'Today in Steamboat History'/DELTA QUEEN arrives.

Ok Dale, I'll bite...

You can not imagine how the DQ has enhanced deb and my lives. Yes, that sounds very schmaltzy, but we so enjoy her, so appreciate what she has taught us about America, how she has pointed us toward a newly refound faith in our fellow citizens, how she helped Debbie and I "find" ourselves again after the stresses of jobs, kids, growing older faster than we were ready for and the killer, absolutely no pun intended, how she helped us cope with sickness and deaths in the family. In 2000, we were both a little lost, we had done the multiple Disney trips and the kids were bored with that. The kids had left for school and Deb and I sorta just stared at each other, trying to figure out what our marrage of 25 years had become.

That's when we discovered brown water. Thank you Mississippi Queen for the perfect 25th wedding anniversary celebration. Of course a repeater on the MQ, bless her soul, suggested we try the DQ "if you think you might like doing this again". And the rest has been history...

A crewmember asked me what I thought was so special about steamboating in general and the DQ in particular. This was my answer to him, and I hope it is appropriate here:

"the last sentence of your email is about as profound as it gets and
you ask what my passion is toward steamboating. in reality this may be
better described as mostly my passion for the DQ, with a bit of river
passion thrown in for seasoning. In absolutely no particular order,
the following is what floats my boat about the boat, the river and this
way of life:

1. the whistle...never fails to raise the hair on my arm at least a
few times each trip. and i believe i could now recognize that sound from a
distance distinctly. at home, from time to time, i play the sound file
on dot.org of the whistle, close my eyes and just absorb it. i hear
repeaters say "ah, so-in-so is blowing the whistle, not very good"
while the whistle is blowing...Please, i'm listening and i'm not
concerned how perfect it is blown, i like the variation.
2. the smell...the boat smells like...well, the boat!
3. the history of the boat, and its not just limited to Sacramento,
Greeneline and the like. I study the boat and try to figure out what
has changed over the years and why. the engineer in me wants to know
where the huge passive funnel ventilators were, why they were removed,
did their replacement provide improvement, can i find evidence that
they at one time did exist, and did the passengers mind squeezing
around them? Why in Sacramento did the boat need 8 life boats, and i
like to imagine how they did lifeboat drills? how did they get the
cars into the orleans? what happened to the skylights, does somebody still
have them? can i see evidence of where capt tom added the extensions
to the decks? if the stern thruster hasn't worked in ages could it be
removed to save fuel? during Navy days, did the boat have mounted
guns? what was it like to have amy carter run into you?
4. the crew...the crew is THE perfect example that i point to as the
right way that we as humans should act when people talk about what is
wrong with the fabric of our society. Consummate gentleman and very
feminine ladies who provide sincere respect to strangers, genuine
warmth to their friends and have a passion for their jobs. I watched a
trainee deckhand on one cruise try his best to throw a line to a
floating pin in a lock. he wasn't making it but he kept trying and was
getting closer each time. the thing that REALLY got me is that i know
that locking is a time sensitive thing yet nobody yelled, nobody came
over and ripped the line from his hand, nobody smiled or laughed when
he missed continuously. just silent encouragement. that was a moving
evening for me. and getting back to the crew, i believe that most of
you guys do like us and seek deb and me out. i'm not sure why, but
honored, as friendship toward your customer is totally absent from the
business society today.
5. the engineering guys passion for the equipment. i was awed by seth
positioning the HP piston for paddlewheel rotation start. it had to be
juuuusssstttt so!
6. my distaste for corporate' ideas on how to improve the product. the
boat is what it is, we love the boat for what she is and represents,
warts and all. Fluffy robes and TV's so i'll stay LONGER inside my stateroom? get a grip...i'm trying to figure out how i can get the crew to let me sleep out on deck.
7. the representation/presentation of what life used to be. not really
a true statement as the nineteenth century steamboat was not nearly as
luxurious as the DQ is now in most regards. but it gets my brain
going/thinking about the incredible history of the river lifestyle.
8. the river, especially a narrow river. the smell. how just
underneath the river surface it looks like a brown sauce boiling on a stove. blue herons, kingfishers, asian carp jumping, eagles, the ferries, what was the civil engineer thinking when he designed this bridge, for river
traffic it's awful, my genuine 100% respect for towboatmen, my fascination
and awe toward a triple stack towboat. Gawd, what power, their turbos
increasing/decreasing in pitch. going from dark, to deep blue, to
light pink, to a fine sunrise at 5 am with a hot mug of coffee. the bats
flying into the spotlight beams hunting for bugs. the deliciously slow
dance of a towboat flanking at New Madrid. Paducah, Marietta, Natchez,
Madison, Oak Alley in a fog. the unique wake of a sternwheeler.
watching a small towboat shuffle barges in Paducah. a groundhog that
wanted on the boat in the worst kind of way in Peoria.
9. the calliope. how utterly unique. and powerful. the echo of the
notes under a bridge. i just shake my head and smile sadly when i see
people listening to the calliope with fingers stuck in their ears,
they just don't get it! when i visit the MQ's calliope i stand over the whistles to get the FULL effect. and you can spray calliope condensate on me anyday.
10. the vibrations. i can tell sorta how fast we are going just from
the bed shaking. the first night we ever rode on the DQ the vibrations kept me awake. now i sometimes awaken when in the middle of the night they stop.
11. the smell and sound of the bowthruster.
12. you, mary, the Chief, jazzou, how tony and jazzou passionately
play the calliope even after 100 days straight doing the same thing, capt
williams, watching the confidence of johnny speed at work, maurice,
capt schultz, any and all housekeeping staff, pat, the riverboat five,
joyce, any and all deckhands, all the wait staff, lloyd, darryl. you guys are
indescribably special. teasing mary was a memory i will have forever,
i was tickled to be included. mike gentry playing Rockytop,
bob schad's laugh, toots wonderful teachings and her utterly unique "turlet" and "burler", the short talks with michael and you at
4 am, being greeted at the end of the stage by popeye jones. Mike and Jazzou doing "dueling banjos" with one banjo in the Texas. Shelby describing her making her Mississippi Mud Pie. the image that the crew is family, not just employees.
13. the history of steamboats. how did those guys do it day after day
with the knowledge of how dangerous it was? how did they keep green
wood burning? how could they possibly travel at night without lights
and reflective markers? What did they feel physically and mentally
when they hit a snag? how did they pass information along to each other
about changing river conditions and channels that were obviously very
dynamic? what did they do for a toothache? how was payment received,
especially without a national currency? was their life expectancy less
than say a farmer's? how did they cook, especially with all those
different entrées? how did they keep butter from melting?
14. and of course, the wonderful, wonderful passengers that we have
gotten to know. deb and i love you all...
15. the two mental images of the DQ following the AQ and the MQ at
night. The MQ's paddlewheel lounge lights flickering through her turning paddlewheel.
16. the mental image of me, 3 am, on the port sundeck, pea soup fog,
listening to our foghorn and hearing what i knew was the MQ's foghorn
answer as we passed in the night. i never saw her, but i could sense her passing by us. i set the alarm for that one just to see the MQ pass. the fog was a bonus.
17. passing other vessels and getting a whistle salute. Capt. Don you made my day a ways back, your boat is beautiful and sounds wonderful. absolute awsome way to quickly show your respect for your fellow professionals...
i'll stop for now , because i could go on and on, this is just the 'tip'."

