Surviving Western River Style Steam Engines

steam machinery

MISSISSIPPI III and GEN. JOHN NEWTON owned by New Orleans Steamboat Co.
PRESIDENT remains in southern Illinois field
GEO. M. VERITY as museum in Keokuk
W.P. SNYDER as museum in Marietta
MATEUR (EFFIE AFFTON restaurant) stored somewhere on the Illinois River
KENNEDY's on AMERICAN QUEEN
DELTA QUEEN
LONE STAR
come to mind offhand at midnight in Ft. Myers Florida...

The "Effie Afton" is unused and berthed at the Hamm's Holiday Marina in Chillicothe, Il, I believe.

Effie and friends

Are the other 3 boats: the TG Gerow, the Casino RI,and the Ockerson also at that marina Bob?

The last existing set of Frisbie engines are on display at the Lock # 34 River Museum at Chilo, Ohio. These are from the Str. Wakerobin

The DELTA KING engines are on the Western Rivers now. One is aboard the DELTA QUEEN and the other is in storage.

Somewhere I heard the APOLLO II's engines are in Marietta, OH now. Is this true?

The Str. STE. GENEVIEVE's engines are in storage, too!

Do little engines count? .

Can't forget the QUEEN OF SEATTLE (ex. ELIZABETH LOUISE, ALAKSA QUEEN) who's engines came from the DETROITER (spelling?)

Mathew Stage;29205 wrote: Do little engines count? .

Mat,

Well of course they do...they are real steam engines!

That said, we have forgotten the MINNE HA HA in this thread, too. For she, too has authentic steam sternwheel engines.

Wow, I feel like a heel for forgetting you both!

What are friends for?

Travis

One beautifuly restored (atleast its exterior) Charles Barnes engine from the ARKANSAS II resides in the Mud Island Museum in Memphis. I have no idea where her other engine is.

On the Great Lakes there are various maritime museum ships that have steam turbines or vertical steam machinery in place. One of the triple expansion engines from the CHIEF WAWATAM is on display at the Manitowoc Maritime Museum in Wisconsin. It's attached to a motor to slowly roll the engine, so all the valves lift and the cranks turn. At one time the steam machinery from Thomas Edison's sternwheel steamboat was in use at Greenfield Village near Detroit, Michigan, but the cute little steamboat the machinery was on no longer operates. Of course the BADGER still operates, but don't expect to see her engine room without a Coast Guard license in hand, if then. Also the century old Str. ST. MARY'S CHALLENGER still operates on the lakes with her newer Uniflow engines.

Judy, Yes, as of January all three boats were still being stored there. The CASINO ROCK ISLAND made it there under her own power. If you google map 16106 Holiday Harbor Ln, Chillicothe Il you can see them via satellite mode.

There are also some that lie outside the U.S.
the BENJAMIN GUIMARAES, which was constructed in the United States and exported to Brazil where she continues to operate and still burns wood for fuel.
The SS MOYIE in Canada,
SS KENO in Canada,
SS SICAMOUS in Canada,
SS KLONDIKE in Canada,
I'm not going to even attempt to list all the old steamers in the boatyards in the Klondike falling apart.
and some more in the states...
SS NENANA in Alaska,
the PORTLAND in Oregon,
the WILLIAM M. BLACK in Iowa,
the dredge boat MONTGOMERY,
the SAMSON V snagboat,
the WT PRESTON snagobat,
and i'm sure at least one more somewhere...

Liam

I can't beleive no one has mentioned the Julia Belle Swain, her engines are authentic from another boat. Also according to Kenny Howe, the old ACOE boat that Alan Bernstien has still has her engines, and in many respects looks like the crew just stepped off. I don't remember the name of that boat though.

The Effie Afton & The Casino Rock Island Boat Behind Her....IMG_5170 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

There is a set (or mebbe was) of two 8" x 4' engines for sale for $3500. Cap'n Walnut

Engine Enigmas

Phillip, I think you're referring to the sidewheel dredge WILLIAM S. MITCHELL.

It's been nearly 9 years since I've been up to Marietta, but there used to be a set of small steamboat engines on display beneath the OHIO RIVER MUSEUM buildings. ????

A recent thread discussed the former towboat OMAR / Showboat RHODODENDRON / City of Clinton Showboat. Her engines were still in place when I was last aboard, but that was in the 1980's. Are they still extant?

And, although they have been lying along the Yazoo for years, the engines of the mighty towboat SPRAGUE survive at Vicksburg.

JBS

Phillip, he listed the JBS in his original posting.

Fleeted boats

Chris Purdom;29214 wrote: The Effie Afton & The Casino Rock Island Boat Behind Her....IMG_5170 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Thanks for that Chris. That is the DPC towboat MATEUR(EFFIE AFTON) in the foreground and behind her against the bank is the dredge OCKERSON. The CASINO ROCK ISLAND is outboard, and the towboat T.G. GEROW is not in view, which was the Jumers' headquarters.

