>> this is american history tv on c-span3 where we feature 48 hours of programs exploring our nation's past. >> we are on board the colonel james schoonmaker. when she was launched in 1911, she was called the queen of the lakes. she was the largest ship on the great lakes at the time. we will take you around and show you just how much cargo this great ship could carry.

>> we like to think of it as two football fields of education and entertainment. it is a great hook for us to get people appreciating and understanding more of the great lakes. we are on the pilot house deck. this is the national museum of the great lakes. -- largest artifact the . -- the schoonmaker was a commercial freighter from when it was built in 1911 to the 1980's. it became a museum when the city of toledo purchased it in 1987. her main purpose was to deliver iron ore from lake superior down to lake erie to places like ohio

where it was unloaded and put in railroad cars and taken to pittsburgh for a company to support its steelmaking business. at its time, it was the largest carrier. it would remain the largest carrier, meaning it could carry more bulk material than any other from 1911 to 1927. which was a very long time when every year a new boat came out that was a little bit longer. because this boat was built so could carry, it four cargo for almost 60 years than any other boat constructed -- for 16 years than any other boat constructed between that time. we are now in the pilothouse. often called the wheelhouse. it is where the command decisions were made to operate a commercial vessel. the captain, a first mate would be in here, as well as some

other junior officers who would assist the captain with navigation, steering, communicating with the engine room with respect to how fast they wanted the boat to go. in what direction. of a 20and central century great lakes ballcarrier. here we have your standard wheel, which will steer the boat. the schoonmaker has two wheels. it has one separate emergency system on board. a compass. basic navigation required. as technology improved, sometimes the old technology was kept. so not only will you have a simple compass, but a gyro repeating compass as well. when radar was introduced on the great lakes after world war ii, that vastly improves the ability of the boat to see what is coming in its direction. as well as the most iconic piece

of equipment which everybody seems to recognize from the movie "titanic," the engine telegraph, which is the system of communication between the pilothouse and the engine room. she was 618 feet long and 62 feet wide which was just perfect to fit through the locks up it -- about st. mary. we are now in the cargo hold number two. this is where literally thousands upon thousands of tons of cargo, probably millions over the course of 70 years, of bulk cargo like iron ore or coal or limestone would have been transported across the great lakes. the schoonmaker has ballast

tanks on either side of its cargo hold to help in the navigation of the boat by being able to sit low in the water or raise up in the water. it has arched girder construction, which was developed in the first decade of the 20th century. this allowed more and more cargo to be placed in the cargo hold. to make the boats more efficient. there are three cargo holds roughly carrying about 4800 tons of cargo per trip. carry just over 14,500 tons of cargo. by the time the schoonmaker was built in 1911, the cargo would be removed primarily with iron ore unloaders. they were mechanized arms that were attached to massive dockside infrastructure which would reach down through the cargo holds of the vessel.

with these huge clamshell buckets they would scoop up to -- scoop up two tons to three tons of cargo each time. take them out of the cargo hold and deposit them in railroad cars waiting at dockside. a boat like this could take with iron ore unloaders could hours toen to ten unload which was a vast , improvement over earlier systems of unloading which could take up to two days. boats on the great lakes are always looking for as many cargoes as they can possibly carry. they generally have a principal cargo. for many years, all freighters try to carry iron ore, which is the main cargo. but there is also coal, which is still shipped on the great lakes. stone aggregate used for the creation of limestone. construction material stone.

salt is mined in the region for road salt they carry a variety of products. there are still boats on the great lakes that carry grain. grain silos on riversides across the great lakes place grain in the cargo hold of a boat and it will be shipped off the great lakes to the st. lawrence seaway. if you took a photograph of a port like toledo or cleveland or milwaukee in 1911, the port would look chaotic. there would be hundreds of vessels operating out of that port on any given day. it would be different because they would be a wide variety of styles of vessels. in 1911, you still had hundreds of sailing vessels. schooners delivering cargo on the great lakes under sail,

versus a boat like the schoonmaker, which was operated with steam. we are now in the engine room. the engine room is where the power that is created to move the boat through the water comes from. originally, the schoonmaker had an expansion steam engine. by the 1950's that technology , became supplanted by steam turbines. the old engine was taken out and the new steam turbine system was placed in it. all of this equipment is based on steam turbine technology. except for the engine room telegraph, which stayed the same. which is now the other end of the communications system with the pilothouse. when the captain once the boat to go forward ahead, he sends a -- back to the engine

room. they acknowledge it and put it into full ahead steam power. the major control system here for this steam turbine allows the chief engineer to ensure there is enough steam to turn the turbine, which then in course turns the shaft of the propeller, which turns the propeller. all of the things that go into the production of steam, the amount of heat and water and boilers. the temperature the water is boiling at. the amount of pressure that creates is all controlled through a mechanical systems here that are more sophisticated than when the boat was built in 1911. behind us are the two major boilers on the schoonmaker. before its conversion to a steam turbine, you would've had men with shovels from the coal bins taking coal and heating the water to create steam. the ultimate end of the commercial career for the schoonmaker was more about

