Pioneer Pieces: Full Steam Ahead!

By the 1840s steamboats had become part of the American River Folklore. Originally they were used as rescue boats prior to flood control along the Ohio and Mississippi River Valleys. Even after the railroads came through, steamboats were still used in floods because between a flood and a railroad, the railroad never wins.

Pioneers who lived along the riverbanks had their own way of surviving a flood - they would load a flatboat raft with all of their possessions and livestock and literally "ride the storm out".

Steamboats became the "Queens of the River", the "Titanic of the River" and afforded the passengers the most modern and luxurious accommendations of all travel, including the popular ship design in Rococo.

Best known steamboat advocate, Mark Twain, penned his best work aboard his beloved riverboats. He claims he got the pen name Mark Twain from a Mississippi steamboat captain name Jonas Sellers.

Next time - Man the Lifeboats!