Why 'Scape Pipes?

Jimmy: I donno for sure but the LEE was said to have a 'scape that sounded like a pistol shot when runnin' full stroke. Mebbe to get somma the noise up away from pax and crew. Too, the steam was quite wet by then and the pipe would get the condensate up high enuff not to scald a passer-by. A condensing boat like the DQ neither was a problem. Freely translated: I donno either! Cap'n Walnut

*Wind resistance/lightening the LEE/Hull*
Jim, Cap'n Walnut & steamboating colleagues:
Jim is correct on the LEE having her 'scape pipes' removed etc. for the celebrated race. Capt. Cannon caught more than a little 'flak' over the preparations he made for the race. Old letters, news articles here mention a few. Cannon had the LEE's furniture removed with just a "single bed in a passenger cabins" and others in the main cabin. The wide front cabin doors were removed creating a kind of wind tunnel. One news reporter writing his dispatch commented how "...the wind in the cabin made my paper flutter." Her 'scape pipes indeed had been removed ashore for storage as had been derricks, extra anchors, chains. Coal bunkers moved forward to improve trim. The carpenters also slackened her hog chains so she could lay flat to run better like "ears back on a dog." Much freight and passengers also turned away. Fuel composed of firewood, coal, thrity barrels of resin, twenty of kerosene, one of lard oil to make fires hotter in the boilers.

On arrival in St. Louis, Capt. Cannon was introduced to famed Capt. J.B. Eads who had many questions and recorded all in letters. "I am very glad to be acauainted with the man who had the honor to command such a boat as the LEE. I would readily bet a thousand dollars that if the LEE had an iron hull under her, she would have come up faster by five hours than she has done. She would be one foot higher with an iron hull." Cannon had ordered the building of his boat to his own orders, avoided the answer. Her engines, "The best in the world...the LEE in as good a condition as when she left New Orleans," Cannon added. That statement was up for debate when the engines were later moved over to the LEE No. 2. The disastrous 'run through' of the LEE II was later 'thought' to have been caused by running her too hard during the big race. Steam engineer John Gibbs was working the LEE II at the time later writing one gripping, gristly account of the accident. We probably will never know at this late date.

R. Dale Flick
Coal Haven Landing, Ohio River, Cincinnati

There are two intertwined reasons that I can think of for the 'scape pipes to have been removed. One, is that Capt. Cannon was obsessed with lightening his boat, and perhaps to Cannon the pipes were just useless wind-catchers. Reason two is that the spent steam had to be exhasted somehow somewhere, if it was all scaped through the stacks the 'scape pipes would be extranious and the draft to the fire in the boilers would be improved.

Many years ago I was discussing the Lee-Natchez race with a friend who was an Air Force Reserve Officer and a pilot - very knowledgable in aerodynamics. He thought that the act of opening the Lee's cabin doors to allow the air to flow through the cabin actually increased the air resistance rather than lessening it. The fact that the air had to rush through and around all those cabin arches,chandeliers, tables, chairs and other furnishings would have increased the boat's resistance and thus slowed her down. Well, she won anyway, but I always thought that was an interesting theory.

On the subject of 'scape pipe removal: On P.10 of Roy Barkau's "The Great Steamboat Race", there is a photo of the Lee nearing the end of the race. The 'scape pipes are quite evident. If they had been removed were they re-installed during the race? I doubt it.

*LEE 'scape pipes in the classic photo*
Steamboating colleagues,
John is right in his above posting. The classic photo on Pg. 10 of Roy Barkau's book indeed shows the LEE's 'scape pipes still mounted. The mystery deepens. The photo, snapped from Carondolet Bluffs was an action photo thought "impossible." The LEE/NATCHEZ race a story next only to the Bible with questions, debates raging for ages to come.

QUESTION: If the Lee's 'scapes had been removed for storage, according to the news reports, 'could' Cannon have had second thoughts about the escaping steam on deck? Could the Steamboat Inspection Service have contered this? The keen opinion from the Air Force Reserve Officer carries weight. Air would have compressed in the cabin unless other rear doors were opened or removed--like blowing in a round cylinder with your hand on the one end; then releasing to let the air rush through. The news reporter did state that his dispatch papers fluttered in the cabin. Much of the her main cabin furniture had been removed also. Now, the cabin arches another matter. Capt. Eads astute opinion on the LEE being built with an iron hull to lessen her weight, raise her a foot higher in the water, something I'd never heard before. Western Rivers boats were still being constructed with wood hulls at that time. Various marine journals, architects back East and Great Britain commented on the lateness of boat builders out here not yet fully accepting...building with iron. They didn't fully understand our rivers. Wood was still plentiful with the yards and craftsmen to do the work.

Seems to me some years back the race controversy welled up again with some river personalities we knew and it got pretty heated. Can you or Keith remember who some of the notables were we knew then who rehashed this?

R. Dale Flick
Coal Haven Landing, Ohio River, Cincinnati.

It doesn't make much sense for aerodynamics...But

By having the escape pipes it reduces the back pressure, for example when the boiler is tuned back and as much of the steam draft isn't required (venting the excess steam would increase draft in the stacks and lower efficiency also) or as much water isn't being used and the condenser goes from being a "vacuum" to building back pressure. The general rule is that for every pound of back pressure, you "loose" two pounds of inlet pressure, so you can see why escape pipes were fairly standard.

As for the BoL she also used to have a large amount of auxiliary steam equipment aboard which I would of imagined kept the back pressure down, which has been put to rest now. But aside from that little bit of extra "power" it's always nice to know in the pilot house what the Engineers are doing and hearing the response of the engines!

Mathew Stage;29984 wrote:
As for the BoL she also used to have a large amount of auxiliary steam equipment aboard which I would of imagined kept the back pressure down, which has been put to rest now. But aside from that little bit of extra "power" it's always nice to know in the pilot house what the Engineers are doing and hearing the response of the engines!

Dad started scaping the BoL out the roof when being handled just for that reason. The folks upstairs could hear in real time what the people down below were doing. As far as auxillary equipment using the spent steam from the main engines, other than the boiler feedwater heater, which hails from the GORDON C. GREENE, there is no auxilary steam equipment which uses the spent steam.

John: Years ago when working with engineers at General Electric Large Jet Engine Plant in Evandale (Cincinnati), they said that you NEVER wanted to take any air on board the aircraft. They did take a bit on board for the oil cooler (F-4 Phantom) and with the heat gained, claimed to get 15 additional pounds of thrust...but there was a lot of heat gain. ...Cap'n Walnut

Matt hit the nail on the head. I asked Chief Kenny Howe this very question and he said scape pipes were used to make it easier on the fireman and improve efficiency of the boiler so you could divert the excess steam and keep from choking the fire out of the boiler by sending it up the stacks and creating excess draft. They're not required, but rather improve the operation of the steam plant.

The information that the LEE removed the two 'scape pipes came from the account of the race by John Wiest, third engineer. Look on page 182 of B.A. Botkin's book "A Treasury of Mississippi River Folklore".

I would think removing them would be more of a weight savings advantage than decreasing wind drag. The pipes are round and thus break the wind fairly easily, and lets face it, steamboats aren't exactly fast, even the fastest ones so the increased drag from two small pipes i would suspect is negligible. Removing them to reduce drag seems more of a PR reason, while weight savings I could understand.

Jimmy: One is given to wonder if the last word in the title might be indicative?? Cap'n Walnut.