This log goes back in time, with newest entries at the top and oldest entries at the bottom. This is the oldest steamboat log archive of old news. For newest news, click here.
Newsletter Story Illustrates War's Creative Role
BETHESDA, Maryland. -- December 12, 2001 -- "War, like creativity, is not free," says Russ Barnes in a new article on General George C. Marshall published this month in FOCUS, a publication of the American Creativity Association. The article outlines the challenges of World War II, as new for their time as are the challenges today the world faces in the war on terrorism.
"A war cannot be won without creative discipline." the author points out. "The exercise of grappling with limitations brought about by war and conflict, paradoxically, liberates the creative mind."
George Catlett Marshall, United States Army Chief of Staff during World War II, illustrates the practicality of thinking "out of the box." He was responsible for the Marshall Plan for the reconstruction of Europe. He built an army and air force from less than 200,000 troops in 1939 into a fighting force of over eight million by the end of the war. Winston Churchill called him "the architect of victory" over Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan.
The FOCUS article is titled, "The Greatest Weapon is Creative Discipline." The writer, Russ Barnes, is working on a multimedia stage play, LEAST MILITANT WARRIOR, about the life and character of General Marshall. Early readings of the play will be performed in Washington, DC and Lexington, VA.
Sample copies of the Focus newsletter are available by request for $3.00. To order, contact the American Creativity Association, ACA, PO Box 5856, Philadelphia, PA 19128, phone 888-254-5746, or email. Formed in 1989, The American Creativity Association, with members throughout the U.S. and in more than 20 countries, is dedicated to expanding the application of creativity in society.
The full text of "The Greatest Weapon Is Creative Discipline" can be found at: amcreativityassoc.org For more information, contact Russ Barnes.
29 Jan. 02
Make 2002 a Great Year!
[Ed's note: The following information came from Capt. Steve Huffman. If you're so inclined, we urge you to take that drab, ordinary calendar off your wall and order one of these. It's sure to make this a fantastic new year.]
Interested in steam towboats, steamboats, or towboat history in general?
We are offering a new Steam Towboat Calendar for 2002!
The calendar features 12 never-before-published photos from the Captain Leon Ash Photo Collection. The photos were taken in the 1920s and 30s. In order of appearance, vessels include the Transporter; Iroquois; Jason; Mamie S. Barrett; Alexander MacKenzie; Cayuga/Janet/French's New Sensations; Joe Cook; Walter A. Windsor/Marietta/Titan; Henry C. Yeiser/Pioneer/Martha; Donald Birmingham; Aliquippa; and the Reliance.
The calendar includes historical briefs for each vessel. Thumbnail images of each month and the calendar cover can be viewed on the HSPS web site at: http://www.hspsi.org
About HSPS:
The Historic Sternwheeler Preservation Society (HSPS) is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the heritage and history of authentic sternwheel vessels.
All proceeds from this calendar will benefit the HSPS Vessel Maintenance Fund. The Fund covers the maintenance costs of the vessels under the care of HSPS; currently the sternwheel towboat Barbara H.
How to Order:
Cost is $14.95 per calendar; please add $3 shipping/handling for first calendar, and 50 cents for each additional calendar. Please mail check or money orders (payable to H.S.P.S.) to:
HSPS, Inc.
11 Ashland Cove Road
Vevay, IN 47043
(Selected calendar prints will also be offered on eBay as individual prints. eBay seller ID is "mv_barbara_h").
We're very glad to promote sternwheel history through this unique calendar offer!
Best Regards,
-Capt. Steve Huffman
15 January 2002
Mark Twain Documentary on PBS Television
Part Two of the comprehensive Mark Twain documentary by Ken Burns and Dayton Duncan airs tonight. If you saw Part One last night, you will want to tune in for sure. In case you missed it, you can buy the video at our Amazon Bookshop click here. Also, visit the Twain pages at PBS for great links and information on Twain.
