Topic starter
30/05/2008 2:36 pm
Greetings From New Orleans ,
This is actually Part II of of my first posting of , " What would THEY be doing now " , but this posting poses the question , what would YOU be doing then ?? Now I can't speak for anyone else but the premise of this is to give one and all the opportunity to think and hopfully post what they would or have hoped to do to survive under those conditions in those early days . I for one , would be doing exactly what I am doing now , but not on ships that come up the Mississippi River but piloting the steamboaats that ply this same river but under a radically different set of circumstances and regulations . Just food for thought folks and looking forward to seeing YOUR thoughts on the matter .
Smoothe Sailing !
Ted Davisson
30/05/2008 4:22 pm
Reckon I'd have to decide exactly when "THEN" was. I'd like to have seen the Mississippi River before the crush of the white man. But I would have also liked to have been flatboating and keelboating before steam. However, the early years of that new and developing technology, post 1811, must have been wonderfully exciting to have witnessed.
Pre-Civil War days, after the Western steamboat reached its zenith, would have especially appealed to me. My preference would have been a fast packet running the Cincinnati-New Orleans trade. That terrible war ruined steamboating with the rapid advance of technology of another sort-- railroads.
Post war days with the megaboats like the J.M. WHITE, RE LEE, and the NATCHEZ series would have been a thrill to see and have been a part of.
And I could go on, but being a part of steamboating in any age would have its own personal appeal.
My job? Why Master, Mate, Pilot, or owner, of course.
30/05/2008 4:48 pm
Since I do interpretive history presentations, I'd like to think that in another time I could have been involved with the short trade steamers, perhaps a master or clerk like the character I portray. In truth, because of my poor vision I would probably have ended up as a blind begger.
01/06/2008 12:13 am
I'd be hanging with the gamblers and fancy ladies and hoping a piano was available to add a little atmosphere to the social scene of whatever era - any era - I had the fortune of landing in. I guess like Sam, I'd pick the grand steamers of the post-war times.
01/06/2008 11:11 am
Would like to own a, or a couple of the "Den's of Iniquity" so often mentioned when speaking of river towns or river life.
02/06/2008 2:17 pm
You know Ted, I actually considered this when I was working aboard the MQ. I'd probably be involved in photography just like I am today, but owning "The" bar in Natchez and actually knowing people like of Tom Fink and Samuel Clemens has often crossed my mind.