demand for steel and industrial products like coal and limestone and salt on the great lakes than it was for the condition of the boat. in the late 1980's, the city of toledo developed an idea to bring an attraction to the downtown area. the boat was laid up in toledo. it had not been used in eight years. it was called long-term layout. the company is waiting for some condition to change that might justify it being brought out again. the city of toledo purchased it for a couple hundred thousand dollars and began the process of turning it into a museum. it is a great way to get people to think, i will get to go on one of those things that i saw our my father saw when he lived up here on the great lakes. to get them involved in history. they go through the museum and they are amazed about what happens over the last 300 years on the great lakes. it is a great hook for us to get people appreciating the history.

>> our staff traveled to toledo, ohio to learn about its rich history. to learn more, visit c-span.org /citiestour. you are watching american history tv, all weekend, every weekend on c-span3. our c-span campaign 2020 bus team is traveling across the country visiting key battleground states in the 2020 presidential race, asking voters what issues they want presidential candidates to address during the campaign. >> an issue to me that is the most important, the most paramount in the election is the climate crisis. i call it the climate crisis over the climate emergency. i expect urgency on the matter.

reportng to that famous we only have until 2032 deal with this issue. inyears is not enough time historical or political context at all. this is absolutely an emergency. we have to deal with this right now, today. >> the thing i what presidential candidates to talk about is the second amendment. i agree with the gun control thing, but stuff is being bought on the black market. why do they want to take our guns away? awayid they want to take the civilians of this country? why do they want to disarm us? i would like candidates to solidarityernational in the trade union movement across the world.

on there they stand former president of brazil. >> education. our kids are being left behind. the government tells you you have to do this, you have to do that but there is no funding available and the taxpayers have to come up with it. >> voices from the campaign trail, part of c-span's battleground states tour. maryland congressman elijah cummings passed away on october 17 at the age of 68. he served in congress since 1996. the democrat from maryland elijah cummings speaks of the house floor after -- >> i have often said on the floor of the maryland house of delegates that our world would be a much better world and a much better place if we would only concentrate on the things

we have in common instead of concentrating on our differences. it's easy to define differences. we need to take more time to find common ground. that comesion is one out of a vision that was created long, long ago. division toion and empower people. to make people realize the power is within them. that they can do the things they want to do. i'm about that mission. i'm looking forward to joining with all of you as we travel this road. i often call it a journey, which i define as life. there was a poem that karen mitchell said many years ago that i say sometimes 20 times a

day. it is one i live by. i only have a minute. 60 seconds forced upon me. i did not choose it, but i know i must use it. give account if i abuse it. suffer is of i lose it. only a tiny little minute, but eternity is in it. forwardn you as a move to uplift not only the nation but the world. may god bless you all. may god bless america. [applause] later we spoke with him about some of the issues before congress. >> i was walking out the door. one of the members said to me, when you used to adjust the house delegates you were speaking to the state. here you are speaking to the nation of the world. that kind of struck me.

here i am on c-span. >> i guess we ought to ask you how you feel about the minimum wage fight on the floor. >> i am for increasing the mineral wage. i come from a district which has -- a lot of people have low wages and they are at the minimum wage. i'm also pro-business. i think a balance can be struck. this proposed increase is a reasonable compromise. >> tell us about your background for folks who have never seen you before. >> i'm from baltimore's inner-city. i came up to the inner city school system. went on to howard university, graduated phi beta kappa. went to the university of maryland law school and practiced law for 20 years. i have been in the maryland legislature for 14 years, served in the leadership for nine of the 14 years. elected on april 16. >> do you think about committee

assignments? there are nottand a lot left. it will be transportation and judiciary. >> you will run again in november? >> that is correct. i was fortunate to be able to one,my opponent four to and i expect five to one next time. issues will we be seeing you talk on? >> i will talk about those issues that may not be as popular. certainly crime is a popular issue but that is one i'm very concerned about. another is aids in the city of baltimore. it is the number one killer of people between the ages of 18 and 44. that has been a big issue with me for years. looking at economic development issues. cities are dying and baltimore is no exception.

you will see me work hard in those areas to revitalize the city. i have a very diverse district. i have a piece of the suburbs, but mainly city. i have to balance both of those interests and make sure all members of our district are represented. >> elijah cummings, the newest member of the 104th congress, thank you very much. >> my pleasure. >> the house will be in order. >> c-span has been providing america unfiltered coverage of congress, the white house, the supreme court and public policy events from washington, d.c. and around the country so you can make up your own mind. 1979, c-spanble in is brought to you by your local cable or satellite provider. c-span, your unfiltered view of government. ♪