In a side note, Steamboats.com has acquired a new link to Twain information on the Internet: Mark Twain's Riverman Career, by Barbara Schmidt & Dave Thomson. Read Dave Thomson's review of the Ken Burns documentary: click here; Read Dave Thomson's review of the Ken Burns companion book: click here
ACV Bankruptcy - The Full Story
If you are looking for detailed information about American Classic Voyages, Inc. (parent company of the Delta Queen, American Queen and Mississippi Queen), and their Sept. 2001 plunge into bankruptcy, then read this article from the New Orleans Times Picayune: click here.
Passing of Capt. C.W. Stoll
Frank X. Prudent provided the following news:
I'm very sad to report that Capt. C.W. Stoll of Louisville, KY. expired in a Louisville nursing home on December 10, 2001. It is doubtful that without CW there would be a Str. BELLE OF LOUISVILLE today. He was one of the diehard steamboat enthusiast that Judge Marlow Cook tapped to see that the Str. AVALON, which Jefferson County, KY. had just won at a bankruptcy auction in Cincinnati, have steam raised and run as an excursion boat. CW will long be remembered by this scribe and his legions of other friends, and clearly deserves the title of a Renaissance man.
Update on Delta Queen Situation
Here is the latest news from Charles and Pamela Bowen:
Hi folks,
Wanted to let you know that we've just updated the Web site with a new list called "12 Things You Can Do Right Now to Help Save Our Queens."
If you have a chance, we'd really appreciate your taking a look at that -- http://www.saveourqueens.com -- and suggesting any additions, changes, etc. Also, of course, please continue spreading the word among the online steamboaters about the site and the campaign. So far the response has been great. Thank you for that!
By the way, a personal note: We were among the 4.1 million folks cast adrift on the Internet with this week's bankruptcy and closing down of Excite@Home. Right now, we're working at recovering, but if any of you wrote email to us and didn't get a reply, your note probably got lost in The Void. Sorry about that -- write us again, okay? [contact info.] We are not ignoring you. Honest. 8^)
cheers, charlie & pamela
Beloved Queens' Bankruptcy
Anyone concerned with the fate of the Delta Queen, Mississippi Queen and American Queen, please log on to SaveOurQueens.com. The site has up to the minute information, plus find out what you can do to help save the Queens!
(This website and information provided by Charles Bowen, author of "Delta Queen," a novel.)
Hi friends,
Terrible, terrible news from Miami today:
The Delta Queen Steamboat Co.'s parent firm, American Classic Voyages, today filed for bankruptcy protection. It is the latest victim from the dire situation in the cruise business that has resulted from the Sept. 11 terror attacks.
Our Bowen Books site is adding links to all the information we can find on the situation. Come to the site (http://www.bowenbooks.com) and click the link on the main screen for the latest news we've found. And stay in touch -- we'll add to the file as we get new information.
And if you have more information for us to add on this terrible development, please let us know. These are sad days indeed.
Sincerely,
The Bowens
[A note from the webmaster: We pray that the company recovers and that the Queens are saved and back to work soon.]
Highly Recommended Event
Jerry Canavit reports that there will be a Seminar on how to do Steamboat Research Saturday, October 20th - 10:00 AM at Texas A & M University, Bryan, TX.
Alan L. Bates, riverboat master, naval architect, author, and steamboat historian will present a talk, "Resources for Steamboat Study" at the Forsythe Galleries on the campus of Texas A & M University in College Station on Saturday, October 20, 2001. Capt. Bates will speak at 10:00 am. The Forsythe Center Galleries are located in the Memorial Student Center (MSC) at the heart of the TAMU campus.
Write to Jerry Canavit for more information: Email.
