Copyright USGenNet Inc., 2013, All Rights Reserved U.S. Data Repository Please read U.S. Data Repository Copyright Statement on this page: Transcribed and submitted by Linda Talbott for the US Data Repository http://www.us-data.org/ ========================================================================= U.S. Data Repository NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization. Non-commercial organizations desiring to use this material must obtain the consent of the transcriber prior to use. Individuals desiring to use this material in their own research may do so. ========================================================================= Formatted by U.S. Data Repository Chief Archivist, Linda Talbott All of the above information must remain when copied or downloaded. =========================================================================== Lloyd's Steamboat Directory and Disasters on the Western Waters - 1856 [40] COMMENCEMENT OF STEAM NAVIGATION ON THE WESTERN WATERS -------------- From the year 1736 to 1811, the only regular mode of transportation on the western rivers was such as we have described in the preceding article. The entire commerce of those rivers was transacted by means of those clumsy contrivances called barges and flat-boats, which con- sumed three or four months in making the trip from New Orleans to Louisville, a trip which is now made by steam power in five or six days, and has been made in a little over four. The price of passage from New Orleans to Pittsburgh was then $160; freight $6.75 per hundred pounds. The introduction of steam has reduced the price of passage between these two cities to thirty dollars, and merchandise is carried the whole distance for a price which may be regarded as merely nominal. Besides this great saving of time and money effected by steam navi- gation on these waters, the comparative safety of steam conveyance is an item which especially deserves our notice. Before the steam dispen- sation began, travellers and merchants were obliged to trust their lives or property to the bargemen, many of whom were suspected, with very good reason, to be in confederacy with the land robbers who in- fested the shores of the Ohio, and the pirates who resorted to the islands of the Mississippi. These particulars being understood, we are prepared to estimate the value and importance of the services which the steam-engine has rendered to the commerce and prosperity of the Western States. The earliest account we have of the navigation of the Mississippi, refers to a period more than three hundred years ago, when FERDINAND De SOTO, the first discoverer of that mighty stream, was engaged in his famous and fantastic exploring in search of "the fountain of youth." About one hundred years later, FATHER JOLIET, a Jesuit ambassador and envoy from France, again disturbed these waters, by launching on thier bosom a bark which had been transported --------------------------------------------------------------------------- [41] COMMENCEMENT OF STEAM NAVIGATION ON THE WESTERN WATERS -------------- by his fellow adventurers on their shoulders across the territory be- tween the Fox and Wisconsin rivers. The first vessel ever built on the waters of the West was the brig DEAN, which derived her name from her builder and original proprietor. She was launched at the present site of Allegheny city, near Pitts- burgh, in 1806. She afterwards made a voyage from Pittsburgh to the Mediterranean. When making her entry at the custom-house, at Leghorn, in 1807, the officer objected to her papers, declaring that such a port as Pittsburgh did not exist in the United States! A map was produced, and the captain guided the finger of the officer along the courses of the Mississippi and Ohio, by Cincinnati to Pittsburgh, and the aston- ishment of the custom-house gentleman was unspeakable when the location of this new city in the wilderness was pointed out. This incident may give the reader some idea of the ignorance and incredulity which pre- vail in Europe in relation to the rapid growth and prosperity of this country. After the purchase of Louisiana from Napoleon, in 1803, some eastern capitalists sent out mechanics, and built several ships on the Ohio. In 1805, JONAS SPOIR built the ship "SCOTT" on the Kentucky river, twenty miles above Frankfort, and near the residence of that celebrated western pioneer, GENERAL CHARLES SCOTT. This ship was the first that ever made a successful trip to the Falls of the Ohio. She remained there for several months before the occurrence of a rise in the river sufficient to float her over. In the meantime, two other vessels from Pittsburgh, built by JAMES BERTHONE & Co., had arrived at the Falls, and in the attempt to get over, the longest one was sunk, and soon after torn to pieces by the violence of the current. This accident was so discouraging, that no further attempts at ship-building were made on the Ohio. In 1811, Messrs. FULTON and LIVINGSTON, having established a ship- yard at Pittsburgh, for the purpose of introducing steam navigation on the western waters, built an experimental boat for this service; and this was the first steamboat that ever floated on the western rivers. It was furnished with a propelling wheel at the stern, and two masts; for Mr. FULTON believed, at that time, that the occasional use of sails would be indispensable. This first western steamboat was called the Orleans. Her capacity was one hundred tons. In the winter of 1812, she made her first trip from Pittsburgh to New Orleans in 14 days. She continued to make regular trips between New Orleans and Natchez, until the fourteenth day of July, 1814, when she wrecked near Baton Rouge, on her upward-bound passage, by striking a snag. