Kaye E. Barker - Still Looking Sharp at 70!

Here is the Kaye E. Barker seen departing the Twin Ports of Duluth and Superior on the afternoon of April 17, 2022. She had arrived the day before with a load of limestone, which she discharged at the Hallett 5 dock in West Duluth. She then moved over to the Midwest Energy Terminal in Superior to load coal, which was scheduled for delivery to Alpena, Michigan. This video starts shortly after the Barker has left the coal dock. We see her cross the St. Louis River Bay, passing under the John A. Blatnik bridge... blowing a captain's salute to onlookers who watched from the old Interstate Bridge. We then caught up with her again at Canal Park in Duluth to watch her pass under the Aerial Lift Bridge, making her way out onto Lake Superior. She blew another captain's salute on her way out, which the Aerial Lift Bridge responded to.

This is an important anniversary year for the surviving AAA-class lake freighters, as they begin to turn 70 years old this year. (We've already seen the 70-year old Arthur M. Anderson on this channel.) The Kaye E. Barker is looking particularly sharp in the new coat of paint that Interlake gave her in 2021. And while the inevitable bumps and scraps are visible along her hull, she still looks great for her age... giving the impression she could sail another 70 years. Sadly, the three other AAA-class lake carriers (besides the Anderson) that still survive as self-contained ships (and not as barge conversions) are currently in layup with uncertain futures. These include the Cason J. Callaway, the Philip R. Clarke, and the American Valor. While the Callaway and Valor need work in order to sail again, the Clarke could potentially sail in 2022 if there is enough demand for her services.

The 767-foot Kaye E. Barker was built by the American Shipbuilding Company in Toledo, Ohio in 1951-1952. She was built in the dry-dock from the keel up and floated, instead of being built on land and launched into the water. She originally sailed under the name Edward B. Greene for the Cleveland Cliffs Steamship Company, making her maiden voyage on July 29, 1952.. She is one of eight AAA-class lake carriers built in the early 1950s. But she is somewhat unique in that she has a three-deck pilot house instead of the traditional two decks. The additional middle deck (with the large windows) consisted of accommodations for company personnel and VIPs that traveled on her. (The museum ship William A. Irvin, docked in Duluth, also has a triple deck pilot house for the same reasons... as she was the flagship for U.S. Steel for several decades.) The Green was sold to Rouge Steel Corporation, a division of the Ford Corporation, and became known as the Benson Ford for the better part of the 1980s. She was sold again to Interlake Shipping in 1990, where she obtained her current name in honor of Kaye E. Barker, wife of Interlake Chairman of the Board James R. Barker (who also has a ship named after him). Originally powered by a steam turbine, the Kaye E. Barker was re-powered in 2012 with two Rolls-Royce Bergen B32:40L6P 6-cylinder diesels that produce a combined 8,160 BHP, giving her a top speed of 17 mph. Her holds can contain up to 25,900 tons of cargo, which can be self-discharge from her 250-foot unloading boom.

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