Nearly a century ago, the automobile was coming into vogue as a common means of transportation for the American people. When cars were made affordable thanks to mass production, the… Read More
Old Boat Column
A look back into the rich history of the inland waterways transportation industry. From the earliest steam paddlewheelers to the grand sternwheel and sidewheel packets, and the eventual transition from steam to diesel, you’ll find fascinating stories and photos of a different steamboat every week.
After years of a relative respite from severe winters, it appears that icy times have returned. Unlike the Upper Mississippi River where, owing to ice harbors, coves and other safe… Read More
The Eagle Packet Company of St. Louis contracted in 1913 with the Howard Shipyard to build a wood-hulled sternwheeler for $26,000. The new steamboat, 242 by 37.8 feet and named… Read More
Built for the Red River and Caddo Lake cotton trades above Shreveport, La., the cotton packet Gem was constructed in 1898 along the Ohio River. It was a product of… Read More
The river community was greatly saddened recently to learn of the untimely passing of Charles “Chuck” Parrish on December 21, 2020. He was 78. Long the exemplary and kindly historian… Read More
In 1927, the American Bridge Company at Ambridge, Pa., constructed a steel hull measuring 169.8 feet in length by 38.9 feet in width and having a depth of 6.5 feet… Read More
In 1878, the Howard Shipyard of Jeffersonville, Ind., completed work on its magnum opus, the J.M. White. Owned by the Greenville & New Orleans Packet Company, the big sidewheeler’s wooden… Read More
On March 25, 1882, shortly after departing Vicksburg, Miss., the towboat Iron Mountain struck an underwater obstruction and sank near Island 102 on the Lower Mississippi River. The entire crew… Read More
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
During this final week of 2020, the Old Boat Column takes a fond look back 50 years to the summer of 1970, when the St. Louis levee was still a… Read More
