Steamboat Wreck Discovered In Missouri River

The Columbia Missourian reported August 24 that a survey team uncovered a steamboat wreck in a bend of the Missouri River between Boonville and Rocheport, Mo. The area was heavily trafficked by steamboats in the 1880s and 1890s. 

The Columbia Environmental Research Center and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had been using sonar on the riverbed in June when team members spotted the outline of a wrecked steamboat. Team members included Carrie Elliott, a geologist with the United States Geological Survey, and Tyrell Helmuth, who was mapping the habitat of the endangered pallid sturgeon. They surveyed the image from both sides upstream and downstream to get more details. The team intends to return for more detailed surveying in September. 

The find was reported to the State Historic Preservation Office. The Corps of Engineers has authority over the site and will decide whether to salvage the boat or leave it in place.