Topic starter
19/02/2009 2:34 am
Hey all,
Keith Norrington was very kind to give me a set of pictures he found in the collection of the late Captain C. W. Stoll of the old BORDER STAR.
These show one of 4 known Dubuque Boat and Boiler built hydraulic sternwheelers. We have discussed these vessels at great length over the years on the boards, so I won't bore you all with the details of the uniqueness of the drivetrain of the vessels.
This vessel was built in 1969 as the BORDER STAR and was renamed the BONNIE BELLE in 1978. In 1995 she was renamed ARAWANNA BELLE, in 1999 the COCOA BELLE, and in 2004 the MAGNOLIA BELLE, the name she carries to this day.
The purpose of these historic pictures on the 19th of May 1975 is the principal members of the Belle of Louisville Operating Board looking over the vessel as a possible sister-boat to the BELLE OF LOUISVILLE. In these pictures you will see W. Clyde Glass, Chairman of the Board, Neil Whitehead (Board Member) and Captain C.W. Stoll (Board Member and part-time Pilot of the BELLE OF LOUISVILLE). In the end they do not buy the vessel. The vessel had been broken into at her landing below the Gay Street Bridge in Knoxville, TN. days before their inspection....hence the rather messy interior shots.
When this inspection was made the vessels COI listed Jack Trotter as the vessels owner.
Here are the questions I have about this set of pictures....anyone with answers feel free to chime in!
Since the JULIA BELLE SWAIN was in the Kentucky Derby Festival Great Steamboat Race just 2 weeks before, Did Captain Dennis Trone have anything to do with the inspection of the BORDER STAR (as he designed and built her)? Was Captain Trone selling the boat for Mr. Trotter (Captain Trone ended up taking her to Chattanooga, TN that summer and later back to Knoxville when he sold the boat to Capt. Lloyd G. Poore who renamed her BONNIE BELLE (Bonnie after his wife and Belle after his mother))? Since it isn't showing in the picture, did Captain Dennis Trone add the air-operated steam whistle set (built by Harry Schell) to her while he owned her? Did Captain Trone add the formal pitman arms to the paddlewheel (as they are not in thises pics and no earlier known picture of the boat)?
Many of you know I have had a love affair with this vessel for several years...hence my many questions here!
If you don't have any answers, feel free to look, save, and comment!
Thanks,
~Travis~
Topic starter
19/02/2009 2:37 am
Here are more of the set...enjoy! There will be more coming!
Topic starter
19/02/2009 2:54 am
Sorry,
It seems I can't upload anymore of the pictures today. I will try and upload more at another time for you! These are really fascinating pictures and I look forward to sharing the rest of the set!
~Travis~
Topic starter
19/02/2009 2:57 am
Perhaps it was my fault, as they seem to be loading now! Thanks again Keith for giving these to me to share!
Topic starter
19/02/2009 3:02 am
A short story which may explain some of my fascination with this boat. My mother was in Jewish Hospital here in Louisville recovering from hand surgery when I saw the boat on the TV in her room. The News anchor on the 6pm news said her new name was to be BONNIE BELLE and interviewed Capt Lloyd Poore the new owner. Being a river fan, I recognised the landing in the picture was in Louisville and ran to the landing to see her! what a 12 year old will do to satisfy their riverboating wanderlust! I thought she was just as pretty as the JULIA BELLE SWAIN and resigned to have her when I grew up. Well, I guess I haven't grown up yet!
Topic starter
19/02/2009 3:04 am
Here are some more of the set! You will notice the kitchen...it is interesting to note most of the appliances in this picture set are still aboard her today, in 2009!
Topic starter
19/02/2009 3:07 am
Here we see the port side of the double-acting hydraulic rams which operate the paddlewheel in the same way as recriprocating steam engines did in the heyday of steam.
Topic starter
19/02/2009 3:10 am
This is the end of the set. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have. I have several more pictures of the boat under some of her later names and if anyone wants to see more of her, let me know. I will be glad to post more!
~Travis~
19/02/2009 5:24 pm
Travis,
These are great photos, thanks for sharing them!
19/02/2009 9:20 pm
Ohhhhh that boat! Thanks for sharing Travis. She will always have a very special place in my heart as well. I'd love to have copies of all of those for my files Travis if there is anyway to reproduce them. I'd be happy to pay for them.
Aaron
19/02/2009 9:59 pm
Travis, what was the fourth Trone boat with pitman drive? I know of the BORDER STAR, the JONATHAN PADELFORD, and the TALISMAN. What was the other one, and where is she?
Topic starter
20/02/2009 12:26 am
Bob,
The other one was the COPY CAT...no one knows what happened to her. Last I heard of her she was in the Bahamas. I believe there was a picture of her in a 1978 S&D Reflector mentioning she was in the Bahamas.
There could have been one more hydraulic boat...I believe the JAMESTOWN QUEEN was a hydraulic ram boat, too.
Anyone have pictures of her we can prove that theory by?
~Travis~
Topic starter
20/02/2009 12:29 am
Aaron,
Feel free to reproduce them off here...or if you want, I can email you the high res copies when I am home over the weekend.
