Lifted information from the Steamboatin' Times
Posted 06-13-2008 at 02:23 PM by Travis Vasconcelos
Hello all,
After writing the paper on the DELTA QUEEN calliope I have published on this site, I found this article in a Steamboatin’ Times from aboard the DELTA QUEEN. It is interesting to note some of the accepted truths reported here we now know to be untrue.
One, which I personally found interesting, is the reference to the Thomas J. Nichols Plumbing Company of Cincinnati. Thomas J Nichol (singular, not plural) never operated a plumbing company. He did work for a foundry in Cincinnati; Van Duzen, who he tried to convince to build a calliope based on his belief copper would make a better sound over brass in the construction of the whistles. Ultimately he went on to build calliopes under his own name from 1890 until 1923 at Pearl and Vine Streets in Cincinnati.
The other glaring errors are in reference to E.J. Quinby as being the Commodore of the fleet in 1960. The only 2 Commodores of the DELTA QUEEN (and her sister vessels) were Ernest E. Wagner (1960–1979) and Harold DeMarrero (1982-1985).
And the part about the whistles being in storage until being found by Quinby….obviously false, as when he found then they were being used at the Circusland Park by Ellsworth “Slim” Sommers and his wife Cleone Dulcianne of Waterbury CT.
It isn’t that I want to appear contentious towards my fellow steamboaters who preceded me, far from that. Wouldn’t it be nice if the truth as we know it now were to supersede the inaccuracies we did not have the ability to know different of in another time. I am presenting this article merely to show the change in knowledge over a very short time period with a little bit of research and the knowledge of many fans coming together.
Many of you have heard this story many times and most likely have copies of this publication in your collections. For those of you who don’t I present it for your review, albeit for entertainment purposes only!
15, July 1987 lifted from the Steamboatin’ Times aboard the DELTA QUEEN
The DELTA QUEEN Calliope
The first steam calliope of which any record exists was on the UNICORN, a small Ohio River Packet, about 1858. A few months later no showboat or steamboat was complete with out one.
The calliope was invented by a Vermont farmer, Joshua Stoddard, and his original intention was for it to be mounted in church steeples to be used to call worshippers to church services. However the great harsh New England winters caused the steam line to freeze on the prototype and it blew up, leaving Josh a ruined man.
It was P.T. Barnum, the circus king, who made the calliope famous. He mounted his calliope on a red and gold circus wagon with a small boiler and placed the wagon at the end of the circus parade, enticing crowds to come to the big show that evening. In the same manner, every Mississippi and Ohio River boat of any worth carried one of the steam and iron pianos. The arrival of the boat was heralded by the loud and brassy music, calling the townspeople to the levee to take in the evening’s show.
The DELTA QUEEN’s calliope was built in 1897 by the Thomas J. Nichols Plumbing Company of Cincinnati, of the major manufacturers of the 60 or so calliopes ever built. It was installed on the DELTA QUEEN in January of 1960. It had been on the showboat WATER QUEEN which sank in the Kanawha River in 1937. Her calliope player salvaged the whistles and had them stored, where they remained until E.J. Quinby, the Commodore at that time, discovered them and had them placed on the DELTA QUEEN. Since then millions of people have listened to the lilting melodies as the DELTA QUEEN steams up and down the rivers of America. The voice of the river….the DELTA QUEEN calliope.
After writing the paper on the DELTA QUEEN calliope I have published on this site, I found this article in a Steamboatin’ Times from aboard the DELTA QUEEN. It is interesting to note some of the accepted truths reported here we now know to be untrue.
One, which I personally found interesting, is the reference to the Thomas J. Nichols Plumbing Company of Cincinnati. Thomas J Nichol (singular, not plural) never operated a plumbing company. He did work for a foundry in Cincinnati; Van Duzen, who he tried to convince to build a calliope based on his belief copper would make a better sound over brass in the construction of the whistles. Ultimately he went on to build calliopes under his own name from 1890 until 1923 at Pearl and Vine Streets in Cincinnati.
The other glaring errors are in reference to E.J. Quinby as being the Commodore of the fleet in 1960. The only 2 Commodores of the DELTA QUEEN (and her sister vessels) were Ernest E. Wagner (1960–1979) and Harold DeMarrero (1982-1985).
And the part about the whistles being in storage until being found by Quinby….obviously false, as when he found then they were being used at the Circusland Park by Ellsworth “Slim” Sommers and his wife Cleone Dulcianne of Waterbury CT.
It isn’t that I want to appear contentious towards my fellow steamboaters who preceded me, far from that. Wouldn’t it be nice if the truth as we know it now were to supersede the inaccuracies we did not have the ability to know different of in another time. I am presenting this article merely to show the change in knowledge over a very short time period with a little bit of research and the knowledge of many fans coming together.
Many of you have heard this story many times and most likely have copies of this publication in your collections. For those of you who don’t I present it for your review, albeit for entertainment purposes only!
15, July 1987 lifted from the Steamboatin’ Times aboard the DELTA QUEEN
The DELTA QUEEN Calliope
The first steam calliope of which any record exists was on the UNICORN, a small Ohio River Packet, about 1858. A few months later no showboat or steamboat was complete with out one.
The calliope was invented by a Vermont farmer, Joshua Stoddard, and his original intention was for it to be mounted in church steeples to be used to call worshippers to church services. However the great harsh New England winters caused the steam line to freeze on the prototype and it blew up, leaving Josh a ruined man.
It was P.T. Barnum, the circus king, who made the calliope famous. He mounted his calliope on a red and gold circus wagon with a small boiler and placed the wagon at the end of the circus parade, enticing crowds to come to the big show that evening. In the same manner, every Mississippi and Ohio River boat of any worth carried one of the steam and iron pianos. The arrival of the boat was heralded by the loud and brassy music, calling the townspeople to the levee to take in the evening’s show.
The DELTA QUEEN’s calliope was built in 1897 by the Thomas J. Nichols Plumbing Company of Cincinnati, of the major manufacturers of the 60 or so calliopes ever built. It was installed on the DELTA QUEEN in January of 1960. It had been on the showboat WATER QUEEN which sank in the Kanawha River in 1937. Her calliope player salvaged the whistles and had them stored, where they remained until E.J. Quinby, the Commodore at that time, discovered them and had them placed on the DELTA QUEEN. Since then millions of people have listened to the lilting melodies as the DELTA QUEEN steams up and down the rivers of America. The voice of the river….the DELTA QUEEN calliope.
Total Comments 1
Comments
|
Thank you, Travis, for finding and posting this! Unfortunately, as we know, there are those who think a lttle lie here and there will embellish the story, when (to me, at least!) the TRUTH always makes the better story. We all know how Mr. D.D. embellished the truth, but Mr. Quinby was known to do a little of this himself!
|
 
|
Recent Blog Entries by Travis Vasconcelos
- Dubuque-Built Diesel Excursion boats (01-02-2011)
- Ever wonder what could have been? (06-26-2008)
- Mississippi River Flooding, memories and thoughts. (06-22-2008)
- How it all began....OR.....How I found my way to the river. (06-17-2008)
- Lifted information from the Steamboatin' Times (06-13-2008)
