A life on the sea was a common romantic notion at the turn the last century. Beginning in 1905, P. D. Campbell accompanied his father, also a captain, on his trips delivering mail, cargo, and passengers to Beaver Island. In 1916 P.D. served as second in command on the steamship Manitou. This is how he remembers the sea in his own words: “The roaring sea rolls into the sandy and rock strewn beaches of Michigan. As I stand with my face into the wind, contemplating the eternal travel of the waves toward the shore, I think back to the years that have passed, and thank my eternal Master above who has bestowed upon me the great privilege that has been mine, those years lived beside the waters of Lake Michigan.”