Diamond Lady pictures from April 2010.

Very sad, indeed. And thelonger it goes on, the slimmer the chances someone will buy her and put her back in service.

DL pix

Thanks for posting those John. As we discussed at River Ramblings, word was out that the DL had been taken overseas and dismantled. Happily that isn't so, although she doesn't look so great now. But she is certainly in better shape than the MQ. I guess she's been in McKellar Lake for almost 9 years now, as it seems that Bob Reynolds and I found her in November of my first year of retirement, which was 2002. I wonder if anyone has shown any interest in her, other than Alan Bernstein when he was deciding between the DL and the EMERALD LADY to become the BELLE OF CINCINNATI.
I'd like to point out the window setup - Iowa's original riverboat gaming laws specified that no more than 30% of the deck space could be used for gambling. So notice that the main deck has some small windows at the top of the bulkheads. This was the gaming floor. The second deck housed the elegant dining room, and the third deck had a lounge and the entertainment. During the course of her gambling career in various states, the entire interior was gutted and made into gambling space. But windows were plentiful on the top decks since there was no need to keep gamblers' eyes away from the machines, since they were only on the main deck.

1. Portside.
2. Head deck looking up at 2nd/3rd decks.
3. Second deck bar.

1. Second deck interior forward to aft view.
2. Second deck forward exterior.
3. Third deck forward exterior.

Great pictures! Post more if you got em! Is that monkey rudders on her? I wouldn't have expected to see those considering the wheel isn't the primary propulsion.

and more...no monkey rudders, that is a float behind the boat.

and more Diamond Lady pics...
1. Paddlewheel.
2. Fourth deck looking forward.
3. Fourth deck looking aft from stbd. bridgewing.

1. Stbd. side of pilothouse from stbd. wing.
2. Port wing controls.
3. Bell and front of pilothouse.

first pic. in last set was the port side of the pilothouse from the port wing.

1. Close up of bell.
2. View from inside pilothouse.
3. Port bow view.

1. Starboard quarter.
2. Landing stage being used as part of marina gangway.
3. Stern.

the DIAMOND LADY in the beginning

To contrast her current state and to show those who may not be familiar with her, here are 3 shots from the very beginning March 1991.
1) In late March at the Oneida Ave. landing (where the QUEENS docked), prior to assuming her spot at the Bettendorf landing.
2) upbound, taken from the Centennial Bridge. That's the RI Armory, since torn down, and the site of the RI casino boat next to it. Illinois gambling started in '92.
3) The DIAMOND LADY entering L&D 15. The Government Bridge and the Clocktower Building, RI District Corps headquarters, are in the background. And in the right foreground is the late great PRESIDENT heading out on one of her trips.

Rats - the pix posted 3 -2 -1 order for some reason.

Which one of these boats was in Sioux City, IA? I remember being there and seeing a boat and saying...."thats exactly like the new Belle of Cincinnati." So it would have still been there after Alan got the BoC, whether it was operating or not I don't know.

Capt. John,

So how are you doin on that lottery?

This is the best possible vessel for conversion into an overnight boat out there available today. Why, you ask?

She is the best looking faux steamboat
She is still in good enough shape to buy cheap and renovate
She could be redone and 50% of the vessel renewed, which would allow for USCG rules to be converted to overnight...not to mention SOLAS rules met (which shouldn't apply on the river...but as we all know do)
She could land at any landing on the rivers and cause a stir because of her steamboaty beauty.
She would be an easy sell for travel agents
She could be run by river people as a riverboat because she already is one!

Nuff said?

Travis

Phillip,

Neither one!

The Sioux City boat was a little different...she was larger. She was built to be the GOLDEN LADY. This operation never happened and she was sold form the shipyard to operators in Peoria, IL who renamed her PAR-A-DICE. When she was replaced by a modern cruise shippy looking thing, she was sold to Argosy and moved to Sioux City and renamed ARGOSY V. Last I saw her she was at Alton, IL in 2005.

I was told she was cut down to a barge and moved to South America. I have also heard she is a quarters barge in the Netherlands. Anyone know for sure what happened to her? She was my pick for the best conversion to an overnight boat out there...with her gone, the DIAMOND LADY is now!

Travis

First Gamlin' Boat

The DIAMOND LADY was my first gamlin' boat. The legendary Captain Ken Murphy was the "big" Captain. I was hired as a Mate, and when Chief Mate Bobby Duncan left for the SILVER EAGLE, I took his place. Captain Ken left for a while to recover from an illness, and I took over for him. A fellow named John Hartford came down from the TWILIGHT and steered for me. He held the straightest rudder of anyone I ever saw steer the LADY. He must have had some experience hand-steering a boat.

