San Francisco County
Biographies
GEORGE W. KNEASS
George W. Kneass was born in Yolo county, California, in 1859. His father, Dallas A. Kneass, came to this State in 1850, and died in San Francisco in 1891, aged seventy-three years and four months.
George W. attended school during boyhood and served an apprenticeship with
Martin Vice, a prominent ship-builder who came here from Philadelphia, with
whom he worked five years after his term of apprenticeship expired. At
the end of that time he became a partner in the business, and so continued
until the death of Mr. Vice, when he became sole proprietor of the
establishment. Mr. Kneass has large two-story
work shops on Third street, 50 x 160 feet, fully equipped with saws, planers
and other machinery, all run by steam, where he builds all kinds of boats. He
also has a yard and works at the Potrero, Solano and
Illinois streets, fully equipped with heavy machinery for building boats for
coast trade, and coffee lighters for carrying coffee from the shore out in deep
water for shipment on large vessels. He also builds what are called vapor
engine launches and sugar and surf boats for the Islands, for the Inter-Island
Steam Navigation Company for the Wilder Steamship Company. He had built
coffee lighters that have been sent to Guatemala, Central America, and Santa
Cruz, Mexico. He also does much work for the Alaska trade; has built over
forty sealing boats this year (1891) for English and American fleets; also
built the boats for the battle-ship Monterey. He employs from twenty-five
to fifty hands, the different departments of the establishment all being under
his personal supervision. He has had an extensive experience in his line
of work, and enjoys an enviable reputation all over the Pacific coast.
Transcribed 12-29-04
Marilyn R. Pankey.
Source:
"The Bay of San Francisco," Vol. 1, pages 677-678, Lewis Publishing Co, 1892.
© 2005 Marilyn R. Pankey.