The steambarge LINCOLN, also known as HOLCOMB, RALPH T., was built in 1898 at Marine City, Michigan. Constructed with wood, it had a single deck and measured 134 feet in length, 30 feet in beam, and 9.2 feet in depth. The vessel had a gross tonnage of 376.77 and a net tonnage of 250.33. Its official number was 106653.
The LINCOLN was initially owned by A.F. Price et al of Fremont, Ohio. It was equipped with a two-mast rig and propelled by a screw driven by a fore-and-aft compound engine. The engine, built by Samuel F. Hodge of Detroit, had two cylinders measuring 16″ and 32″ in diameter, with a stroke of 26″. It generated 420 horsepower at 115 revolutions per minute. The steambarge was powered by a 130 psi firebox boiler, also built by Samuel F. Hodge.
The vessel primarily operated in the lumber trade on rivers. On June 3, 1898, it was enrolled in Sandusky, Ohio, and towed the vessel GEBHART. In 1900, it towed the A. MOSHER, and in 1903, it towed the EVA S. ROBINSON. Ownership of the LINCOLN transferred to the Price Lumber Company of Fremont, Ohio, in 1902. In 1905, F.E. Hall of L’Original, Ontario, became the owner and renamed the steambarge RALPH T. HOLCOMB. Under this new ownership, the vessel was re-registered as C116400 and measured 133.42 feet in length, 30.16 feet in beam, and 9.16 feet in depth. Its tonnage was recorded as 375 gross tons and 165 net tons.
The LINCOLN, or RALPH T. HOLCOMB, continued its towing activities, including towing the G.H. WARMINGTON in 1907. In 1911, it was purchased by Edwardsburg Starch of Cardinal, Ontario. The steambarge underwent a rebuilding process in 1921. Its last known owner was the Holcomb Navigation Company in Montreal. However, in 1930, the vessel was abandoned near a mill in Cardinal, Ontario. The remains of the LINCOLN, or RALPH T. HOLCOMB, were buried at that location.
