Working Underwater: The Story of the Commercial Diving Industry

young crew member named Ray Kronfrost
had taken a scuba class the previous winter.
Roger asked Ray to assist with a few dive
inspections. Before long, Ray was assisting
with salvage work. In 1976, Ray went to commercial
dive school and returned to work as
Brennan’s only diver for over a decade.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Brennan
became one of the largest marine contractors
in the Upper Mississippi River. As needed,
freelance divers were hired to support the
growing needs of the topside construction
crews. In 1993, Tony Binsfeld, the third
generation of ownership, saw an opportunity
to expand beyond the Mississippi River and
provide services to utility companies that
owned hydroelectric dams. He hired a
seasoned superintendent, Earl Boser, who
brought five individuals with him, including
two certified divers; his son, Michael Boser,
and Darrell Belleau. This crew made up the
newly formed Industrial Division, which
specialized in both above and below-water
concrete repairs and scour remediation. Earl
had high expectations for his divers and
was adamant about working hard and doing
things the right way. His younger son, Neil
Boser, began diving soon afterward to keep up
with growing demand and later become a lead
superintendent. In 1996, Tony hired David
Cullum who, for the next twenty-two years,
grew the division and served a large number
of industrial clients throughout the country.
This division specialized in preplaced
aggregate concrete, a tried and true method of
underwater concrete placement that is
especially resistant to the yearly freeze-thaw
cycles found in the Midwest.
By 1999 the demand for diving for lock
and dam and railroad projects was so great
that Brennan created an official dive program
separate from the Industrial Division. Craig
Bartheld, an experienced Brennan crew
member, attended dive school and earned his
commercial diving certificate. His role was to
assist the growing marine construction
operations with all of their diving needs.
Under Craig’s leadership, the Dive
Department grew to as many as twelve divers
who traveled throughout the country and
worked for a variety of owners of water-based
infrastructure. His crew included a multitude
of individuals who would become the
foundation on which future dive operations
were built.
The story of the Brennan Dive Group cannot
be told without including Pro-Dive
Incorporated. Pro-Dive was founded in 1975
Above: Ray Kronfrost standing in front of
the Winona, Minnesota, Railroad Bridge
Crossing in 1978
Below: Gary Dondlinger and Mike Boser at
a timber cribbing repair job in 1995.
SHARING THE HERITAGE
71