Page 81 - Rukert - 100th Anniversary

PART II BRINGING THE WORLD TO BALTIMORE
HISTORIC CANTON COAL PIER
THE PENNSYLVANIA RAILROAD’S (P.R.R.) CANTON
COAL PIER WAS A FIXTURE OF THE CLINTON STREET WATERFRONT BETWEEN 1916 AND 1985. For almost 70 years, 900 tons of coal per hour was transferred from railroad hopper cars into four-ton cable-drawn dump cars that moved on an elevated track above and across South Clinton Street. After traveling down the length of the pier, the cars dumped the coal onto barges or vessels for export. Since being acquired by Rukert Terminals in 1987, the pier has been modified and improved, but not rebuilt. The century-old structure now known as “C” pier still operates as one of four deep-sea berths at Rukert Terminals. It is listed on Maryland’s Inventory of
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possibilities for the extra pier. Rukert Terminals aptly named this acquisition “C” pier.
The McLean Contracting Company finished rebuilding the final 257-foot section of Pier 5 in 1987. Since being acquired by Rukert Terminals, the original 400-foot wooden pier had been replaced and extended to a total length of 850 feet. As soon as Pier 5 was completed, Rukert Terminals began the process of renovating “C” pier by removing
the overhead rail structure that had crossed South Clinton Street and traveled the length of the pier. Though most of the heavy steel and machinery was turned over to a scrapper, the company kept one original coal car from 1916. Twenty years later, under the direction of Steve Landess, Keith Mooney and other Beacon Stevedoring employees spent a month welding and painting the car to its original condition. The restored car sits on display outside of the Trucking Department at Rukert Terminals, keeping a piece of the historic railroad facility alive to this day.
In the fall of 1988, Beacon Stevedoring — like Rukert Marine before it — withdrew from the Steamship Trade Association (STA), one year prior to the expiration of its contract with the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA). As the entity responsible
for negotiating with the ILA
throughout the Port of Baltimore,
the STA was geared more toward
container than bulk and break-
bulk business. Withdrawing
from the STA allowed Beacon
Stevedoring to negotiate directly
with union officials to reach an
agreement that would better fit
the company’s needs. After years
of losing business to terminals
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