Instruct: Given a question, retrieve relevant passages that can help answer the question.
Query: What is the oldest steamboat still operating on the Mississippi?
The "Belle of Louisville" is the oldest operating steamboat in the United States, and the oldest operating Mississippi River-style steamboat in the world. She was laid down as "Idlewild" in 1914, and is currently located in Louisville, Ky.
A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships came into practical usage during the early 1800s; however, there were exceptions that came before. Steamships usually use the prefix designations of "PS" for "paddle steamer" or "SS" for "screw steamer" (using a propeller or screw). As paddle steamers became less common, "SS" is assumed by many to stand for "steam ship". Ships powered by internal combustion engines use a prefix such as "MV" for "motor vessel", so it is not correct to use "SS" for most modern vessels.
The first successful trial run of a steamboat had been made several years earlier in the United States by inventor John Fitch, on the Delaware River on August 22, 1787. Attendees included delegates from the Constitutional Convention, who were observing while taking a break from their summer-long sessions at Independence Hall. The steamboat was propelled by a bank of oars on either side of the boat. The following year Fitch launched a boat powered by a steam engine driving several stern-mounted oars. These oars paddled in a manner similar to the motion of a swimming duck's feet. With this boat he carried up to thirty passengers for hire on numerous round-trip voyages on the Delaware River between Philadelphia and Burlington, New Jersey.
The first successful trial run of his steamboat "Perseverance" was made on the Delaware River on August 22, 1787, in the presence of delegates from the Constitutional Convention. It was propelled by a bank of oars on either side of the boat. During the next few years, Fitch and Voigt worked to develop better designs, and in June 1790 launched a boat powered by a steam engine driving several stern-mounted oars. These oars paddled in a manner similar to the motion of a swimming duck's feet. With this boat, he carried up to 30 paying passengers on numerous round-trip voyages between Philadelphia and Burlington, New Jersey during the summer of 1790. Estimates of miles traveled that summer range from 1,300 to 3,000, and Fitch claimed that the boat often went for 500 miles without mechanical problems. Estimated speeds were of a minimum 6 miles per hour under unfavorable conditions, to a maximum of 7 or 8 miles per hour.
Fitch was granted a U.S. patent on August 26, 1791, after a battle with James Rumsey, who had also invented a steam-powered boat. The newly created federal Patent Commission did not award the broad monopoly patent that Fitch had asked for, but rather a patent of the modern kind, for the new design of Fitch's steamboat. It also awarded steam-engine-related patents dated that same day to Rumsey, Nathan Read, and John Stevens. The loss of a monopoly due to these same-day patent awards led many of Fitch's investors to leave his company. While his boats were mechanically successful, Fitch no longer had the financial resources to carry on.
Steamship generally refers to larger steam-powered ships, usually ocean-going, capable of carrying a (ship's) boat. The engine room, to the right, is a concept drawing during the construction of the ship. The term steam wheeler is archaic and rarely used. In England, "steam packet", after its sailing predecessor, was the usual term; even "steam barge" could be used (Steam tonnage in Lloyd's Register exceeded sailing ships tonnage by 1865). The French transatlantic steamer was probably the last of her type to be equipped with sails, although she never used them. Steamships in turn were overtaken by diesel-driven ships in the second half of the 20th century. Most warships used steam propulsion from the 1860s until the late 20th century
The most famous steam locomotive operating on the British main line is the 1923 built "Flying Scotsman". After being taken into public ownership in 2004, following a decade long refit it returned to mainline service in 2016. The fastest steam locomotive ever built, the 1938 built "Mallard", was also certified for main line operation briefly in the 1980s.
While canoes played a crucial role on the Skeena for centuries, the age of the steamboat heralded a new era of boating on the Skeena. The first steam-powered vessel to enter the Skeena was the "Union" in 1864. In 1866 the "Mumford" attempted to ascend the river but was only able to reach the Kitsumkalum River. It was not until 1891 that the Hudson's Bay Company sternwheeler the "Caledonia" successfully negotiated through the Kitselas Canyon and reached Hazelton. A number of other steamers were built around the turn of the century, in part due to the growing fish industry and the gold rush.
The Humber Wetlands Project which took place between 1992 and 2001 identified numerous prehistoric wetland sites in Holderness, the Hull Valley, the Humberhead Levels and the Vale of York.
A boat found at North Ferriby, near Kingston upon Hull, has been dated as 2030 BC, which makes it the oldest of its kind in western Europe. New scientific research carried out on the remains shows it is at least 4,000 years old. The boat was one of three discovered by amateur archaeologist Ted Wright on the banks of the Humber. Historians knew that the boats were old, but only now do they know how old. New scientific techniques suggest the boat Mr Wright found in 1963 is 500 years older than everyone thought. That means it date backs more than 4,000 years to the early Bronze Age. The Ferriby site was an ideal point of departure for east/west travel along the Humber or as a crossing-point to the south bank. The Ferriby Boats were a means by which ideas, such as the decorative design of pottery, and goods such as Baltic amber and metals could arrive on the Humber shore. It has also been suggested that it may have been used to carry stones to Stonehenge.
