MV Edgar B. Speer

Edgar B. Speer
History
United States
Name	MV Edgar B. Speer
Namesake	Edgar B. Speer
Owner	Great Lakes Fleet
Operator	Great Lakes Fleet
Builder	American Shipbuilding Company
Yard number	908
Launched	1980
Identification	Call sign: WDH7562 IMO number:  7625952
Status	In service as of 2025
General characteristics
Class & type	Lake freighter
Tonnage	34,620  GRT 28,553  NT
Length	1,004 feet (306 m) oa 990 feet (302 m)
Beam	105 ft (32 m)
Draft	32 ft (9.8 m) (Max loaded draft) 56.7 ft (17.3 m) (hull depth)
Propulsion	two Pielstick 18PC2-3V-400 diesel engines, twin propellers, rated at 19,260  bhp (14,360 kW) [1]
Speed	15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)

MV Edgar B. Speer is a very large diesel-powered lake freighter owned and operated by Great Lakes Fleet, Inc, a subsidiary of Canadian National Railway. This vessel was built in 1980 in two halves by American Ship Building Company, in Lorain and Toledo, Ohio, with the two halves being joined in Lorain. ^[2]

The ship is 1,004 feet (306 m) long and 105 feet (32 m) at the beam. It has a carrying capacity of 2,105,527 cubic feet (59,621.9 m³), has a 52-foot (16 m) unloading shuttle boom and is capable of unloading 10,00 NT/hr. The maximum load that the Edgar B. Speer, is cable of carrying is about 74,100 tons. ^[1] The ship has 20 hatches which are 28 by 11 feet (8.5 by 3.4 m), which open into 5 cargo holds. ^[1]

Unlike her sister ship Edwin H. Gott, Edgar B. Speer has retained her shuttle boom.This unique unloading system restricts her to transporting iron ore to Conneaut, Ohio and Gary, Indiana. ^[3] As of 2025 the only other vessel in service with a shuttle boom configuration is the Stewart J. Cort.

References

1. Bawal, Raymond A. (2011). Superships of the Great Lak es: Thousand-foot Ships on the Great Lakes. Inland Expressions. p. 64. ISBN   978-0-9818157-4-9.
2. "AmShip Lorain". shipbuildinghistory.com. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
3. "Edgar B. Speer". Shipwatcher News Great Lakes Ships. 2020-06-02. Retrieved 2025-12-09.