If freight traffic attempted to transit Oneida Lake or any part of NYS Canals this winter, this likely would be the outcome, as was the case in the winter of 1936-37. Here’s a NYTimes article from December 1936 on the plight of many cargo vessels that late fall. Notice the lines on the vessel to the right?

Recognize it? I’ve no clue about the identity of the vessel to the left above. Click here and scroll for a sister vessel.

See the name to the right here? It’s a clue to its identity. Another clue: it’s another sister to Day-Peckinpaugh, which will be on the agenda at the Winter Symposium on March 7, 2026. You can register here, and if so, I’ll see you there. But I digress; I’ll identify this vessel at the end of this post.

The image below intrigues me. I’d never seen it until a few days ago on the Erie Canal Museum Facebook site here. The tugboat–or maybe it’s a lighter like the ones in this post–appears to be in a dry dock or a drained canal lock, and completely snowed in. Is that a snow shovel leaning against the front of the wheelhouse? Has someone already shoveled some snow off the boat already? What is the rest of the story here? Whatever year this was taken was a snow accumulation year like 2025-6.

On the port side of the bow, the name board is a clue I’ve not yet benefitted from. Does it say Ol Soule? What do you see on that name board? Once we have a name, we can check in Merchant Vessels of the US (MVUS) for various dates, but we need a name first. Any ideas?

The first mystery vessel is likely Andrew J. Barnes, aka ILI 102.