~Travis~
20/02/2009 1:14 am
Ran in Cincinnati
When did Captains Tony Siebert and Steve Glaza operate the BONNIE BELLE in the Cincinnati harbor? I went aboard to see Tony, that summer, and met Captain Steve never realizing he would one day be my Senior Captain on the GVI on the mighty Fox River in Elgin, IL.
Two of my favorite river buds were decking on the BB for Tony and Steve: Aaron and Frank Jones. Frankie earned his Unlimited Tonnage Mate's ticket on the GVII and is presently the Bridge Mate on the Belterra Casino Boat near Florence, Indiana; just about 22 miles downstream from the Rabbit Hash Shipyard.
20/02/2009 2:05 am
The Star of Jamestown, Cumberland Queen, Jamestown Queen did have hydraulic pitmans. All those names rotated back and forth during a very short time. I have lots of pictures to prove it, too many !! I unfortunatily had a very intimate relationship with the vessel. The boat probably holds some kind of record for travising the Upper Cumberland River, at least three times all the way up, over Wolf Creek Dam into Lake Cumberland, then to Jamestown and three times back out. It was really quite an experience but also is why I have so many grey hairs. Jamestown is over 100 miles above the head of navigation at Celina, TN.
20/02/2009 2:08 am
Travis,
In the picture here, it looks like the Copy Cat is really rollin' some wheel. When we were on our way up to Tall Stacks, I remember passing the Magnolia Belle with incredible ease because she was only doing a couple miles an hour at best. I remember us joking to them that they should take their roof flags down to reduce drag. I know they had been having some mechanical troubles, but how fast could these vessels go?
Topic starter
20/02/2009 2:19 am
Care to share any of them with us? What ever happened to that boat? Where is she now? I know a couple of people who would love to know....including myself!
Topic starter
20/02/2009 2:23 am
When they are in trim and running to their specifications, they could achieve up to 8 mph in calm water. Timing of the hydraulic rams is the biggest part to their success, and the hardest thing to achieve. The MAGNOLIA BELLE is a great old boat which has recieved alot of attention in the last couple of years...she can definately do alot better than she was back in 2006. I believe she was having multiple problems back then, the least of which was a failing hydraulic pump. I know towards the end of 2007 she was running much better...albeit downstream. We were averaging over 7 below John T. Meyer lock.
20/02/2009 2:39 am
I'm not as computer smart as some of you, never could get them to post. I'll dig in my "dusty boxes" and send. The last time I saw the boat it was being used as a bar-snack shop at a marina just above Old Hickory lock. I'll try to find out more . In addition to the names the Webb Corp. gave the boat it was known as the ISLAND QUEEN ( Capt. Jim Cross) and the MAGNOLIA BLOSSOM. Until it got a bow thruster it was a mean rascal to handle at slow speeds ! It holds another dubious record of sorts, at the 1992 Tall Stacks it was hit by a hot air ballon.
20/02/2009 4:48 am
Did one of those boats operate in Toledo, Ohio for a season or two in the early to mid 80's?
20/02/2009 11:33 am
Hey Sam,
The BB came to town early in '93 (April or May) and stayed until labor day. I had known Tony for years prior having ridden with Tony on the old Chaperon/Funliner at B and B Riverboats. Once I found out Tony was on BB as Captain I applied for the second deckhand job. Both Tony and Steve where excellent teachers for me as a "green" deckhand. Met alot of great people working on the boat including Frank. We did some great short distance tramping with the boat too, up to Ripley and Augusta and down to Aurora for different festivals. BONNIE was a great little boat, despite her lake of get up and go. I also had hopes like Travis that one day she might be mine but that darn thing called capital never has presented itself. She'll always be my favorite diesel sternwheeler and I've got memories of her that I hope I won't soon forget. Tell everyone down at the Shipyard we hope to catch up with them all soon.
Aaron
20/02/2009 1:41 pm
Capt. Jim it was the Border Star/Bonnie Belle. Lloyd Poore was in very poor health and desperate to sell the boat. A group of slick talkers from Toledo conned Lloyd into a bad deal. The upper works had to be removed near Chicago to get out into the lake and then be re-assembled. The Toledo bunch failed and it turned out they had liens from the Chicago work, Lloyd took a real hit. Then somehow the boat got to Florida.
20/02/2009 1:44 pm
Jim, Yes the Border Star/Bonnie Belle went to Toledo as the Arawanna Belle.
20/02/2009 2:00 pm
Mystery Dubuque Boat & Boilerworks boat?
Ok, maybe Travis or Bill can solve this mystery for me. Now and then I get promotional emails from a Michael LaValle stating:
"The refurbished Jon Anderson White (formerly the LADY D) is now ready to operate again on the Des Moines River at Des Moines. It was known as the first boat to pair a diesel motor via hydraulics to a paddlewheel according to 1967 newspaper article."
He doesn't actually say "hydraulic pitmans", so maybe this was using regular hydraulic "motors" to turn the wheel. But at the same time, if this was a 1967 Trone design, then perhaps it was the first hydraulic pitman boat ??
I have replied to these emails to get more info, but I never get a response.
20/02/2009 2:07 pm
Wasn't there a Dubuque boat named LADY D. that operated at Galena, IL on the Galena (Fevre) River? A dim memory that maybe someone can clarify.
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