03 Oct. 2001
News from the Captain
The remodelers came in and updated Steamboats.com's interiors with this genuine wood paneling and steamboat gingerbread. That's the only new news around here. I was in Bermuda on Sept. 11 when the tragedy occurred. Approximately one hundred people from the Society for American Travel Writers convention were stranded on the island after Hurricane Erin cancelled our original flights and the tragedy cancelled all flights for five more days. The Bermudians love America, especially New York. They were as shocked as we were in the wake of the terrorist attacks. They invited us into their churches, parks and hotels for special prayer services. I've posted some of their prayers for the U.S. at my websites. -Nori
click here for books, thoughts, prayers.
10 July 2001
Words of Wisdom
A friend recently told me a rhyme her mother made up for her school children, but it has a lot to tell us all - old and young:
Life is like a mirror
reflecting what you do
and if you face it smiling
it will smile right back at you.
- Virginia Donovan
30 June 2001
Tigers are Back
Steamboats.com realized recently that the tigers that were normally carried on the server were missing. They were used in a computer art exhibit at a sister site. Anyone who has managed a website knows that sometimes jpgs just disppear. Luckily, the tigers were on a ZIP disk and we easily reloaded them on the steamboat. The tigers are quite colorful - they are the logo of Tiger Balm. If you've ever used Tiber Balm, you will like this steamboat exhibit. We invite you to see the tigers now (it just looks like a red box at first, but give it time to download): click here.
22 June 2001
Passing of John Hartford
Musician John Hartford, who was a licensed riverboat pilot, died on 04 June 2001 in Nashville at age sixty-three. Despite deteriorating health since he was diagnosed with cancer in 1980, Mr. Hartford regularly invited musicians over for bluegrass parties, where he would play violin. In his younger years he worked as a riverboat deckhand, sign painter, disk jockey and commercial artist. In 1970 he helped save the Delta Queen from Congressional legislation. He is also the author of "Steamboat in a Cornfield."
After making his music career in Hollywood in the 1960s and early 70s, Hartford returned to Nashville and to the bluegrass and the riverboat environment he loved, according to an obit in The New York Times. Best known as a banjo player, Hartford also wrote songs (including Glen Campbell's "Gentle on My Mind), recorded twenty-seven albums and won several Grammy Awards. Over his long career, he played with the Dillards, Bray Brothers, Ozark Mountain Trio, Byrds, Stevie Wonder, Johnny Cash, Steve Martin, Joan Baez, Benny Martin, Lester Flatt and many others. Mr. Hartford is survived by his wife and son, both living in Nashville.
13 June 2001
Distress in La Crosse
The American Queen canceled its first scheduled trip to La Cross. Delta Queen Steamboat Co. officials said the boat would have arrived on 12 June, but for "continued high water levels and current: on the Mississippi River. This would have been the first of twelve steamboat visits to La Crosse this year. It's the second straight year that the AQ has canceled its first stop in La Crosse due to high water. The boat will stop in La Crosse as scheduled on 03 July. Steamboats.com comment: Relief from steamboat deprivation is on the way.
To read the entire article, link to La Crosse Tribune.
31 May 2001
Delta Queen Wins Real Steamboat Race
Following is an exclusive report on the event from correspondent Frank X. Prudent:
For those of you who haven't heard, the Str. DELTA QUEEN "took the horns" from the Str. BELLE OF LOUISVILLE during The Great Kentucky Derby Steamboat Race on May 2, 2001. The BELLE was in the lead for all but the last mile of the race; The DELTA QUEEN began to pass the BELLE on the down river leg of the race below Jeff Boat. The BELLE was running a bit hot and the engineers had a hose squirting the port main bearing down. The BELLE just got her certificate the Friday before the race and the crew still was breaking the old gal in for her 2001 season.
Both steamboats were shined and polished for the race. The DQ has a fresh coat of high gloss paint and literally sparkled in the early evening sun shine. Capt. Clarke C. Hawley stated that, "I've never seen her look so good." The BELLE treated everyone to a show with her high pressure engines scapin' through the roof. Truly it was a sight and sound to behold!
09 May 2001
Nettie Jer Wins Online Steamboat Race
The steamboat race was a success, despite a little inclement weather. The Nettie Jer won when the other two boats were lost in the storm. Click here to view the magnificent antler trophy (bottom of page): Award Ceremony.
