Archive for the ‘Missouri River Commerce’ Category

Pilot Jacob Poe

Saturday, April 11th, 2020

Jacob Poe with Str Belmont Card (Anna L and John F Nash Collection)

Few steamboatmen traveled farther or as wide-ranging or on as many rivers as Capt Jacob Poe.  In 1837, Capt Jacob steamed to Olean, NY on the Allegheny River; in 1848 Chillicothe, OH on the Scioto River; in 1849 Ft Des Moines on the Des Moines River; in 1851 Warsaw MO on the Osage River; in 1854 Ft Riley on the Kansas River.  During the Civil War, Capt Jacob Poe was transporting troops and supplies on the Red River, White River, Yazoo River, and of course the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers. After the Civil War he was on the furious upper Missouri River making several trips to Ft Benton in the Montana Territory.  He spent his life steaming on the sharp edge of a constantly moving American frontier.  Few steamboatmen are gifted to read the waters of one river, fewer exceed the scope of Jacob Poe’s travels.

From the details available, Capt Jacob Poe was often described as the pilot.  He seemed to favor work in the pilot house more than the packet  management position of the master or captain.   He preferred to read the waters rather than count the money.  He not only drove the boats and shared their ownership with his brothers, he often watched over the construction of new family boats.  No doubt his ideas were the foundation of the Poe favored mid-sized sternwheel design.

In 1837, Jacob Poe was hired for his first command – the captain and first pilot of the str Beaver No 2.  That same year he was the pilot of the str New Castle which was one of two boats ever that went up the Allegheny River to Olean, NY.

Jacob Poe’s last US Inspection Certificate was dated 1 Dec 1890.  It was his fifteenth masters license and thirty-second pilots license for the Ohio and Cumberland Rivers.  In total, fifty-three years working on the Ohio River as a steamboat pilot.  (The Steamboat Act of 1852 established in law for the first time, the license certification process for pilots, engineers, and vessels.)

The following table summarizes a few newsclips by date indicating that Jacob Poe was often employed as a pilot.  His son, George WE Poe, quit business school in Pittsburgh to serve the Union during the Civil War as a cub pilot.  After the Civil War, together the father and son team worked as pilots on some Poe family owned boats and other boats of business partners centered around Pittsburgh.  Without certain proof, Jacob Poe was assisting the development of his son’s career on the river.

 

Steamboat officer: Pilot Jacob Poe

Date Officer Steamer Name Destination Note
13 Nov 1855 Master Clifton Nashville

1

31 Oct 1864 Master Yorktown Cincinnati

2

25 Jan 1869 Pilot Sallie Louisville

3

01 May 1869 Pilot with son Argosy Cincinnati

3

20 Jan 1871 Pilot with son Glencoe New Orleans

3

23 Feb 1871 Pilot with son Silver Lake No4 Cincinnati

3

02 Mar 1871 Pilot with son Brill Cincinnati

3

09 Apr 1873 Pilot EH Dufee Ft Benton

3

18 May 1874 Pilot AJ Baker St Louis

2

15 Apr 1877 Pilot Carrie Brooks Zanesville

4

26 Nov 1878 Master John D Sully New Orleans

4

 
 

 

 

Notes:

1. The Pittsburgh Daily Post, p3

2. The Pittsburgh Daily Commercial, p4.

3. The Pittsburgh Weekly Gazette, p3.

4. The Pittsburgh Post Gazette, p3.

 

 

 

Copyright © 2020 Francis W Nash
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Samuel Lyon

Wednesday, March 11th, 2020

Newspapers.com is a hugh time suck – a futile game and a waste of time, played by futile people with time to waste.  Then, a gem of information is sifted from the common drivel.

Samuel Lyon lived his entire life in Georgetown, PA.  He began his career in the 1850′s and  became a trusted engineer on boats owned by the Poe family.  He served in the “war of rebellion” and was the engineer of the str Nick Wall when it met a tragic end in Dec 1870.   His sons followed his path.  His daughter married Charlie Poe.

From the Pitt Post Gazette on 11 Jul 1898, a death notice was posted in the River News column.

 

NewsPapers and Ancestry

 

 

Copyright © 2020 Francis W Nash
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Certificates of Enrollment Review

Sunday, October 27th, 2019

There are three ways to analyze the Certificates of Enrollment data at The National Archives:

(1)  Volume or year (Some volumes contain two years of data..

(2)  Steamer name over multiple years/volumes.

(3)  Steamboat master or primary owner over his career.

The following table summarizes the information for 1852 by vessel name and the master listed in the Cert of Enrollment.  In 1852, the Certificate of Enrollment entries indicated that nine steamboats and one keel boat were registered at the Port of Pittsburgh by Georgetown masters.  More than nine perhaps if an entry or two was missed.  Absolutely no fewer than nine because the enrollment pages have been copied.  For the nine steamers and one keel boat, seven different men were listed as masters on the certificates.  In addition to the masters, the town also provided other officers such as pilots, engineers, clerks, stewards, and first mates.  And  roustabouts, firemen, and other service persons.

