Dakota had smooth but unlucky start

Carol W. Kimball

James J. Hill
two giant steel freighters, Dakota and Minnesota
Dakota crashed 1907, unlucky 13
Electric Boat Company's Old North Yard
Eastern Shipbuilding Company
New London Ship and Engine Company, NELSECO

Kim10-076

Scrapbook

8: Communication Artifact

Documentary Artifact

The Day

New London, CT

04/03/2006

Carol W. Kimball

Tycoon James J. Hill came to Groton at the begfinning of the 20th century, planning to build two giant steel freighters to carry wheat to the Orient. William A. Fairburn designed the liners. The Minnesota was launched in April, 1903 from Hill's Eastern Shipbulding year while her sister ship, the Dakota, was still under construction. Mary Fleming swung the bottle of champagne christening the Dakota's Feb. 6, 1904 launch and in so doing, hit the number 13 portion of the draft line numbers, a bad omen some thought. Perhaps so, for the Dakota ran onto the rocks near the Nojima Lighthouse in Tokyo Bay and the vessal was beyond salvage. In 1909 Electric Boat Comapny of Elizabethport, N.J., chose the land that had housed the Eastern Shipbuilding Company forming a subsidy called the New London Ship and Engine Company, known locally as NELSECO, which opened in May 1911. The site of the Minnesota and Dakota launches became known as the Electric Boat Company's Old North Yard.

Hill, J.J.
Hanscom, Charles
Fairburn, William A.
Fleming, Mary
Fleming, Alexander (Judge)
Hill, James J.
Cable, Frank (Capt.)

Dakota
Minnesota
steel freighters
Eastern Shipbuilding Company
Electric Boat Company's Old North Yard
Eastern Shipbuilding Company
unlucky 13 launch
New London Ship and Engine Company
NELSECO
Dakota 1907 crash