05 May 2001
The First International Online Steamboat Race is today! click here to see the race
30 March 01
All Systems Normal
It's a special moment here in the pilot house as we allow our engineers to go home and get some rest after ten straight days of sturm und drang to get the steamboat back online. We're hoping to stay on line at least long enough to host the first great American online steamboat race, set to take place on 05 May 01.
28 March 01
Stand by for more Technical Difficulties
The trouble just never ends at Steamboats.com. Just when they had our site back on line and we thought that was too good to be true, we're off line again. This is the latest in a continuing saga of the interplay between Global Internet Solutions, our web host, Network Solutions Inc., the granting agency for the name "steamboats.com" and LOM (little old me). Some of the mistakes have come from GISOL, some from NSI and some from LOM. If LOM had done a better job, perhaps the others would have been easier to work with. The moral of this story is that websites go down and that's the price of doing business on the Internet. Have a nice day and we hope you can read this.
27 March 01
Steamboats.com Hits Another Sandbar
Just when we got back on the air, Steamboats.com ran around of more snafus with Network Solutions. We entered the wrong DNS numbers in our change forms and low and behold we were off the air again for approximately 36 hours. After a trying day yesterday (trying to get the site assigned to the correct network), we are now back on the air.
Hopefully, we will steer clear of future computer sandbars and our site will be up and running 24-seven for months and years to come. These are the hazards of virtual steamboat piloting in the 21st century and we apologize to any who were trying to access our site or send email over the last days during this latest grounding.
24 March 01
Situation Normal All Fouled Up
From Wednesday until Saturday (today) Steamboats.com and Surrealist.org email was dysfunctional. Anyone who wrote to our website got the following message:
Hi. This is the qmail-send program at server110.gisol.com. I'm afraid I wasn't able to deliver your message to the following addresses. This is a permanent error; I've given up. Sorry it didn't work out.
nori@surrealist.org:
Sorry, no mailbox here by that name. (#5.1.1)
--- Below this line is a copy of the message. . . [etc.]
We sincerely apologize if you received one of these messages. My own brother called up and said he'd been trying to email for three days.
The long and short of it is this. My other website, Surrealist.org, went off the air for three days while the network operators upgraded software. During that time, my address @surrealist.org was rejecting letters. But I had forgotten that all my steamboat mail was forwarding to that other address, so that mail was also getting the rejection letters.
The Good News Is . . .
The good news is that during this mail black out, our guestbook was functioning fine. If you wrote a guestbook entry we picked it up and appreciate your inquiries. For anyone who still has a question pending on the bulletin board, you are invited to pose your questions to our steamboat experts ("question steamboat authorities" link) or contact the Steamboat Societies that may direct you to resources link.
We are striving to get more steamboat information on the Internet. We encourage everyone in the steamboat community: if you have good resources, consider how you will archive them for future generations of cyber-steamboat-lovers. One suggestion is that if you have a steamboat library, consider contacting the steamboat book publishers (see below) about reprints. Many steamboat history books are coming back into print with the growing interest in the hobby. Also if you have a web page, please send in the URL for our link collections. This will make it easier to find steamboats and steamboat information on the Internet - click here for contact info.
21 Feb. 01
Latest on the Californa Red-legged Frog
The amphibian that Mark Twain made famous in his leaping frog story once numbered in the millions in California. Now scientists believe there are only 1,000 left, living in creeks and ponds scattered across the sate.
Russ Smith, curator of reptiles and amphibians at the Los Angeles Zoo is hunting for surviving members of the species, to start a breeding program at the zoo. Smith told the Los Angeles Times, "My dream is the first major frog reintroduction program in United States history, which would include breeding stock, and a head start program at the zoo, where we'd raise tadpoles for a year then release them in areas where they used to be found."
The future frogs have a good home, too: Riverside County's 51,000 acre Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve.
