It's so exciting! I've really published my first book today!

Being a journalist for more than 15 years now, having written numerous articles, having been editor-in-chief of three magazines so far, it's still a wonderful feeling to produce great content and make it available to everyone who is interested. And hopefully every true Steamboats.orger will love this book!

So what's the book all about? I thought there should be a travellers guide especially for people interested in steamboat history. Travelling along the rivers we have recognized that almost none of these wonderful places are ever mentioned in any ordinary travellers guide. Without the help and guidance of good friends we would have missed a lot - like the hull of the Chris Greene, beautiful river rooms in local museums and neat places like the Mary B. Greene statue at Covington. How could one know where the famous Gordon C. Greene alias Cape Girardeau's wreck is located at the St. Louis riverfront? The America's bell on a graveyard at New Orleans? Chandeliers from the Robt. E. Lee in a church at Port Gibson, MS?

Now I hope there is a comprehensive source for everyone interested in such treasures!

Last but not least, a very important note: Thanks very much to Carmen who did a lot of research and helped tremendously when it comes to the accuracy of so many details in the book. And thanks to so many of you who have helped with information and details to make the online version of The Steamboat Traveller a comprehensive collection of steamboat related places along the Western Rivers.

Here is all the information if you consider buying the book The Steamboat Traveller - it's only $12.00 plus shipping.

Str. BONANZA in the ice at Cincinnati, 1904.
Thanks to Dale Flick for the picture.


This photo was snapped spring, 1988, at Capt. John & Elsie Beatty's home. The W.P. SNYDER was docked for refurbishing below the house at Warsaw. This rolling truck bed shows various whistles and bells. 'Legend' had it that one of the bells (small one to the front in the A frame) was from the exploded Str. MOSELLE of 1838 and had been dredged from the river in the Fulton area of eastern Cincinnati.
Thanks to Dale Flick for the picture!


This photo of the stellar Str. CHRIS GREENE. No date or location of where taken but the CHRIS GREENE looks fresh and new. WAY'S PACKET DIRECTORY lists the CG under No. 1027 Pg. 87. Maybe this picture was taken on her Cincinnati-Pomeroy-Charleston run? Note the big pile of coal on the deck.
Thanks to Dale Flick for the picture!


Here is a model of Robert Fulton's CLERMONT that was on auction in 2005 at COWANS AUCTION CO. in Cincinnati. No surviving actual plans of the original CLERMONT rendering this model something of an imaginative creation.
Thanks to Dale Flick for the picture!


Here is a model of Robert Fulton's CLERMONT that was on auction in 2005 at COWANS AUCTION CO. in Cincinnati. No surviving actual plans of the original CLERMONT rendering this model something of an imaginative creation.
Thanks to Dale Flick for the picture!


This is the start of a loose series of paddlewheelers in Europe. We start with a very interesting, though rather new boat at Berlin, Germany: The ALEXANDER. This actual boat was built in 2000 from historic plans. The original boat was meant as a present for the last German Kaiser but eventually was never built due to the end of the monarchy in Germany in 1918.


This boat, the DE MAJESTEIT, has a long history (buit in 1926) and originally was a running on the German part of the Rhine River, first under the name RHEINLAND. Totally destroyed in World War II it was rebuilt and ran for KD under the name RUEDESHEIM. A couple of years ago the boat was sold and now is located at Rotterdam, Netherlands. Beautifully renovated by a real boat enthusiast who obviously put a lot of money in this boat, the DE MAJESTEIT serves as an excursion boat there.


Not exactly located in Europe, but on the Nile River at Egypt, I'd like to add this picture to the "Europe" series as well. It's the SUDAN, which most of you may know from the Agatha Christie movie "Death on the Nile" from 1978, starring Peter Ustinov, Jane Birkin, Mia Farrow and Bette Davis. The boat is still running on the Nile River, this pictures was taken just last year.
Thanks to Ulli Pesch for taking this picture for me!


An other picture I took at Rotterdam, Netherlands, two years ago. This is from the wonderful maritime museum at Rotterdam and shows a model of a stern wheel freight boat on European rivers. The majority of paddlewheelers on European rivers where sidewheelers, so this is a rather rare sight and there is no such sternwheeler in existance today any more.