Is this what you are talking about? I would love to know what floats everybody else's boat...

Bruno

Oh My Gosh, Bruno - you said it ALL!!!!! Ditto for me on everything except for the engineering! I just don't get that part, so can't have profound thoughts on it!!!! But yes, I've be able to recognize the DELTA QUEEN whistle for as long as I can remember. I got bitten by the "bug" from having grown up on the Ohio River and crying for an adult to take me and my siblings to the river so we could jump her waves as her's were bigger than the other boats!!!
I'm printing out your answer to how our lives were changed and richer for being in love with a steamboat! Thank you for putting so much of it into words! See you and Deb on the river soon I hope. Jo Ann

And, I'll add, 15 days and 1 hour until her magic charms, her incredibly deep soul envelops Deb and me again. The ultimate tonic, elixer of the river...I cannot wait.

The crew may have new faces and the staterooms may now have decadently rich linens...but, thankfully the boat will always BE the boat.

Life is good.

Bruno

Bruno, I never realized what a poet you were. You've said exactly what so many of us think but can't put into words. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

See you in 15 days.

Ginnie

Bruno, you "get it". Thank you. Sure would like to meet you and Deb. I have to wait till the end of April for the homecoming trip to get on the boat again.

The dangerous part about making a list of names is that usually people are left out. I know, because this has happened to me and I ended up making many apologies.

Here is to those who served the Delta Queen and were not mentioned. They gave with all their hearts and loved her dearly.

Annie

. The ultimate tonic, elixer of the river...I cannot wait.

Life is good.

Bruno

Bruno, you and Debbie maybe should not drink the water. Looking, smelling, touching and steamboatin on the river is okay, but drinking the Elixer might not be a good idea.

Annie, I didn't post anything on this topic for that reason - too many good people from many different eras can be forgotten. I'm sure Dale didn't mean to offend anyone, but I believe his last DQ trip was around 1973, and he doesn't visit the boat much, so he wouldn't have known many crew past that time. However, here's to his fellow Ragtown native, now a St. Louisan, who served not only the DQ and MQ, but the ADMIRAL and BELLE too: Capt. Jim!