05 Feb. 2001
Garmatz Skull & Crossbones Letter
Read Rep. Edward A. Garmatz's infamous letter to the U.S. House of Representatives condeming the Delta Queen and warning that if the boat sinks "blood will be on the congress." The letter is an important part of the campaign to save the Delta Queen, where Greene Line Steamers refused to pay a bribe to Rep. Garmatz in exchange for the needed legal exemption. Read letter: link here.
04 Feb. 2001
How Steamboats Compete
A steamboat race is supposed to be a democratic show of sportsmanship, but sometimes the captain and crew take things a little too personally. Note this excerpt from the Delta Queen's newsletter, "The Paddlewheeler":
Headline:
The Delta Queen Is Victorious!
The Golden Antlers Return to the 70-Year-Old Monarch
Following Her Triumph Over the Belle of Louisville
. . . This year's victory was a personal one for her crew, who in true Steamboatin' tradition, were still smarting after two years of defeat by what, in equally true Steamboatin' tradition, were undoubtedly some underhanded tricks perpetrated by the Belle. Last year, for example, the Delta Queen's path to the race course was blocked by a barge tow, while the Belle, which pulled away before the starting gun was fired, had the clear, slack water channel.
1995's defeat was suffered in what, the Delta Queen's crew was certain, was an unfair decision by the hometown judges. The Delta Queen's bow passed under the finish line first. Being the good sports that they are, they slowed down so as not to give the Belle of Louisville too much of a beating. But the judges decided the victor should be the boat whose stern passed the line first, and the Belle squeaked ahead of the Queen to win the antlers.
Delta Queen supporters were heard to say things like: "We got robbed!" . . . "The Belle will do anything to win a race." Now now. At least it's just a game.
20 Dec. 2000
Another Steamboat History Book Back in Print
Thrills of the Historic Ohio River, by Frank Grayson, is now back in print. Link to the website for more info.: Thrills
20 Dec. 2000
Steamboats.com Sets Date for First Online Steamboat Race
A race is planned at this website, 05 May 2001, between three virtual vessels: Steamboats.com, Steamboats.net and Steamboats.org. Read a Media Release for more information.
23 Nov. 2000 - Thanksgiving
Attitude of Gratitude
Is this a great country, or what?
19 Nov. 00
Ahoy Steamboat Lovers!
Marhbet Productions proudly announces the release of a new book about early steamboating on the Missouri River.
Based on never before published material, "For Wood and Water" documents the life and times aboard Missouri River steamboats in the 1840's.
"For Wood and Water" puts the reader into the pilothouse with Captain Joseph A. Sire as he takes the steamboats Trapper, Omega, Nimrod and General Brooke from St. Louis, Missouri to Fort Union, Dakota Territory, in the years 1841 through 1846. Discover the day-to-day operation of a steamboat and the difficulties in navigating the muddy Missouri River.
The suggested retail price for "For Wood and Water" is $12.95 and is available to book retailers at the wholesale cost of $7.50 per copy plus shipping and handling. Invoice will be included in shipment.
Send orders to:
Marhbet Productions
2645 Brinkman Road
Villa Ridge, Missouri 63089-2422
28 Oct. 00
Welcome SATW!
Steamboats.com and Surrealist.org welcome visitors from the 2000 SATW convention who received a business card and an invitation to visit the sites. This virtual steamboat that has been plying the Internet waterways since 1998. We invite you to take the Steamboat Tour by following the links at each tour stop. [Editor's note: this feature is offline.]
This year the SATW convention was held in Cardiff, Wales, 20 - 26 Oct. For those who don't know what the SATW is, it stands for "Society for American Travel Writers." Briefly, it's a fellowship of travel writers, photographers, editors, and guidebook writers, who produce travel books and articles that help people decide where to go for their vacations. Every year the SATW holds its general convention in an exotic country (or other destination, such as a cruise ship). The convention will take place in Bermuda in 2001 and Hawaii in 2002. Along with the writers, the society also includes the people who represent travel destinations.