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- [42] COMMENCEMENT OF STEAM NAVIGATION ON THE WESTERN WATERS -------------- The first appearance of this vessel on the Ohio river produced as the reader may suppose, not a little excitement and admiration. A steamboat, at that day, was to common observers, almost as great a wonder as a flying angel would be at present. The banks of the river, in some places, were thronged with spectators, gazing in speechless astonishment at the puffing and smoking phenomenon. The average speed of this boat was only about three miles per hour. Before her ability to move through the water without the assistance of sails or oars had been fully exemplified, comparatively few persons believed that she could possibly be made to answer any purpose of real utility. In fact, she had made several voyages before the general prejudice began to sub- side, and for some months, many of the river merchants preferred the old mode of transportation, with all its risks, delays, and extra ex- pense, rather than make use of such a contrivance as a steamboat, which, to their apprehensions, appeared too marvellous and miraculous for the business of every day life. How slow are the masses of man- kind to adopt improvements, even when they appear to be most obvious and unquestionable! The second steamboat of the West was a diminutive vessel called the "COMET." She was rated at twenty-five tons. DANIEL D. SMITH was the owner, and D. FRENCH the builder of this boat. Her machinery was on a plan for which FRENCH had obtained a patent in 1809. She went to Louisville in the summer of 1813, and descended to New Orleans in the spring of 1814. She afterwards made two voyages to Natchez, and was then sold, taken to pieces, and the engine was put up in a cotton fac- tory. The VESUVIUS is the next in this record. She was built by Mr. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- [43] COMMENCEMENT OF STEAM NAVIGATION ON THE WESTERN WATERS -------------- FULTON at Pittsburgh, for a company, the several members of which resided at New York, Philadelphia, and New Orleans. She sailed under the command of Capt. FRANK OGDEN, for New Orleans, in the spring of 1814. From New Orleans she started for Louisville in July of the same year, but was grounded on a sand-bar, seven hundred miles up the Mississippi, where she remained until the 3d of December following, when, being floated off by the tide, she returned to New Orleans. In 1815, '16, she made regular trips for several months, from New Orleans to Natchez, under the command of Capt. CLEMENT. This gentleman was soon after succeeded by Capt. JOHN De HART, and while approaching New Orleans with a valuable cargo on board, she took fire and burned to the water's edge. After being submerged for several months, her hulk was raised and refitted. She was afterwards in the Louisville trade, and was condemned in 1819. The ENTERPRISE was No. 4 of the Western steamboat series. She was built at Brownsville, Pa., by D. FRENCH, under his patent, and was owned by several residents of that place. The ENTERPRISE was a small boat of seventy-five tons. She made two voyages to Louisville in the summer of 1814, under the command of Capt. J. GREGG. On the 1st of December, in the same year, she conveyed a cargo of ordnance stores from Pittsburgh to New Orleans. While at the last-named port, she was pressed into service by Gen. JACKSON. Her owners were afterwards remu- nerated by the United States' government. When engaged in the public service, she was eminently useful in transporting troops, arms, and ammunition to the seat of war. She left New Orleans for Pittsburgh on the 6th of May, 1815, and reached Louisville after a passage of twenty- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- [44] COMMENCEMENT OF STEAM NAVIGATION ON THE WESTERN WATERS -------------- five days, thus completing the first steamboat voyage ever made from New Orleans to Louisville. But at the time the ENTERPRISE made this trip, the water was so high that the banks in many places were over- flowed; consequently there was no current. The ENTERPRISE was enabled to make her way up without much difficulty, by running through the "cut-offs," and over inundated fields, in still water. In view of these favorable circumstances, the experiment was not satisfactory, the public being still in doubt whether a steamboat could ascend the Mississippi when that river was confined within its banks, and the current as