This week, the Old Boat Column presents a picture of two rather obscure riverboats, the City Belle and the Calypso. Until 1961, the image was believed to have been taken… Read More
steamboat
In the heyday of excursion steamboating, this time of year was the peak season for the riverboats to prowl the inland waterways, offering daytime cruises as well as “moonlites,” with… Read More
By the 1930s the last remaining riverboats to carry freight and passengers were beginning to fade from the scene. This week, the Old Boat Column presents a colorized vintage view… Read More
Nine decades ago, on July 24, 1928, the old river tradition of steamboat racing was revived at Cincinnati, Ohio. Tens of thousands of cheering spectators lined the banks of the… Read More
For many decades, the Massengale family operated the St. Louis & Tennessee River Packet Company. Capt. John Massengale, a native of Gainesboro, Ga., moved to Nashville, Tenn., obtaining a job… Read More
Built at Harmar, Ohio, in 1899 and originally named Liberty, this sternwheeler was constructed on a wood hull measuring 164 feet in length by 34.4 feet in width. Three boilers… Read More
In the glory days of steam towboating, one of the best vessels of that era was the Oakland. Built at Pittsburgh in 1872 by Capt. Tom Fawcett and Capt. William… Read More
The seventh documented steamboat to carry the name, the Fashion was built in 1877 at Jeffersonville, Ind., by the Howard Shipyard for a contract cost of $20,714. Constructed on a… Read More
In last week’s Old Boat Column, we presented the sternwheeler Saint Louis; this Memorial Day issue will focus upon the sidewheeler City of St. Louis, famous in the annals of… Read More
In honor this week of the fifth anniversary of the WJ’s Inland Marine Expo, the Old Boat Column pays homage to one of many steamboats that carried the name of… Read More