The Docks brought with them many associated industries, such as flour and sugar processing, and also ship building. On 31 January 1858 the largest ship of that time, the SS "Great Eastern" designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, was launched from the yard of Messrs Scott, Russell & Co, of Millwall. The length was too big for the river so the ship had to be launched sideways. Due to the technical difficulties of the launch this was the last big ship to be built on the Island and the industry fell into a decline. However, parts of the launching slipway and plate works have been preserved in situ and may be seen close to Masthouse Terrace Pier.
The oldest car raced at Arena Essex Raceway is a 1928 Dodge Standard Six which started at the back in Firecracker XIII 2004. It is said to be one of the oldest bangers ever raced and after the meeting, was later sold to be used in a movie about damaged cars.
The arrival of "New Orleans" signaled the beginning of significant economic change along the inland rivers. Fulton and Livingston intended to have six boats running between the "Falls of the Ohio" and New Orleans and five between the Falls and Pittsburgh. On April 8, 1812, Fulton and Livingston secured, with the help of Livingston's brother, Edward, a New Orleans politician, the exclusive rights and concession to the use of steam navigation on the new Louisiana Territory's rivers for a period of 18 years, provided that they charge a freight rate of no more than three quarters of the rate already charged by non-steam-powered boats. After "New Orleans" began navigating the lower Mississippi River, Fulton and Livingston attempted to prevent other steamboats from using the river, until court decisions broke their monopoly on steamboat commerce in New York and Louisiana. As commercial shipping improved, land development also increased along the inland rivers below the "Falls of the Ohio" at Louisville.
Similar boats were made in 1785 by John Fitch in Philadelphia and William Symington in Dumfries, Scotland. Fitch successfully trialled his boat in 1787, and in 1788, he began operating a regular commercial service along the Delaware River between Philadelphia and Burlington, New Jersey, carrying as many as 30 passengers. This boat could typically make and travelled more than during its short length of service. The Fitch steamboat was not a commercial success, as this travel route was adequately covered by relatively good wagon roads. The following year, a second boat made excursions, and in 1790, a third boat ran a series of trials on the Delaware River before patent disputes dissuaded Fitch from continuing.
Chesapeake & Ohio 614 is a 4-8-4 steam locomotive built by the Lima Locomotive Works in Lima, Ohio, in June 1948 for the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O) as a member of the J3a class. As one of the last commercially built steam locomotives in the United States, the locomotive was built with the primary purpose of hauling long, heavy, high speed express passenger trains for the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway such as the "George Washington" and the "Fast Flying Virginian". Retired from active service in the late 1950s, the 614 was preserved and placed on display at the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore, Maryland. In 1979, the locomotive was restored to operating condition and was used for extensive mainline excursion service from the 1970s until the late 1990s. Today the locomotive is on temporary display at the C&O Railway Heritage Center in Clifton Forge, Virginia awaiting a potential return to steam.
P&O first introduced passenger services in 1844, advertising sea tours to destinations such as Gibraltar, Malta and Athens, sailing from Southampton. The forerunner of modern cruise holidays, these voyages were the first of their kind, and have led to P&O Cruises being recognised as the world's oldest cruise line. The company later introduced round trips to destinations such as Alexandria and Constantinople and underwent rapid expansion in the later half of the 19th century, with its ships becoming larger and more luxurious. Notable ships of the era include the SS "Ravenna" built in 1880, which became the first ship to be built with a total steel superstructure, and the SS "Valetta" built in 1889, which was the first ship to use electric lights.
The Orwell Lady (originally New Mary Louise.) is a purpose built river cruiser (built 1979) currently operating 13 miles of the river Orwell and sails from Ipswich, England. The Orwell lady is 57 ft (17.13m) long and 14 ft (4.26m) in the beam, weighs 42 tonnes, and carries 118 passengers plus crew. The Orwell Lady sails from Ipswich dock and sails to the end of the Orwell at the Port of Felixstowe allowing for views of Shotley harbour and the historic town of Harwich. The boat has a fully functioning bar and panoramic views which has helped secure the boat as a popular tourist attraction in Ipswich. In recent years the boat has become one of the most popular river cruises in East Anglia.
A Simcoe equipment and boiler maker company called West & Peachey Company invented an amphibious steamboat called an Alligator which was used by logging companies all over Eastern North America in 1878. The firm built 230 alligator tugs between 1889 and 1932. West and Peachey would become one of the first manufacturing companies to operate within the town limits of Simcoe.
Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe 3751 is a 4-8-4 "Northern" type steam locomotive built in 1927 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works for the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. Built as the first Northern type steam locomotive for the Santa Fe, the 3751 served in passenger duties until being retired in 1953. The locomotive was then placed on display in San Bernardino, California until it was restored to operating condition in 1986. The 3751 is currently located in the Central City East neighborhood of Los Angeles and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Today, Santa Fe 3751 holds the distinction of being the oldest surviving 4-8-4 type steam locomotive in the world. The locomotive is currently owned and operated by the San Bernardino Railroad Historical Society who use the locomotive to haul occasional mainline excursion trains. However, a 15-year inspection was expected to put it out of service for three to four years.
She also had six masts (said to be named after the days of a week – Monday being the fore mast and Saturday the spanker mast), providing space for of sails (7 gaff and max. 9 (usually 4) square sails), rigged similar to a topsail schooner with a main gaff sail (fore-and-aft sail) on each mast, one "jib" on the fore mast and three square sails on masts no. 2 and no. 3 (Tuesday & Wednesday); for a time mast no. 4 was also fitted with three yards. In later years, some of the yards were removed. According to some sources she would have carried . This amount of canvas is obviously too much for seven fore-and-aft sails and max. 9 square sails. This (larger) figure of sail area lies only a few square metres below that the famous Flying P-Liner "Preußen" carried – with her five full-rigged masts of 30 square sails and a lot of stay sails. Setting sails turned out to be unusable at the same time as the paddles and screw were under steam, because the hot exhaust from the five (later four) funnels would set them on fire. Her maximum speed was 24 km/h (13 knots).
Over the course of its 37-year history, the Roach shipyard had many notable achievements to its credit. In 1874 it built "City of Peking" and "City of Tokio", the two largest gross-tonnage ships ever built in the United States to that date and the second largest in the world after the experimental British behemoth . In 1883 it constructed America's first steamer with a steel-plated hull. The yard played a key role in the so-called "Birth of the New Navy" when it built the four "ABCD ships"—the U.S. Navy's first steel ships. It also established a reputation for itself as a builder of lavishly outfitted "night boats" for the Long Island Sound trade, and in its last years, built the first three American ships to be powered by steam turbines. In total, the Delaware River Works built 179 ships between 1871 and 1908, including 10 warships for the U.S. Navy.
1782: The first steam-driven train is invented by Richard Trevithick in Boston, Plymouth Commonwealth. A race is held in a commonwealth bordering the New Nile starting in Springfield and ending in Cairo, with one of the hairy elephant-pulled trains they threaten to replace.
The sword worn by Marine NCOs since 1859 was also carried throughout the American Civil War. With only slight modifications since that time, it has maintained its distinctive and traditional appearance. Even though the Navy Officer Sword is older (1852), it was discontinued until reauthorized during the 1900s. The M1859 Marine NCO sword is the oldest weapon in continued (unbroken) service still in U.S. inventory.
"River Queen" was still operating in 1910 on the Potomac River, by that time among the oldest side-wheelers still in service. In July 1911, newspapers reported the burning of the "River Queen" "to the water's edge" following the explosion of a signal lantern on board. The press reported that "For the past year or two the "River Queen" has been used as an excursion boat for Negroes."
Steamboat transport remained a viable industry, both in terms of passengers and freight until the end of the first decade of the 20th century. Among the several Mississippi River system steamboat companies was the noted Anchor Line, which, from 1859 to 1898, operated a luxurious fleet of steamers between St. Louis and New Orleans.
The Rogue River meets the Pacific Ocean at Gold Beach, and flows all the way from the Cascade Mountains. R. D. Hume was a pioneering businessman at Wedderburn and Gold Beach, then known as Ellensburg. By 1881, he had established a fish cannery and built a steam schooner, "Mary D. Hume", to support the cannery operation. Hume was still conducting steamboat operations on the Rogue River in 1901, and in that year, Capt. E.D. Burns built the sternwheel steamboat "Rogue River" in Portland, and brought her down the coast to compete against Hume's operation. "Mary D. Hume" passed through several owners and was still in operation as late as 1939, when she was the oldest commercial vessel in service in the Pacific Northwest.
Five major commercial steamboats currently operate on the inland waterways of the United States. The only remaining overnight cruising steamboat is the 432 passenger "American Queen", which operates week-long cruises on the Mississippi, Ohio, Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers 11 months out of the year. The others are day boats: they are the steamers "Chautauqua Belle" at Chautauqua Lake, New York, "Minne Ha-Ha" at Lake George, NY, operating on Lake George; the "Belle of Louisville" in Louisville, Kentucky, operating on the Ohio River; and the "Natchez" in New Orleans, Louisiana, operating on the Mississippi River. For modern craft operated on rivers, see the Riverboat article.