Franz Von Riedel

Capt. Franz Von Riedel has spent his life persistently documenting the complex histories of the commercial vessels in the maritime industry. Upon graduation from high school, Franz spent five years as conductor on an iron ore railroad in Northern Minnesota. From 1997-2000, he restored and operated the Marine Trader, the last commercial bumboat in North America. In 2001, Franz formed the Zenith Tugboat Company, which today owns and operates seven towing vessels. He founded the Northeastern...See more

Capt. Franz Von Riedel has spent his life persistently documenting the complex histories of the commercial vessels in the maritime industry. Upon graduation from high school, Franz spent five years as conductor on an iron ore railroad in Northern Minnesota. From 1997-2000, he restored and operated the Marine Trader, the last commercial bumboat in North America. In 2001, Franz formed the Zenith Tugboat Company, which today owns and operates seven towing vessels. He founded the Northeastern Maritime Historical Foundation in 2002, which has become one of the prime contributors to the preservation of the towing industry, in its history and the vessels themselves. Besides his time-consuming business interests centered around the maritime industry, Franz is an avid industrial photographer and has had thousands of images published throughout the United States and Europe. Franz also writes the "News from North America" feature in the bi-monthly international publication Lekko. This is his third book. See less