Dear steamboating colleagues:
Judy made a good point. If you all read my initial posting you will see the carefully worded 'disclaimers' knowing I was leaving out a number of great people marking the March 1, 1948 arrival of the DELTA QUEEN from DRAVO. Then I get an E=Mail here saying I "wrote too much...what was the point?...who ARE those people?" etc. Another of those 'Catch-22' situations. None of us in this family have been aboard a DQ boat for a trip since 1992 and it was incredible. I had an invalid family member in a wheelchair and the company really were kind in offering assistance, wood ramp and automatic upgrade to the 'Betty Blake suite' for easy access. I visit the DQ here infrequently and only when invited down by sailing passengers or the company for a luncheon or official function. We now travel a great deal internationally; two homes and two boats to condend with. I certainly didn't mean to ignore any of the wonderful steamboat family but was typing here with possible power failure, dimming lights, brown-outs from the horrendous storm.

Cheers and best wishes to you all in the future,
R. Dale Flick

Dale: What's the point, indeed! Well, the fact is, your thoughtful and well written posting prompted Bruno to post one of the more meaningful posts that I have seen here or anywhere else in the three or so years that I have been monitoring this site. That is not to take anything away from many another meaningful, timely and well written posting on this board. We have all heard that those who don't know history are condemned to repeat it. Knowing the Queen's history and some of the wonderful things she has left in her wake, may well make more than one of us want to repeat that history. I can think of a number of people on this board who ought to be writing the promotional literature for the Queens...folks with real experience, real knowledge, real passion, real writing ability and speaking straight to the heart of the matter. Those in this posting would be a good start!

Hi, Tom & gang:
I forgot to mention that yesterday I visited the Cincinnati Historical Society Library here at the Union Terminal complex to view the present 'Cincinnati and the Ohio River' display. M'Lissa Kesterman has done an incredible job with just the right amount of materials, letters, photos, books and relics in glass cases.

At the end of the gallery is the magnificent painting by the late Dorothy Frye of the Str. JACOB STRADER. I took some digitals with permission using 'Museum' setting on my camera and hope later to forward to Franz for posting if he has time. I did the best I could with my NIKON camera. I'd forgotten just how big that painting is from first seeing it years ago when Dorothy was working diligently on it. Also wonderful photos of the WILDWOOD, THOMPSON DEAN etc. Fine model of the BETSY ANN and ephemera on the old GREENE LINE and other boat lines over the years. One case partly devoted to the infamous MOSELLE explosion with letters, documents. The show won't be up for much longer, so if you're a local get down there soon. The big TITANIC exhibit is also enjoying a run there until May.

Cheers to all from Ragtown on the Ohio,
R. Dale Flick

Gosh, Dale, what in the world is the meaning of, "who ARE those people?"? Your first paragraph is full of the names of people who were responsible for bringing out the DQ in 1948, from Bill Horn, the carpenter do-anything-man, to Jesse P. Hughes, the pilot/Vice President of Navigation do-anything-man and just coincidentally my grandfather. I know/knew all those people (including another name on the list, Dick Prater, who is my brother) and they are part of the history of the boat. THAT'S who they are, as you well know. It's not the definitive list of all the people responsible for bringing out the boat in 1948, obviously, but it sure does cover a fair amount of territory, and I thank you for airing and reminding us of the names of some of those folks who toiled for the boat many years ago.

It makes me sad if anyone found your posting offensive by its listing of unfamiliar names or by the exclusion of familiar ones. I found it enjoyable by inclusion of whatever names came to your mind. I know it left out zillions of names. Of course it did. It had to. But it's always enjoyable to me to have my memory jogged by your postings, and I imagine the Greenes feel the same way. I guess that makes us the old, old, OLD timers, huh?

Your second paragraph lists a lot of names of people that you indicated came to your mind as associated with the boat later, folks many of us know and care about or at least know of. Obviously you couldn't name everyone, especially since your contact with the boat became so limited after the early 70's. But it didn't seem to me that you were even trying to list everyone (who could do that?) but rather were encouraging others to post their own thoughts and memories.

And I agree with Annie, here's to the MANY others (indeed, countless others) who have served the boat and have given with all their hearts and have loved her dearly, and that includes Annie's husband, Capt. Jim. It also includes a great number of people in the engine room, pilot house and dining room from this past year who will not be on the boat when I get on her in April. I won't try to list them. There are, sadly, too many. Some of them have said their goodbyes here on steamboats.org. Lots of them read this web site. They know how much I care about them and how grievously I will miss their presence, lovingly taking care of the boat and everyone on her.

The history of the boat is an on-going history of her people as well, and no list any of us can produce can include all of them who are a part of what makes up the DELTA QUEEN. It is too long a list, including every deckhand and cabin attendant and oiler and nightwatchman who ever worked on her, as well as myriad passengers over the years. Our memory of many of them may have slipped into the fog of the past, but they have all been there, they have all left some sort of a mark on her, whether it be large or small, and they will always be a part of the fabric of the boat and what she is today.

Annie Blum here: Thank you Dale for bringing this whole discussion up in the first place. The Delta Queen and her "sisters" have been a blessing to many of us. I hope I get to meet you in person sometime soon. It will be my pleasure.

Lil, thank you for such a lovely posting. You have effectively expressed the love all of us here have for those who have made steamboating possible.