Thompson Dean News - The Waterways Journal

The Federal Towboat Memphis Carried A Famous Bell

Old Boat Column

The Federal Towboat Memphis Carried A Famous Bell

February 11, 2024

In the August 1, 2022, issue of The Waterways Journal, this column looked at the ill-fated “black boat” Natchez, one of a series of steam prop towboats built by the… Read More

The Elegant Str. Thompson Dean The big sidewheeler Thompson Dean at the Cincinnati waterfront. (Keith Norrington collection)

The Elegant Str. Thompson Dean

June 4, 2021

One of the large and palatial sidewheelers, the Thompson Dean was built at Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1872. Constructed on a wooden hull measuring 306 feet in length by 46 feet… Read More

The Beautiful Steamer Guiding Star The Guiding Star as a new boat at Cincinnati in 1878. (Keith Norrington collection)

The Beautiful Steamer Guiding Star

January 4, 2021

Happy New Year! We begin the Old Boat Column for 2021 with a steamboat that took its name from the star of Bethlehem. The Guiding Star, a wood-hulled sidewheeler that… Read More