A Raft Pilot's Log cont. Some of the Men prominent in the Rafting Industry, 1840-1915 243 CAPTAIN JOHN McCAFFREY No story of the rafting business can be told without including John McCaffrey's part in it. At an early age he went on the river with his brother-in-law, George Tromleu, who was considerably older than himself and already a floating pilot with established reputatioin who was running loga and lumber on contract. Young Jack, as he was called, acted as clerk and pulled an oar in bad places. He learned the river in a short time and soon got into the game on his own account. I don't know how he learned to handle a steamboat but he was running the 'Clyde,' towing lumber in 1870. In 1871, he bought one-half interest in the steamer 'James Means' of Van Sant and Son and he made a very handsome profit with her and the ;LeClaire Belle' in the next five years. He then sold out and quit the river for four years. He had received an injury by a fall on a raft which gave him a lot of trouble, but by 244 surgery, good treatment and rest he got well enough to do some more profitable work on the river and he owned a big interest in several raft-boats including the 'Last Chance,' 'Pilot,' 'Ten Broeck,; 'Jo Long,' 'Robert Dodds,' 'Helen Shulenberg' and 'Charlotte Boeckeler.' About 1895, Captain McCaffrey bought the Diamond Jo Line steamer 'Mary Morton' more to encourage his sons and give them a chance than to carry out any ambition of his own. He also bought a coal mine over on Rock Island river and the little steamer 'Duke' and barges to bring coal out through the Hennepin canal to Davenport. Captain McCaffrey had two fine properties at Tenth and Brady street in Davenport. He lived in one and converted the other into an apartment building, which was always in demand. He was located pleasantly and taking life easy. He was a popular member of the Piute Club and had a bunch of cronies, lawyers and doctors, whose society he enjoyed. we thought he was anchored here to stay when all at once he sold out, bought a lot of good rich land cheap on account of the boll weevil scare, lying on the west side of the Mississippi across from Vicksburg, and started late in life to improve and develop this land into good cotton plantations. The captain would have made a great success of this venture, but his health gave out and his busy life came to a sudden ending at the Kellogg Sanitarium at Battle Creek, Michigan. I tried to get a photo of the captain taken with the full beard and mustache, as I knew him first, but could not find one.