In 1850, Georgetown  was incorporated and elected its first borough officers.  The population according to the US census was 250.  The population, according to an itinerant Methodist preacher’s wife, “was made up largely of river men – steamboat captains and pilots  who were away from home a greater part of the time.” [1]  The lives of the townspeople were centered on the river.

In 1852 the river transportation industry was booming.  Four boats from Georgetown were new that season.  Five of  the 1852 boats were also enrolled in 1853.   In 1853, three new boats were registered by Georgetown men although the total entries for that year was one less than 1852.

For historians, 1852 was a very good year because that volume of Certificates of Enrollment was well preserved compared to other damaged volumes where the print has faded due to water damage or pages have been torn.  For the Georgetown men,  1852 was a typical year measured by the number of vessels working the western rivers.

 

Certificates of Enrollment for the Port of Pittsburgh 1852

Steamer

Build Year

Master

Registered in 1853

Columbian

1843

Thomas Poe

No

Financier

1845

Richard Calhoon

No

Financier No 2

1850

Adam Poe

Yes

Georgetown

1852

Thomas Poe

Yes

Golden State

1852

Joseph Calhoon

Yes

Huron

1851

John McMillin

Yes

Paris

1848

George Ebert

No

Royal Arch

1852

Adam Poe

No

Washington City

1852

George Ebert

Yes

Keelboat
KB Keystone

1850

Benoni Dawson

No

 

Each vessel listed above has an entry in the volume of Cerificates of Enrollment for the Port of Pittsburgh in 1852.

The str Royal Arch sunk at Buffington Island in the Ohio River in Nov 1852.  Later the wreck was struck by the str Tuscarora which also sank.   For that reason, the str Royal Arch was “off the books” in 1853.  The older boats were probably retired leading to their absence in the 1953 volume.  . [2]

In 1852, the str Financier, Financier No 2, and the Georgetown were working on the lower Missouri River.  The Financier is reported on the Osage River and the Financier No2 on the Kansas River.  These years between the Mexican American War and the Civil War were the time of great movement of people on the rivers.  Both the Oregon and Santa Fe trails began their long land journeys from the banks of the lower Missouri River during that time.  No doubt the Georgetown men were transporting passengers and supplies to these starting points for the great migration and expansion of the west.

 

References.



[1]   Eaton Mary Salome, Memories of The Wife of an Itinerant Methodist Preacher, The Commission on Archives and History of the Western PA Conference United Methodist Church, 1989, p23.

[2]  Way Frederick, Jr,  Way’s Packet Directory, 1948-1994 ,p404.

 

Copyright © 2019  Francis W Nash  All Rights Reserved
No part of this website may be reproduced without permission in writing from the author.

 

 

Another 150th Anniversary

Saturday, July 20th, 2019

As we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11, we should take a moment to honor the people who contributed to the expansion of our nation west.  One hundred years earlier in 1869, four sternwheel steamers from Georgetown were transporting settlers, miners, and supplies to the farthest reaches of the northwest – Ft Benton in the Montana Territory.  Nancy Ann Poe with her husband Capt George Washington Ebert in command of the str Mollie Ebert  penned her journal of the trip.  Fellow Georgetown man, Capt Thomas Stevenson Calhoon in command of the str Sallie  maintained a diary of his journey that same season.

Nancy Ann Poe Ebert Journal Segment 1 Front

Both of these historical documents are preserved in the museum collections of The Heinz History Center.

 

 

Copyright © 2019 Francis W Nash
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Another 150th Anniversary (6 May 1869)

Monday, May 6th, 2019

 

Nancy Ann Poe ebert Journal Segment 1 Front

Today is the 150th anniversary of the first entry written by Nancy Ann (Poe) Ebert in her journal chronicling her trip aboard the str Mollie Ebert.  On 6 May 1869, Nancy Ann Poe was in Yankton in the Dakota Territory bound for Ft Benton in the Montana Territory. 

 

 

 

Copyright © 2019 Francis W Nash

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No part of this website may be reproduced without permission in writing from the author.

 

 

 

Another 150th Anniversary (16 Apr 1869)

Tuesday, April 16th, 2019

 

Today is the 150th anniversary of the departure of the str Mollie Ebert from St Louis for Ft Benton.  According to the diary of Capt Thomas S Calhoon, the str Mollie Ebert left at 4AM on Fri 16 Apr with a load of freight and passengers.  Nancy Ann (Poe) Ebert traveled with her husband, Capt George W Ebert on that trip.  Nancy Ann Poe’s journal is an invaluable historical document that reveals, first hand, the dangers, tedium, and beauty of the unsettled frontier.

Aboard the str Sallie, Capt Calhoon departed from St Louis for Ft Benton on 24 Apr 1869 in the company of the str Nick Wall and str Tacony

The packets Mollie Ebert, Sallie and Nick Wall were owned and operated by Georgetown men..

