Person Record
Metadata
Name |
Crevier, Frank R. |
Birthplace |
Marine City, Michigan |
Notes |
Frank R. Crevier was born May 29th 1910 in Marine City, Michigan. He was the only child of Dr. Frank J. and Anna Roberts Crevier. Both his maternal and paternal, ancestors came to North America from Scotland and France before the American Revolution. His paternal ancestors settled at Three Rivers, Quebec and later moved to Montreal. His paternal great-grandfather, Lt. Alexander Harrow, R.N., a half-pay British naval officer and at one time commander of HMS Wellcome, a supply vessel of Fort Mackinac from Detroit retired from the Royal Navy prior to the American Revolution on a navy grant at Newburgh, now the site of Algonac State Park. He was sympathetic to the United States cause and his grant was cut down and confirmed by the U.S. after the Revolution. He had orchards on the site, a distillery and carried on an extensive fur trade, having the schooner "Ranger" Built by Daniel Dobbins, one of the first vessels built in what later became St. Clair County to assist in the trade. His father died when he was seven years of age and he was raised by his mother and grandmother. Catherine Harrow Roberts, whose father and brothers built the side-wheel tug Young America and other vessels just north of Algonac. His grandfather, William, and great-uncle, Walter Roberts, along with David Lester organized the Lester And Roberts shipyard in Marine City, which was later sold to Sidney McLouth and exists today as a stone yard. His formal education was in the public schools of Algonac, Port Huron Junior College, The University of Alberta, Canada and the engineering school, Fort Belvoir, Virginia. His training in civil engineering started at age 12 with Sameul Crocher of working in the office after school and Saturdays and in the field during vacations. After Crocher's death, he continued with Harry Johnson geodetic surveyor, U.S. Lake Survey on vacation times. He was in business for himself preparing applications for harbor and riverfront construction which ended during World War II when steel was allocated. He was persuaded to go to work for the Corps of Engineers temporarily; which lasted over a quarter of a century, starting at Detroit then on to Alaska and the Yukon Territory for military construction. After completion of the mission in Alaska, there were many construction contracts in Edmonton, Alberta. In 1945 the preliminary surveys started on the Missouri River Hydro electric projects. This was a 10-year project of dams, hydro plants, and the relocation of all facilities such as towns, Indian reservations, schools, roads in North and South Dakota, Montana, and Wyoming. This project occupied a time span of 10 years. Then followed a NORAD [North American Aerospace Defense Command] Project of S.A.C. [Strategic Air Command] expansion in Northern Michigan. Missiles BOMANC, from Duluth in the west to North Bay, Ontario in the east. Refinishing the RADAR screen across the Great Lakes and finally the construction at harbors in Lake Huron, Lake Michigan and Lake Superior. The closing of the military construction in Northern Michigan and a reluctance to go into the offices in Detroit or Chicago led to his retirement. Several years with a general contractor as (http://www.greatlakesprints.com/01_About_Frank_Crevier.html) Superintendant on construction of schools in Northern Michigan and Wisconsin, with winter work in Louisiana and Mississippi in the production of aggregate for the Marshall Space Center and the construction of the Interstate Highway system then followed. Retirement was again in mind to pursue the subject of a hobby fulltime, Maritime History of the Great Lakes. This led to his research and delineation of Historic vessels. |
