James Rees & Sons Company News - The Waterways Journal

Old Boat Column: The Avalon: A Widely Traveled Excursion Boat

Boats & Barges

Old Boat Column: The Avalon: A Widely Traveled Excursion Boat

October 18, 2024

The previous installment of the Old Boat Column introduced the steamer Idlewild, built in Pittsburgh in 1914 by the James Rees & Sons Company for the West Memphis Packet Company. Read More

The Steamer Fairplay And Capt. Vernon Byrnside The Campbell Line Str. Fairplay at Pittsburgh. (David Smith collection)

The Steamer Fairplay And Capt. Vernon Byrnside

May 8, 2023

The James Rees & Sons Company, with origins dating back to 1848, operated at what is now the foot of Stanwix Street on the left bank of the Allegheny River… Read More

The Steamer Mayflower The sternwheeler Mayflower passes Clifton, Tenn., on the Tennessee River, during high water. Note the steamboat acorn finials atop the posts in the foreground. (Keith Norrington collection)

The sternwheeler Mayflower passes Clifton, Tenn., on the Tennessee River, during high water. Note the steamboat acorn finials atop the posts in the foreground. (Keith Norrington collection)

The Steamer Mayflower

January 19, 2019

Every boat has a beginning and an ending. This week’s Old Boat Column presents a vignette of a vessel whose history both began and ended at Pittsburgh. The sternwheeler Mayflower,… Read More