Where ever the travel writers converge, abundant free publicity follows, in the form of colorful articles describing the destination. At the closing night of our convention in Wales, the U.K. tourist ministers quipped that SATW really stands for "Send American Tourists to Wales."
16 Oct. 00
Re Release of Classic Steamboat Sounds
Russ Ryles has done it! Made the classic sounds of the Belle of Louisville (formerly the Avalon) and her whistle, bells, engines, and more plus twelve classic tunes played on her "steam piano" available to all. This newly released CD is based on a 1961 recording with Clark C. (Doc) Hawley at the keyboard.
Individual copies available at $15.99 each plus $3.50 for shipment by priority mail or $1.50 for slower first class service. For details, log on to Russ Ryles' Steamboat site.
15 Oct. 00
Off the Air Again
Steamboats.com hit rough waters again. This time (for some reason known only to God and His angels) our index.html disintegrated and vanished. When one of our friends alerted us to this situation, we replaced the index.html and everything was working again. We apologize for any inconvenience . . .
07 Oct. 00
Off the Air Again
Steamboats.com was off the air again Oct. 5 - 6. This happened because we switched servers and there was a little lag time in getting the domain transferred. It was similar to being in dry dock. Our mail systems were also down and some of our test messages to anything@steamboats.com were returned undeliverable. If you tried to write to us and your letter was returned, please try again now.
The new server has all kinds of new gadgets. For example, we can now check to see how many people visit and where they go. This is a great feature. Today, our number one, most visited page is the index.html, followed by the museum and link pages.
29 Sept. 00
Sacramento Reads!
Steamboats.com and the Steamboats Parenting Workshop welcome visitors who received flyers about our site at the Sacramaento Reads book festival. Visit our Parenting Workshop and browse around the site. Bring your kids with you on this river journey down the Internet waterways.
21 Sept. 00
First Steamboat Controversy
Ever wonder who built the first steamboat? You will be surprised at how complicated the answer is. Our latest museum exhibit: Answers to "Who built the first steamboat?"
18 Sept. 00
History of Daniel's Steamboat Line Now Online
One researcher has taken the plunge to document his family's history with steamboats. There is much work to be done in this area, so we applaud his efforts and invite our visitors to share in this rewarding work: link to Daniel's Steamboat Line.
12 Sept. 00
Stanley the Steamboat of Sacramento
I've added a new chapter to my children's book, making a total of two chapters so far. I will present the new version of Stanley the Steamboat Sept. 30 on the Children's Book Panel at Sacramento Reads book festival. You can read Stanley the Steamboat by linking to the manuscript at this site.
08 September 00
Web Hosting More Difficult than it Looks
when a new steamboat site opened up on the same web farm as steamboats.com, it took over our airspace temporarily this morning. The webmasters wrote emails to each other trying to figure out what happened. Steamboats.com and SteamboatYouthHockey.com had switched index pages. Plus, we were receiving their email.
This proves that strange things can happen on the Internet. This moring the engineering crew replaced the index page and Steamboats.com was back on the air. The other webmaster contacted our web host who assigned them a new username.
All is well again on the Internet waterways. Did we overreact? YES. It was like watching two steamboats collide in the fog. Two objects cannot occupy the same space at the same time.
28 August 00
Be careful what you joke about, because it can come true
This entry is poof of that. We made fun of those sites going off the air (see 09 Feb. article at the bottom of the page). Well, we're sorry to report that our sites were off the air for a few hours today and it wasn't funny at all! We apologize to anyone who visited and found "Error 403 forbidden / you are forbidden from accessing this site." Oy. We try to take these things with a sense of humor, because our service provider has let our sites go off the air about once a week over the summer. The question here with the crew is, are we going to we make like rats and abaondon a sinking ship? Or should we stick with the company & hope they get it together? Anyway, if you tried to visit and found Error 403, please accept our apologies.