Though the DL and the EL looked exactly alike, except for the color of the trim, they were not the same boat in that the DL had a better "feeling" about her. Besides the DELTA QUEEN, the DL was my favorite boat of all times (BoL excluded). It must have been the good vibes created by Captain Ken and the exceptional crew of that fantastic boat. The EL did not have the same feeling-- and I was the Captain of her, too, in Biloxi.

And, yes, the DL had slot machines on the Texas Deck.

Fantastic photos. Thanks all. Who owns the boat now?

Hey Judy, those are some great pics of the Diamond Lady, do you have anymore? I was on her from the time she came to Bettendorf until just a short time before she left for Biloxi. I went to work on the Par-a-Dice (Golden Lady) in Peoria then. I worked for a short time on the Emerald Lady in the winter of '91-'92.

Those pics bring back great memories. I just wish I had more pics of her from back then, but we were busy working and I was too young to realize how much those pics would mean to me in the future. If you have anymore, I would love to see them.

John

Hey Capt,

You're right about the slots on the third deck, there was a lounge (sitting area) forward and a lounge (live entertainment) aft, but the middle section of the third deck had a bar and slot machines. The main deck was mainly table games and some slots.

There was only one difference between the Diamond and Emerald Ladies besides the color of the pilothouse roof (DL roof was gray while the EL roof was emerald green). The only other difference was the handrails on the second and third decks. The DL had spade shapes cut into the rails while the EL had hearts. The Golden Lady (Par-a-Dice) was 27 feet longer and had Clubs in the rails.

There is a battle going on in court right now between the owner and the owner of the previous fleet that caused all the damage apparent in the photos. The owner of the marina it is fleeted in now will probably end up owning it after the court case is settled because of unpaid fleeting charges...it's a messy situation. If the marina owner ends up with the boat, he told me he wants to keep it at the marina and build apartments on it...

Have to wait and see how this saga turns out. Sad that the first and (in my opinion) prettiest casino boat has come to this place.

Hey Travis,

It was good to meet you at the River Ramblers weekend. No, haven't had any luck yet with the lottery. As we discussed at Kingfish, the Diamond Lady would make a great overnight boat with a few modifications. I'll be seeking your advice if I ever have the money to make those plans reality.

John

DL pix

Yes, I have more, but I'm surprised how few I have. I suspect there are more stashed somewhere else. For instance, I know I have pictures from the Centennial Bridge when they staged the PREZ, DL, and Casino RI together for Michael Blaser's painting, and I didn't see those. I'll look later tonight for more. A question about the DL being at Oneida: when the PREZ came up, they stopped above Buffalo in order to make a daylight entrance into Davenport. Why was the DL at Oneida rather than at Bettendorf? Was the Bettendorf landing not ready yet, or was it easier to do media stuff at Oneida?
Wasn't Vanna White on the first DL trip? Bernie Goldstein and John Connelly were modern day PT Barnums, and Bernie got the best of Connelly on Opening Day. The DL went out at 7AM I think, and beat the PREZ as the first gambling boat by an hour or so.

Yes, Vanna White and an actor from the show "Dallas" (I don't recall his name) were on the first night.

If I remember correctly, we were at Oneida prior to opening day because the Bettendorf landing wasn't quite ready. We were at Bettendorf for the April 1st opening, but I don't recall how long we were at Oneida before that. The original landing barge at Bettendorf was only temporary. The "Lucky Seven" landing barge was being completed at Buffalo and replaced the smaller landing shortly after opening. I believe the original barge was then used for the Emerald Lady, but my memory is a bit fuzzy on that.

I would love to see any pics you have from those early days of gambling boats, of both the Diamond Lady and/or President. I was on the Diamond Lady when we (DL, Prez and Casino RI) lined up below the Centennial (for the painting) and ran up river together, when the Quad Cities were proclaimed the "Riverboat Gambling Capital of the World". Those were great times, but I didn't realize back then how short lived they were going to be. It was always so cool on our return from a daylong trip to Muscatine, we would usually overtake the President somewhere below the Crescent R.R. bridge. In 1992 after the Casino RI began operations, you would have all three casinos meeting, I would love to see that again.

Anyhow, Judy, whatever pics you have, please post them...I can't wait to see them. We're just about six months from the 20th anniversary of riverboat gambling, hard to believe.