GLMS 4 - Erik Heyl Papers
MLA Citation
“GLMS 4 - Erik Heyl Papers.” Finding Aids. BGSU University Libraries, 4 Sep. 2018, lib.bgsu.edu/finding_aids/items/show/720. Accessed 12 Oct. 2024.
Tags
| Title | GLMS 4 - Erik Heyl Papers |
|---|---|
| Introduction | This collection is comprised of the papers of marine historian Erik Heyl. As a specialist in early American and Canadian steamers, especially Great Lakes vessels, Mr. Heyl researched and produced hundreds of scale drawings and models. Most of this material was published in his six volume series Early American Steamers. The collection includes the correspondence, illustrations, research notes, vessel histories, vessel lists, drawings and miscellaneous materials from which Heyl's many works, both published and unpublished, were derived. The collection includes materials that date from 1835 to 1972. The Heyl Collection was donated to the Center for Archival Collections in 1974 and transferred to the Historical Collections of the Great Lakes in 1983. Heyl's personal drawings were donated in 2000, with another addition in 2002. |
| Biographical Sketch | Erik Heyl was the author of a number of works on the history of navigation in North America. His most significant work is the six-volume Early American Steamers series published between 1953 and 1969. Although active in researching all early North American steamboats, Heyl had a special interest and expertise in the WALK-IN-THE-WATER, the first steamboat in service above Niagara, and in Great Lakes vessels that served as combatants in the American Civil War. Mr. Heyl was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on August 4, 1887, the son of Jacob and Louise Schandein Heyl. He attended Milwaukee Academy and in 1905 the University of Berlin. He moved to Buffalo just prior to WW I and began a career as an accountant. He developed an interest in stamp collecting and through this hobby noted that old stamps indicated the name of vessels on which mail was carried. He became interested in obtaining illustrations of these vessels and began to research them. Later he developed scale drawings and models of the early steamers of which images were scarce. These drawings were later incorporated into his Early American Steamers. The drawings he made were featured in several exhibitions, including one at the Cleveland Public Library in 1952 and one at the Truxtun-Decatur Museum, Washington, DC, in1964. Also, in 1964 he received the Samuel Wilkinson Award from the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society and was named 1972 Great Lakes Historian of the Year by the Marine Historical Society of Detroit. Erik Heyl married Elizabeth Ralph and together they had two daughters. Mr. Heyl died at Millard Fillmore Hospital in Buffalo on July 15, 1973. He was 85 years of age. The collection was donated to the Center for Archival Collections by Elizabeth Ralph Heyl on June 30, 1974. |
| Scope and Content | The Erik Heyl Collection contains data on North American steamboats dating from 1835 to 1972. Although American and Canadian vessels in general are represented, the collection is strongest in Great Lakes and East Coast vessels constructed between 1818 and 1872. The bulk of the collection consists of Heyl's extensive research notes and correspondence. These materials are normally typewritten or carbon copies of typewritten documents. Few photocopied documents appear among the research notes and correspondence. Files are arranged alphabetically by vessel name. The illustrations are largely images clipped from contemporary newspapers or magazines. Heyl's original ink and watercolor drawings of several dozen steamships are also included. Fleet lists and miscellaneous files contain a combination of research notes, correspondence, iterary productions, newspaper and magazine clippings. Fleet lists are arranged alphabetically and miscellaneous files are arranged in the following order: vessels, 'list of Canadian steamships, literary productions, marine engines, magazine illustrations, fleets, ports, biographies, magazine articles, and engine data. |
| Series Description |
RESEARCH NOTES ILLUSTRATIONS VESSEL HISTORIES AND RESEARCH NOTES 1954-1969 The information in this series is less complete than that in the first series, apparently because these notes were in the early stages of development. Organization is alphabetical by vessel name or topic. One page vessel histories provide such data as details of construction, vessel dimensions, equipment, ownership, mishaps, and final disposition. Research correspondence relating to each vessel is attached to the histories. Vessels that operated on the Great Lakes are marked (*). FLEET LISTS MISCELLANEOUS FILES |
| Inventory | Box 1: Subject Files--Research Notes Folders
Box 2: Subject Files--Research Notes Folders
Box 3: Subject Files--Research Notes Folders
Box 4: Illustrations Folder 1: Illustrations, B
Box 5 Folder 1: Illustrations, T-U
Box 6: Miscellaneous Vessel Research Notes Folder 1: Addendum, A-L
Folder 2: Addendum, M-Z
Folder 3: Preliminary List of Canadian Steamships, 1809-1930 Folder 4: Article Manuscripts
Folder 5: Marine Engines - Builders, Specifications, Technical Data Folder 6: Magazine Illustrations: Index of Steamers Pictured in Leslie's Illustrated Weekly, Harper's Illustrated Weekly Newspaper, Ballou's Drawing Room Companion Folder 7: Pacific Northwest/Puget Sound/Alaska - General Notes Folder 8: Fletcher & Harrison Company - List of Engines Folder 9: Baltimore-built Steamboats Folder 10: Buffalo - Shipyards and Shipbuilders Folder 11: James Van Cleve - Biographical Notes Folder 12: James P. Allaire - Biographical Notes Folder 13: Galveston, Texas - Notes, Pictures Folder 14: Steamers Constructed at Niagara, Ontario Folder 15: Engine Data - Early Steamers Folder 16: Ships Built by Jones, Quiggin & Co., Liverpool, England Folder 17: Miscellaneous Correspondence Folder 18: Passenger Liners of the Western Ocean - Corrections and Additions Folder 19: Newspaper Clippings Folder 20: Article: "The Why and Wherefore of Paqueboat Cancellations"
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