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Great Lakes Books Series
Iron Fleet: The Great Lakes in World War Ii
Iron Fleet focuses on the vital role played by the Great Lakes shipping industry during World War II. George J. Joachim examines how the industry met the unprecedented demand for the shipment of raw materials to meet production quotas during the war, when failure to do so would have had disastrous consequences for the nation's defense effort. Steel production was crucial to the American war effort, and the bulk shippers of the lakes supplied virtually all of the iron ore necessary to produce the steel. The war material forged in the "arsenal of democracy" equipped not only fifteen million Americans mustered into the armed forces, but the forces of the nation's allies as well.
Based mainly on original research from primary sources, Iron Fleet also explores the use of Great Lakes shipyards for the production of salt water civilian and military vessels, the role of the Great Lakes passenger ships in providing vacation opportunities for war workers, and the extensive measures taken to to safeguard the Soo Locks and other potential targets from sabotage.
Based mainly on original research from primary sources, Iron Fleet also explores the use of Great Lakes shipyards for the production of salt water civilian and military vessels, the role of the Great Lakes passenger ships in providing vacation opportunities for war workers, and the extensive measures taken to to safeguard the Soo Locks and other potential targets from sabotage.
138 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1994
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July 17, 2019
Northeast Ohio attorney George J. Joachim has a love of the Great Lakes. This slender volume is jam-packed with details about how shipping firms on the Great Lakes reacted to the emergency that was World War II.
Joachim has done a lot of legwork for this volume, digging deep into the archives of the Lake Carriers Assocation and several of the larger shipping firms. His prose is good, keeping the jargon to a minimum and occasionally turning a good phrase to bring the story alive. His story is heavy on statistics, yet he never gets lost in the numbers.
I found myself wishing that Joachim had doubled the size of his book. A lot of the background regarding the mobilization issue would have helped to provide a good deal of context for the story he tells. There's a tendency in the book to treat the shipping industry as a monolith, and the LCA as a unified entity. That certainly can't be true, and yet the story of the conflicts, disagreements, arguments over the best way to meet the war's challenges, and so on are largely missing here.
Despite these problems, this is the best book about the Great Lakes Fleet in World War II that's out there, and I strongly recommend it.
Joachim has done a lot of legwork for this volume, digging deep into the archives of the Lake Carriers Assocation and several of the larger shipping firms. His prose is good, keeping the jargon to a minimum and occasionally turning a good phrase to bring the story alive. His story is heavy on statistics, yet he never gets lost in the numbers.
I found myself wishing that Joachim had doubled the size of his book. A lot of the background regarding the mobilization issue would have helped to provide a good deal of context for the story he tells. There's a tendency in the book to treat the shipping industry as a monolith, and the LCA as a unified entity. That certainly can't be true, and yet the story of the conflicts, disagreements, arguments over the best way to meet the war's challenges, and so on are largely missing here.
Despite these problems, this is the best book about the Great Lakes Fleet in World War II that's out there, and I strongly recommend it.
Displaying 1 of 1 review