In 1903, the Charles Ward Engineering Company of Charleston, W.Va., constructed a twin-propeller steam towboat named James Rumsey for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Wheeling, W.Va. Built on… Read More
Old Boat Column
A look back into the rich history of the inland waterways transportation industry. From the earliest steam paddlewheelers to the grand sternwheel and sidewheel packets, and the eventual transition from steam to diesel, you’ll find fascinating stories and photos of a different steamboat every week.
Built by the Knox yard at Harmar (Marietta), Ohio, in 1877, this slender sternwheeler was constructed on a wooden hull measuring 132 feet in length by 21 feet in width. Read More
With the WJ’s “View from the wheelhouse” special issue this week, the Old Boat Column is featuring a unique pilothouse vignette. Seven decades ago, following the May 1947… Read More
Built by the Sweeney yard at Jeffersonville, Ind., in 1910, the Gregory was completed in nine months for a cost of $16,915. Reportedly, the cost of outfitting for the… Read More
This week’s Old Boat Column features an image taken nearly 120 years ago. All three of the steamboats lying at the Clarksville wharf had the distinction of… Read More
Remains of the City of Cincinnati. Visible at the bow is the pilothouse from the wrecked sternwheeler Loucinda. (Keith Norrington collection) After observing the centennial of the 1918… Read More
The Cincinnati riverfront in January 1918 showing the sunken City of Cincinnati. Other boats in view are the sternwheeler Loucinda and the wrecked steamer City of Louisville. (Keith Norrington… Read More
The Volcano undergoing repair after the 1927 fire. Note the painter lettering the name on the engineroom bulkhead. (Keith Norrington collection) The Volcano was… Read More
The Tarascon at the Louisville waterfront in the 1870s. For a contract cost of $40,900, the beautiful sidewheeler Tarascon was constructed on a wooden hull (250 feet in… Read More
The packet Ben Hur at the Powhatan Point, Ohio, landing. (Keith Norrington collection) The sternwheel packet Ben Hur was built by the Knox Boat Yard at Harmar (Marietta), Ohio,… Read More
