John See McCann (d. 1939)
John McCann was born in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. He had experience as a sternwheeler captain on the Mississippi and Missouri rivers before he came north. In 1898, he worked for the Northern Commercial Co. and lived in Dawson. In 1905, he moved to Fairbanks. In 1908, he was the master of the Schwatka and in 1921 he was master of the Yukon.1)
The Alaskan Railroad from Seward to Fairbanks was completed in 1922, except for the Tanana River bridge. In 1923, the American Yukon Navigation Co. (AYN) operated the Alaska, Yukon, and Julia B. on the Dawson to Nenana run. The completion of the railway removed the need for a great number of riverboats and in 1924 the AYN operated only the Yukon with Captain McCann as the master. Captain Newcome [Newcomb?] was the pilot, Joe Matthews was the chief engineer, and Jeff Bidlake was the purser.2) McCann retired in 1939 and died in Seattle North, Edmonds.3)