Festival of Riverboats New Boats!

The CLYDE..."that boat ain't no good"

The other day I ran across an article from the WJ in 1894........the article said that the Anchor Line had just taken the CLYDE on charter and some of the roustabouts were taking a tour of the CLYDE.......one of them said "this boat ain't no good.... it ain't got no St. Charles." The article went on to explain that the CLYDE had different kind of boilers and there was no space under them for the rousters to crawl in when the weather turned cold. That space was known to the deck crew as the "St. Charles", no doubt a reference to the fancy New Orleans hotel of that name.
I'm sure Shipyard Sam's CLYDE will be "the hit of the party", especially after the crew at the Rabbit Hash Shipyard work their magic.

CLYDE.

Love to read the story about the "Big CLYDE." when the Anchor Line chartered her... a new one on me. She lasted until my birth month and year - October 1941 - and just down the Tennessee River at Florence, Alabama from where I spent seven delightful year aboard the SUN*FISH at Decatur.

"L'il CLYDE." is, as the old rousters used to say, "a workhouse boat", but the RHSH crew has been hard-at getting her ready for the Looieville celebration next month. Here's a peek at what's happening back, behind the transom....

The Clyde in Louisville

Will The CLYDE, and other boats, be in Louisville for the whole festival?
ML

Good question and also, where will these boats be docked?

According to Aaron Richardson, the one co-ordinating the "industry boats", including the CLYDE., we're going to be on the front row of the celebration and remain there for the duration.

Boat Display Diagram

Attached is the official diagram of where the boats will be displayed. On display will be the J.S.LEWIS, W.P.SYNDER,JR. RONAL LOUGHMILLER (ACBL 5,000 hp towboat), buoy tender OSAGE, CLYDE, ELIZABETH LEA, ANNA MARIE, police and fire boats.
You can thank River Works Discovery..an educational organization sponsored by the river industry..for putting on this display.

Good To Know

Great to know! Where did you find that?
ML

Sigh! Poor little MISS BLUE. Don't get no mention and don't get no respect. Of course she is little at 22 feet and certainly not a new boat, having been built in 1910, but she is the ONLY steam powered boat in the display. She's shown in Jimmy's diagram as being rafted up with the CLYDE. I'd post her photo with Travis at the helm, John Fryant and Jimmy Reising navigators and Kenny Howe in the stern sheets but the link has gone away. Cap'n Walnut.

CLYDE. Fresh From Rabbit Hash Yard.

Here's the CLYDE. on display at the Louisville festivities, this past week, where she held her own as a popular attraction. CLYDE. also became the meeting place for over 100 selected guests who came aboard to get a closer look, hang out, and have a front row set for the races and fireworks.

The crew at the Rabbit Hash Shipyard, Hogan Creek Division, worked overtime getting the Capt. Alan Bate's-inspired authentic steamboat replica ready for the run from Aurora, IN to Looieville and back. What great trips! Special thanks goes to James Cutter, paddlewheel mechanic, and Ed "Weasel" Smither, painter, for their valuable contributions getting the "Rafter" CLYDE. ready, in time, for the show.

The crew of the CLYDE. included:
Captain Donald J. Sanders, Master
Phillip Johnson, Chief Engineer
Aaron Richardson, Mate
Jonathan Hartford Sanders, Cub Pilot
Captain Pete O'Connell, Pilot
Tom "Captain Walnut" Schiffer, Steersman
John Schiffer, Watchman

CLYDE. Upbound at Carrollton, Kentucky.

Here's a link to Capt. Steve Huffman's video of the CLYDE. passing Carrollton, Kentucky where the Kentucky River meets the Ohio.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-6mt0MbLi0

Shipyard Sam;33653 wrote:

The crew of the CLYDE. included:
Captain Donald J. Sanders, Master
Phillip Johnson, Chief Engineer
Aaron Richardson, Mate
Jonathan Hartford Sanders, Cub Pilot
Captain Pete O'Connell, Pilot
Tom "Captain Walnut" Schiffer, Steersman
John Schiffer, Watchman

Pretty impressive crew! I guess that I could have signed on as a clerk.

Absolutely...... Clerk it is.

Grand Pa Sanders? The real rafter CLYDE at work on the Upper Miss.