old boat column

In the March 23, 2022, issue of The Waterways Journal, we looked at the Pioneer, built by Dravo in 1934 and retrofitted with the first installation of the kort… Read More

Mid-to-late April 1865 was full of news. President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated, the hunt for and eventual killing of his assassin, John Wilkes Booth, was ongoing, and the Civil… Read More

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

Richard Dale James, formerly of Baden, Ohio, near Gallipolis, and now a resident of Wyandotte, Okla., was in the area recently to visit his parents. During his stay a… Read More

In a recent conversation, the question was raised of what was the first towboat with a retractable pilothouse. The Bull Calf was mentioned, but it came out in 1939 with… Read More

As mentioned in this column before, American Barge Line (ABL), forerunner of present-day ACBL, was formed in the late 1920s when Andrew and Patrick Calhoun pooled resources with W.C. Read More

Picking that perfect Christmas present for the boss is always a challenge. In 1946, the indisputable “boss” at Ashland Oil & Refining Company was Paul Garrett Blazer. Swiss… Read More

Captain David Smith, the voice behind Waterways Journal’s “Old Boat” column, joins Frank McCormack to talk about growing up on the river, mentors in the wheelhouse, historic boat preservation, and… Read More

The Nashville Bridge Company, Nashville, Tenn., has long been renowned as a builder of stylish vessels that provided their owners with many years of service. Nashville Bridge, known as simply… Read More