rapid as it generally is. Such was the state of public opinion when the steamboat WASHINGTON commenced her career. This vessel, the fourth in the catalogue of western steamboats, was constructed under the personal superintendence and direction of Capt. HENRY M. SHREVE. The hull was built at Wheeling, Va., and the engines were made at Brownsville, Pa. The entire construction of the boat comprised various innovations, which were sug- gested by the ingenuity and experience of Capt. SHREVE. The WASHINGTON was the first "two-decker" on the western waters. The cabin was placed between the decks. It had been the general practice for steamboats to carry their boilers in the hold; in this particular Capt. SHREVE made a new arrangement, by placing the boilers of the WASHINGTON on deck; and this plan was such an obvious improvement, that all the steamboats on those waters retain it to the present day. The engines constructed un- der FULTON'S patent had upright and stationary cylinders. In FRENCH'S engines vibrating cylinders were used. SHREVE caused the cylinders of the WASHINGTON to be placed in a hortizontal position, and gave the vibrations to the pitman. FULTON and FRENCH used single low-pressure engines. SHREVE employed a double high-pressure engine, with cranks at right angles; and this was the first engine of that kind ever used on the western rivers. Mr. DAVID PRENTICE had previously used cam wheels for working the valves of the cylinder; Capt. SHREVE added his great invention of the cam cut-off, with flues to the boilers, by which three-fifths of the fuel were saved. These improvements originated with Capt. SHREVE, but although they have been in universal use for a long time, their origin is not known. On the 24th day of September, 1816, the WASHINGTON passed over the Falls of Ohio, on her first trip to New Orleans, and returned to Louis- ville in November following. While at New Orleans the ingenuity of her construction excited the admiration of the most intelligent citizens of that place. EDWARD LIVINGSTON, after a critical examination of the boat and her machinery, remarked to Capt. SHREVE, "You --------------------------------------------------------------------------- [45] COMMENCEMENT OF STEAM NAVIGATION ON THE WESTERN WATERS -------------- deserve well of your country, young man; but we (referring to FULTON and LIVINSTON'S monopoly) shall be compelled to beat you (in the courts), if we can." An acculation of ice in the Ohio compelled the WASHINGTON to remain at the Falls until March 12th, 1817. On that day she commenced her second voyage to New Orleans. She accomplished this trip and returned to Shippingsport, at the foot of the Falls, in forty-one days. The ascending voyage was made in twenty-five days, and from this voyage all historians date the commencement of steam navigation in the Mississippi valley. It is now practically demonstrated to the satisfaction of the public in general, that steamboats could ascend this river in less than one-fourth the time which the barges and keel-boats had required for the same purpose. This feat of the WASHINGTON produced almost as much popular excitement and exultation in that region as the battle of New Orleans. The citizens of Louisville gave a public dinner to Capt. SHREVE, at which he predicted that the time would come when the trip from New Orleans to Louisville would be made in ten days. Although this may have been regarded as a boastful declaration at that time, the prediction has been more than fulfilled; for in 1853 the trip was made in four days and nine hours. After that memorable voyage of the WASHINGTON, all doubts and pre- judices in reference to steam navigation were removed. Ship-yards be- gan to be established in every convenient locality, and the business of steamboat building was vigorously prosecuted. But a new obstacle now presented itself, which, for a time, threatened to give an effectual check to the spirit of enterprise and progression which had just been developed. We refer to the claims made by Messrs. FULTON and LIVING- STON to the exclusive right of steam navigation on the rivers of the United States. This claim being resisted by Capt. SHREVE, the WASHING- TON was attached at New Orleans, and taken possession of by the sheriff. When the case came for adjudication before the District Court of Louisiana, the tribunal promptly negatived the exclusive privileges claimed by LIVINGSTON and FULTON, which were decided to be unconsti- tutional. The monopoly claims of LIVINGSTON and FULTON were finally withdrawn in 1819, and the last restraint on the steamboat navigation of the western rivers was thus removed, leaving western enterprise and energy at full liberty to carry on the great work of improvement. This work has been so progressive that, at the present time, no less than eight hundred steamboats are in constant operation on the Ohio and Mississippi and their tributaries, and this mode of navigation has there been carried to a degree of perfection unrivalled in any other part of the world. ===========================================================================