 

 

 

Copyright © 2019 Francis W Nash

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No part of this website may be reproduced without permission in writing from the author.

 

 

 

The National Archives

Saturday, January 23rd, 2016

 

Last week I made my 9thtrip to The National Archives.  Usually a trip to DC is an overnight stay in a hotel or B&B.  A morning drive from Carlisle, PA allows one “pull” of references at approx. 1:30 PM if I arrive before 11:00 AM and meet the request time.  For reasons I do not understand, my requests take more time than most.  An archives reference specialist must “spot” my requests before the volumes are located and obtained.  Inadvertently I lose much valuable research time. 

Str Fearless Cert of Enrollment (The National Archives)

Although I made some progress last week, my pull request on Mon at 3:00 PM did not arrive at the reference room till almost noon on Tue.  This steamboat interest, obsession according to my wife, is expensive as well as time consuming. 

The jewel of this trip was the proof that the owner of the str Fearless was Capt Thomas S Poe just months before his death. 

 

My Monday request of four volumes of Certificates of Enrollment resulted in three on Tue.  By the time I realized I was missing a volume, my “archives vacation” time expired.  It was too late to submit another pull before I had to drive home.

 

Four more “full” days before I complete the review of the Certificate of Enrollments for the port of Pittsburgh.  By another measure, two overnight trips to DC.

 

I also need two or three days to review the Vessels File, Record Group 92, to complete the review of the service of the Georgetown civilians during the Civil war.

 

 

 

Copyright © 2016 Francis W Nash    All Rights Reserved

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BAHF Program

Wednesday, September 16th, 2015

 

BAHF Postcard

BAHF Postcard

 Tue eve, I told a Georgetown story at the Beaver Area Heritage Foundation 2015 Speakers Series.  To me it was fascinating to see so many people interested in local history.  The people there had an incredible wealth of steamboat knowledge and river history.  Truly an inspiring evening for me.

 

The McDermotts, Judy and Jim, and the Deelos, Judy annd Mike, could not have been more accommodating.

 

I wish I knew more, and was a better presenter of, GeorgetownSteamboat stories.

 

 

 

Copyright © 2015 Francis W Nash All Rights Reserved

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New Bio of Thomas W Poe

Monday, March 3rd, 2014

The Capt Thomas Washington Poe biography was updated yet it still is incomplete.  Information from the Certificates of Enrollment for his later steamboats will not be added until I have made time to review the appropriate volumes at The National Archives. 

 

Copyright © 2014 Francis W Nash
All Rights Reserved

Source Documents

Wednesday, January 8th, 2014

A friend, and Poe relative, introduced me to the personal diary of Isaac T Goodnow.  In her research of Rev Adam Poe who was a cofounder of Ohio Wesleyan University, she crosses into the Poe steamboat land. 

 

Isaac T Goodnow helped establish the community of Manhattan, KN in the 185o’s.  His diaries are an interesting read.  Kansas was the topic of the day.  Slavery was the main issue.  Isaac T Goodnow traveled from Boston to Kansas at least once a year.  Isaac T Goodnow knew Rev Adam Poe who arrived in KN via steamboat to attend a religious conference.

 

In Issac T Goodnow’s travels, he mentioned steamboats often.  However, he rarely named them.  Two daily journal entries are listed below where he named the packets built by Georgetown men:

 

            (1)  str Financier.  At the time of the journal entry, Goodnow would have steamed on str Financier II built for Capt Adam Poe in 1850.   Capt Adam ran the str Financier II for three years and then sold it.  In 1855, he was commanding the str Ella which was also working on the lower Missouri River. 

 

            (2)  str Admiral.    In 1857 Capt Jackman T STockdale was a partner in the ownership of the str Admiral, At that time it is unclear whether he was its captain or pilot. 

 

The Isaac T Goodnow diaries are a fantastic first hand account of the violence in Kansas in the troubled 1850′s.   For me, they also provide source information that confirms my statements that Georgetown steamboats were working at the sharp and dangerous edge of our frontier.

 

 

 

 

Diary of Isaac T. Goodnow

 

Transcribed by staff and volunteers of the Riley County Historical Museum from a typescript of the original diary held in the collection of the Kansas State Historical Society.

 

 

Thursday, 8/16/55         

            Br. Wm. E. left this morning in the steamer Financier for Kansas City.  Hope to see him back soon.  Very rainy.  Drove to Judge W-s 7 miles to dinner.  P.M. rode on to Mr Roberts’ an Illinois man.  Has 120 acres corn.

 

 

Thursday 11/12/57

            Bought 2 land warrants $281.60  Saw my old friend Hugh M. Thompson, formerly of Greenfield.  Did some considerable business, & at 3. P.M. started by Pacific R.R. for Jefferson City, arriving at 9. & taking the steamer Admiral for Leavenworth City.  Lay by till morning on account of the darkness.  Rested tolerably well.  Rainy, P.M. & Evening.

 

 

Copyright © 2014 Francis W Nash
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