The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1924-05-01
HOPE TO FIND BODIES
OF CREW IN WRECkAGE
Boat Lost Last September, Believed to Lie Il
Miles Off Kenosha Harbor Under 40
Fathoms of Water.
TOODEEP FOR DIVERS TRY NEW PLAN
Attempt Machine Manipulation of Cables for the First
Time in Fresh Water to Salvage $4,000
Wreck of ForeIle
T0ODEEP FOR DIVERS TRY NEW

Months passed and fishermen began
picking up grapes in their nets be-
tween here and Racine. Suddenly on
February ID the nets of Capt. Henry
Postman, of 321 julius street, COM
manding the fishing tug Winnie,
snagged on something IL miles south
east of Kenosha. After working for
many minutes they were freed and
came up with more than 80 bushels
of grapes.
Investigation showed that one of
the net lines had been cut by some
steel object, while several of the lead
sinkers showed plainly from rust
scratches that they had been in con-
tact with steel.
Down went the nets again, and this
time conclusive evidence that the rest
ing place of the boat had been dis
covered was brought up to the surface.
1t was splint lunch basket, which
was later identified by Carl Meyer as
belonging to the missing captain.
Meyers, paying teller of the Mitchell
street branch of the. American Ma
tional bank of Milwaukee, is the son
of the engineer Of the boat and one
third owner of her.
Meyers came to Kenosha immediate
ly and conferred with Captain Post
man. Then he returned to Milwaukee
and began laying plans to have the
boat raised. But it was not u.-til to-
day that the details were perfected.
For the first time in the history of
the Great Lakes an attempt will be
made. to raise boat without the use
of divers. The Gillen Co., will try to
sink two heavy steel cables under,
the sunken hull by manipulating them
with machinery. The 40 fathoms or
about 245 feet of water in which the
wreck lies, makes it impossible for
divers to aid in the work, due to the
fact that the pressure is too great at
that depth. The cable system has
been worked with success several times
in salt water, it was stated.
Were it not for the fact that the
ship is all steel, it would be useless
to attempt to float her. The boat
would break in two while being
brought to the surface, it is said. She
was launched in 1908, and at that time
was the largest all steel tug on fresh
water. The Forelle is 65 feet in length
with beam of Ia 1-2 feet, and has
capacity of as tons. She is powered
with a semi-diesel oil burning en-
CINE which was installed last year at
a cost of $4,000. This power plant is
said to be one of the most dependable
types of marine engines.
The mystery of the disappearance
of the boat was further heightened
when it became known that the crew
had often taken her out of port in
storms far worse than the one which
drove her to the bottom. She was
equipped with air-tight bulkheads
fore and aft, which, it is said, would
have kept her afloat even if she had
completely capsized.
One of the main reasons why an at
tempt is being made to raise the ship
is the hope of finding the bodies of
the missing crew. Although a close
watch has been kept all along the
coast none of the bodies of the five
missing men have been washed ashore
Had they gotten free from the boat
when she sank, 1T is believed that
they would have been picked up long
ago. This leads the family to believe
that the ship went down so sudden
ly that the crew were trapped and
did not have time to escape from the
cabin. The Forelle was equipped
with full compliment of life preserv-
ers and small boat, and no sign of
these has ever been found.
Providing the boat was not sent to
the bottom through an "unreported"
collision, or an explosion, it is be-
lieved that she will be little damaged
through the action of the water dur
ing her months under the surface. The
engines will have to be pulled down
and cleaned out before they can be
used again.
The missing crew is composed of
Capt Cornelius Tamms, Engineer
Julius Meyer, William Lehman and
Carl and Walter Rosenstock. The
work of raising the ship will be in
charge of Erwin Tamms, son of the
captain. The wrecking crew will
make port at Kenosha every night un7
der present plans, it was announced