240 A RAFT PILOT'S LOG 



Young as commander first of the "Sterling" and after- 

 wards of the "J. W. Mills." Later he superintended 

 the building of the "Douglas Boardman," at the boat 

 yards at Eagle Point and became its first commander. 

 Afterwards he superintended the building of the "W. 

 J. Young, Jr." and became its commander in 1882 and 

 was its commander at the time of his death, although 

 he claimed that he was going to retire from the steam- 

 boat business that fall. He had been made commodore 

 of the entire Young fleet and had absolute charge of the 

 steamboat business of the W. J. Young and Company, 

 and his recommendations governed all of the appoint- 

 ments of the officers of the fleet. He died quite sud- 

 denly at Galena, December 19, 1893, while walking 

 home from town. 



Captain Kerz left surviving him his widow, Barbara 

 Kerz, who later died, September 18, 1925; a daughter, 

 Barbara Heid, still living; and a son, Adam. The latter 

 followed in the footsteps of his father as a river pilot, 

 and was with him to the time of his death. He later 

 went with Captain Winans on the "John H. Douglass" 

 and "Saturn" and after spending several years on the 

 Yukon on the "Julia B.", owned and operated by the 

 Yukon Transportation and Trading Company, com- 

 posed principally of Galena residents, he entered the 

 employ of the United States Government on its fleet of 

 river boats and was employed on the "Coal BlufT" when 

 he took sick at Hannibal, Missouri, and after being 

 brought to his home at LaCrosse, Wisconsin, died in 

 1908. 



He was further survived by a son, Philip Kerz, still 

 living at Dixon, Illinois, and employed by the Inter- 

 national Harvester Company, and by his youngest son, 

 Paul Kerz, an attorney, with offices at 1 1 South LaSalle 



