Federal Barge Line

In 1938, the Inland Waterways Corporation (IWC), the government-owned barge line known among river interests as the Federal Barge Line, contracted with the Dubuque Boat & Boiler Company for a… Read More

In the column of September 5, we looked at the Str. Mark Twain and the Missouri River Navigation celebration trip. While the Mark Twain was the lead towboat and carried… Read More

The Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway Conference scheduled for August 10–12 brings to mind the early involvement that the Inland Waterways Corporation (IWC) had in that area shortly after its formation following the… 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 by… Read More

By the early part of the 20th century, railroads had all but decimated river transportation, in particular barge towing. Other than certain trades, such as the steel industry in the… Read More

By Bill Burnett Little did my grandfather, Ancel Burnett, know when he climbed aboard the big Federal Barge Line Str. Illinois at Boonville, Mo., that four generations of his family… Read More

Harbor Towing & Fleeting (HTF), a well-known New Orleans maritime company that specializes in barge fleeting and tripping tows through nearby locks on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, is celebrating 50… Read More

In the glory days of steam towboating, one of the best vessels of that era was the Oakland. Built at Pittsburgh in 1872 by Capt. Tom Fawcett and Capt. William… Read More