Thursday afternoon and Friday were fun days at The National Archives. I reviewed eight volumes of the Certificates of Enrollment from the Customhouse Records for the Port of Pittsburgh. The records covered the time from 1 Jan 1863 to11 Jan 1867. Due to a gap in the records, data for the str JT Stockdale, and perhaps other boats, was not reviewed. Although the index of volume 6645 indicated that there were certificates registered between 17 Oct 1863 and 26 Jan 1864, there is no book containing the information. Sad. Those records are gone forever.
I did find eight new steamboats and one ferry which connections to Georgetown steamboat men. These newly indentified vessels are not listed in Capt Way’s directory. Most of the steamers are listed in The little-Holdcamper List. Of course, all of the boats , except str JS Cosgrave, are listed by Benjamin Mackall Laughlin in his hand written list of all steamboats built in Pittsburgh between 1811-1904. The following table lists the boats and whether they are listed by Capt Way and Little and Holdcamper.
| SteamerOwner/Master | Build Year | Built Location | Way’s Directory | Little-Holdcamper |
| Hawk Eye
George D Laughlin |
1854 | Pittsburgh | No | No |
| Grey Eagle
BM Laughlin |
1857 | West Newton | No | Yes |
| JS Cosgrave
George Calhoon |
1858 | Elizabeth | No | Yes |
| Webster
HW Laughlin |
1860 | Pittsburgh | No | No |
| Coal Bluff
GD Laughlin |
1862 | Bellevernon | No | Yes |
| Gypsey
HW Laughlin |
1864 | Cincinnati | No | No |
| JS Neil
BM Laughlin |
1865 | Pittsburgh | No | Yes |
| Wild Duck
George D Laughlin |
1865 | Brownsville | No | Yes |
| Driver (steam ferry)
Jesse Smith |
1865 | Pittsburgh | No | No |
The current count of steamboats owned and operated by Georgetown men stands at 102. I have 24 more volumes of Certificates of Enrollment to complete my review from 5 Jan 1831 to 28 Jun 1901. Seventy years of Georgetown steamboating.
Note: Bellevernon is the spelling of the clerk who registered the Cert of Enrollment for the str Coal Bluff. Not mine!
Copyright © 2013 Francis W Nash
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Tags: Benjamin M Laughlin, Capt Frederick Way, georgetown, ohio river steamboats, The Lytle-Holdcamper List