17 August 00
Gore, Lieberman To Tour America's Heartland By Riverboat
Steamboats.com had nothing to do with this (honest!), but according to an official Al Gore 2000 press release, Al Gore and Joe Lieberman are taking a four-day riverboat ride to campaign in communities in four states along the Mississippi River. They will board the Mark Twain Riverboat on Friday morning August 18 in La Crosse, Wisconsin, and cruise 400 miles to their destination, Hannibal, Missouri.
The Mark Twain, built in 1964 at Dubuque Boiler and Boatworks, is 120 feet long and can accommodate 400 passengers. The boat has been a feature of the Hannibal, Missouri, riverfront for more than twenty years. Link here for the full press release, dated 10 August 00.
12 July 00
New wallpaper installed at Steamboats.com. We hope you enjoy the views as we paddle down the Internet riverways. Along with the fixins we've also updated the Steamboat Bookstore. So if you've been there lately, be sure to hit "reload." The books available in the Steamboat aisle would answer at least 50 percent of the questions we receive on the guestbook (link to bookshop). Until someone puts the steamboat reference books on a disk, it's only available the old fashioned way. Luckily, a few of the really good books are still in print -- and there's a great one about steamboat accidents that just went back into print (see below).
We find that people are fascinated with riverboat accidents -- and as this book proves, there were many and they were only too common. Learn all the gory details, including the victims' names, professions, and family relations, in news coverage. The woodcuttings reveal the often abusive and brutal union of humans and early machines.
Sun deck now open to virtual passengers. Go there now: click here.
More steamboat book news!
Lloyd's Steamboat Directory and Disasters on the Western Waters
by James T. Lloyd
Lloyd's Steamboat Directory and Disasters on the Western Waters was first published in 1856. This historic work is now back in print, by Land Yacht Press. Read more about it in the Steamboat Bookshop or buy it now for $25 (+ s & h) through Amazon.com or from the publisher (email publisher).
Steamboat! The Story of Captain Blanche Leathers
By Judith Heide Gilliland
Illustrated by Holly Meade
From Kirkus Reviews: Gilliland tells the tale of the Mississippi's first licensed woman steamboat captain . . . as a celebration of the rewards of years-long, focused concentration on a goal. Born in 1860, Blanche fixes on her chosen career at 12, later marries the captain of the Natchez, and persuades him to teach her all that a captain needs to know about the river's turns and currents, moods and hidden hazards.
Steamboats Review: Thank you Cap'n Gilliland for introducing steamboats to girls aged six to nine. Unless they grow up in Natchez, or someplace where steamboats congregate, many girls would never become interested in steamboats. We believe it's a subject all kids should know about because steamboats are a unique symbol of American culture.
Buy it now for $11.86 + s & h
Internet World 2000
We welcome Internet visitors who received a flyer or business card at the recent Internet World conference at the Los Angeles Convention Center, April 5-7. Link to our products and services page (click here) to learn more about what we offer. We think you'll enjoy your tour of the boat and remember: steamboats are fast becoming some Americans' number one concern -- especially since their appearance on the .com scene (click here for our research center). We are confident these facts contribute to our overall success as an American history site. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and to some of us, steamboats are counted among the most beautiful things on earth. It's true, just take our word for it, there are a lot of us out here who love these beautiful old boats (click here to see our guestbook entries from the last few months).
Steamboat Relic Acquisition
Steamboats.com has acquired a vintage Greene Line Steamers pin from E-bay (pictured here). Everyone else, eat your hearts out. We will never sell it! Our wholehearted thanks go out to Steve Huffman for alerting us to the availability of this amazing piece of history. We estimate that the pin dates back to the 1950s. Click on the pin to learn more about the history of Greene Line Steamers. Click here to see a silver Delta Queen charm.
Steamboats.com was shut down for three hours on Feb. 9, 2000 by computer hackers. Thousands of people emailed and called our office frantically trying to find us. (not!)
