Author: Capt. David Smith

The first Tall Stacks event was held at Cincinnati in 1988. The idea grew out of a bicentennial commission to plan how to celebrate two centuries since the… Read More

The last column detailed the early years of the steam sternwheel towboat W.P. Snyder Jr., built in 1918 on the bank of the Allegheny River in Pittsburgh by James Rees… Read More

This past week marked 70 years since the steam sternwheel towboat W.P. Snyder Jr. arrived at Marietta, Ohio, under its own power, blowing the whistle and billowing coal smoke… Read More

The Ohio River Company grew from very humble beginnings to become one of the most iconic river towing companies of the 20th century. The late Capt. Bill Judd has detailed… Read More

This is another column that was prompted by recent photos. These shots were of a towboat, resplendent in a coat of fresh summer paint, with closeups showing the vessel looking… Read More

The America’s River Roots Festival will be held in the Cincinnati area October 8–12. The event will be somewhat like the Tall Stacks events from the past, but this particular… Read More

This column is about a towboat that has long been a personal favorite of mine. It was not the largest, and it certainly was not the most attractive or… Read More

The sad news was dispensed through social media recently that one of the most iconic towing vessels built for the inland rivers in the middle of the 20th century was… Read More

The past two Old Boat Columns looked at one of the two boats that led the towboat parade for the Greenup Lock dedication in 1962: the 3,200 hp. Valvoline of… Read More