The last column was inspired by a near century old pay ledger that had been repurposed into a scrapbook by riverman Palmer Fisher, a friend of many years to… Read More
Charles Ward Engineering Works
The “stern line” rumor mill had been rumbling for some time, but on January 19 came confirmation that the venerable J.S. Lewis had changed owners for the first time… Read More
The Charles Ward Engineering Works, Charleston, W.Va., had experienced success with building tunnel-stern, propeller-driven towboats such as the James Rumsey of 1903 and the A.M. Scott of 1906. In… Read More
As mentioned in this column in the March13 issue, the Jones & Laughlin Steel Corporation (J&L) broke with tradition in 1931 and had two steam prop towboats built… Read More
The Inland Waterways Corporation (IWC), the government-owned barge line, as mentioned last week, had built a fleet of vessels in 1920 intended for Warrior-Tombigbee River service. In 1929, they… Read More
The Inland Waterways Corporation (IWC), the barge line chartered by the U.S. government to revitalize river transportation following World War I, was focused on the task and not bound… Read More
As mentioned previously in these columns dealing with early diesel towboats, the Charles Ward Engineering Works of Charleston, W.Va., was an early proponent of prop-driven vessels. However, in 1927,… Read More
The Charles Ward Engineering Works, Charleston, W.Va., was a pioneer in the advent of the screw propeller as a means of providing thrust to towing vessels. The James Rumsey,… Read More
This week’s Old Boat Column takes us for a visit to the Cincinnati wharf. In this serene image, taken from the stern of the excursion steamer Island Queen, we… Read More
The cabin of the Chris Greene decorated for Christmas. (Keith Norrington collection) River historian and WJ correspondent Virginia Bennett (1924–2013) loved to reminisce about her favorite steamboat, the… Read More