Another pair of engines almost slipped my mind! These also have( at least I think) a rather unique story behind them. In Rockford, Illinois, around the year 1902, John T. Buker, a buisnessman and entrepeneur built a "Dance Boat" originally christened, "Illinois" with the only intention of carrying passengers on pleasure cruises up and down the Rock River. This venture lasted for several years, until the boat was sold to the Excursion Amusememt Co. in 1917 and renovated to have a sort of novelty bow, designed to look more like that of a deep water vessel, untimately taking away from the boats western river apperance. The vessel was operated under the name, "City of Rockford" until 1923 when it was tied up to the riverbank and allowed to rot away.
In 1924, vandals set the boat on fire, but the inferno was soon stopped. The forlorn old boat was then taken upriver and sunk to get it out of site. And so ends the first chapter of the "Illinois."
The steamer was largely forgotten until 1973, when a dam up the river was being repaired and the water level in the river dropped dramatically, exposing the wooden hull and machinery of the "Illinois." The plan was that the city was going to take all the metal machinery from the hull and scrap it because it damaged small craft that passed over (which in recent years has becone almost nonexistant).
However, the engines, paddlewheel shaft, pitman arms, dynamo and steam generator, along with other odds and ends were taken from the wreck and saved from the scrapman. All the machinery survives to this day and is in storage in Rockford. The engines were made by Thornley and Ott of LaCrosse, Wisconsin, and the generator a Northern.

Here's a picure of the boat around 1914.

You can see one of the Pistons and Cylinders along with other mechanical components in this view.

This is the Port steam engine, still attached to a wooden beam from the hull.

Hi all!

Thought I would dredge up an old thread and see if anything 'new' had been found.

So far, the list contains the following:

ENGINES IN USE

Julia Belle Swain (LaCrosse, WI. Soon to be operational)
Belle of Louisville (Louisville, KY.)
Natchez (New Orleans, LA.)
American Queen (Memphis, TN.)
Portland (Portland, OR.)

ENGINES IN SITU., BUT NOT IN USE (CONFIRMED)

Geo. M. Verity (Keokuk, IA.)
Delta Queen (Houma, LA.)
WP Snyder Jr. (Marietta, OH.)
William M. Black (Dubuque, IA.)
USS Cairo (Vicksburg, MS.)
Lone Star (LeClaire, IA.)
Captain Meriwether Lewis (Brownville, NE.)
W.T. Preston (Anacortes, WA.)
Montgomery (Pickensville, AL.)
Nenana (Fairbanks, AK.)

ENGINES IN SITU., BUT NOT IN USE (UNCONFIRMED)

William S. Mitchell (USS Nightmare, Newport, KY.)
City of Clinton Showboat (Clinton, IA.)

ENGINES NOT IN SITU.

President (Effingham, IL.)
Wakerobin (Chilo, OH.)
Apollo II (Location Unknown.)
Arkansas II (Single Engine, Mud Island, Memphis, TN.)
Suwanee (Greenfield Village, MI. Boat Dismantled, Disposition Unknown.)
Sprague (Vicksburg, MS.)
Illinois / City of Rockford (Rockford, IL.)
Julius C. Wilkie (Carthage, NC.)
Arabia (Single Engine, Kansas City, MO.)
Missouri Packet (Single Engine, Kansas City, MO.)
Twilight (From Excavated Wreck, Location Unknown.)
Mississippi III (New Orleans, LA.)
Gen. John Newton (New Orleans, LA.)
Ste. Genevieve (Location Unknown.)

OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES

Benjamin Guimaraes (Brazil.)
Klondike (Whitehorse, YT.)
Moyie (Kootenay Lake, BC.)
Sicamous (Okanagan, BC.)
Keno (Dawson City, YT.)
Samson V. (Westminster, BC.)
Dawson City Scrapyards, Dawson, BC.

REPLICA ENGINES

Queen of Seattle (Seattle, WA.)
Minne Ha Ha (Lake George, NY.)
Chautauqua Belle (Mayville, NY.)
Graceful Ghost (Lake Caddo, TX.)
Splash (Location Unknown.)

Purportedly, there was an additional pair of engines a the Ohio River Museum in Marietta, but I haven't been able to find any more on these engines.

Additions and corrections are more than welcome!

W.R. Dancey

W.R., there are also replica engines on boats at both Disneyland in California and Disney World in Florida.

Bob, I'm glad you mentioned the Disney boats. I'm sure the mention of these might make some eyes roll, and snickers, but although the boats follow a track, the steam engines and dynamos are the real thing. Here is a youtube video of the Florida boat Liberty Belle (f.k.a. Richard F. Irvine) in action. Shots of the engine start at 3 and 4 minutes into the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZMbkk7vkXM

US Gunboat CAIRO.

The engines on the USS CAIRO are beautifully preserved in place aboard the historic Civil War gunboat at the Vicksburg National Military Park were designed by A. T. Merritt with a 22 inch bore with a six-foot stroke.

New Orleans Steamboat Co. Engines

Would anyone happen to know if the New Orleans Steamboat Co. still has the engines from the steamers Mississippi and Gen. John Newton?

Anybody know where they're being stored? Are there any current pictures of the engines, or photos at all of the Newton's machinery?

How about the Ste. Genevieve's machinery? I read that they are in storage but there was no further information on their wherabouts.

W.R. Dancey

NOSCo. engines

Yes, New Orleans Steamboat Co. still has both sets of engines in storage. I haven't seen them in years, my last pix are from 1983, but they are definitely still with the company in the NOLA area.