Revision 5/11/2012 12:04 PM
The 1870s brought swift changes to Great Lakes shipping. Shipyards expanded to produce bigger ships, and the capital investment required to build these vessels grew proportionally. However, attractive investment opportunities remained for small businesspeople and mariners who could fill the low-volume, short-run niche that was unprofitable for larger vessels. Green Bay, Oshkosh, Two Creeks, Manitowoc, and a host of other towns in Wisconsin and around the Great Lakes launched small schooners that required more skill than capital to build. The Dolphin The Dolphin , a slightly larger schooner than the Hetty Taylor, is seen here in Racine. The Dolphin was built in 1862, also by Allen, McClelland and Co. in Milwaukee. (Photo courtesy of Milwaukee Public Library.) On June 8, 1874, the Milwaukee Sentinel noted the launching of one such boat. The new schooner, built at the junction of the Milwaukee and Menomonee Rivers for Capt. James White and Henry Taylor, was successfully launched shortly before 6 o’clock Saturday evening. She is named the Hetty Taylor , is a vessel of 75 feet keel , and is intended for trading purposes. The trim little two-masted schooner had a length of 84 feet, a beam of 22 feet, and a depth of 8 feet, with one deck and a square stern . Her total tonnage was just under 84.5 tons.