reportedly involved in these sal- vage plans. Bill Luke * * * George Ayoub, Ottawa Al Ballert, Ann Arbor Arnold Dempster, Coil ingwooaG> Howard Hodges, Ste Clair Jim Kaysen, Cedarburg, Wis.* Bill Prentice, Toronto John Vournakis, American Soo Stoddard White, Detroit CONTRIBUTORS: