Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1880-11-12
Capt. Eads's Start in Life.


JAMES b. EADs was born in Indiana
in 1920. He is slender in form, neat in
dress, genial, courteous, and nearly
SIXTY years of age. In 1888 his father
started down the Ohio River with his
family, proposing to settle in Wiscon-
sin. The boat caught fire and his scanty
furniture and clothing were burned.
Young Eads barely escaped ashore with
his pantaloons, shirt and cap. Taking
passage on another boat, this boy of
thirteen landed at st. Louis with his
parents, his little bare feet first touch
ing the rocky shore of the city on the
very spot where he afterward located
and built the largest steel bridge in the
world, over the Mississippi-one of the
most difficult feats of engineering ever
performed in America.
At the age of nine young Eads made
short trip on the Ohio, when the engin-
eer of the steamboat explained to him
so clearly the construction of the steam
engine that before he was a year older
he built little working model of it, so
perfect in its parts and movements, that
his schoolmates would frequently go
home with him after school to see it
work. A locomotive engine, driven by
concealed rat, was one of his next
Juvenile feats in mechanical engineer
ing. From eight to thirteen he attended
school, after which from necessity he
was placed as clerk in dry-gOods
store. Over the store in st. Louis where
he was engaged his employer lived. He
was an old bachelor, and having OBJ
served the tastes of his clerk, gave him
his first book on engineering. The old
gentleman's library furnished evening
companions for him during the five
years he was thus employed. Finally,
his health failing at the age of nineteen,
he went on Mississippi River steamer; !;
from which time to the present day that
great river has been to him an all-ab-
sorbing study.
Soon afterward he formed partner
ship with a friend and built small boat
to raise cargoes of vessels sunken in'the
Mississippi. While this boat was build
ing he made his first venture in subma-
rine engineering on the lower rapids of
the river by the recovery of several hun
dred tons of lead. lie hired scOw or
fiat-boat and anchored it over the
wreck An experienced diver, clad in
armor, who had been hired at consider
able expense in Buffalo, was lowered
into the water; but the rapids were so
swift that the diver, though incased in
the strongest armor, feared to be sunk
to the bottom. Young Eads determined
to succeed, and finding it impracticable
to use the armor, went ashore, pur-
chased a whisky-barrel, knocked out
the head, attached the air-punlp hose to
it, fastened several heavy weights to the
open end of the barrel-then swinging
it on derrick, he had practical diving
bell the best use ever heard made of
a whisky-barrel. Neither the diver nor
any of the crew would go down into this
contrivance, so the dauntless young en-
gineer, having full confidence in what
he had read in books, was lowered within
the barrel down to the bottom the low
er end of the barrel being open. The
water was sixteen feet deep and very
swift. Finding the wreck he remained
by it a full hour, hitching ropes to pig
lead till ton or more was safely hoist
ed into his own boat. Then making a
signal by small line attached to the
barrel, he was lifted on deck and in
command again. The sunken cargo
was soon successfully raised and sold
and netted handsome profit, which
increased by other successes, enabled
energetic Eads to build larger boats with
powerful pumps and machinery on then
for lifting entire vessels.-Wtde At0dke