Howdy, a good sunny morning to you from the state of Indiana. Yep, it is the day that you state to folks to "Vote Early and Often". We've seen Hillary late last night in Evansville, Indiana, and earlier in the day Orack Obama. We've been on the national scene and to say that our local politicians are salivating is a big, big understatement. It has been a frenzy state here in Indiana the past month.
On to more important things, I talked with General Manager Tina Keenan, of the Julia Belle Swain this morning and they are shocked, devasted, reeling from the news of Captain Trone. Tina Keenan states that they will surely do some Memorial this summer for Captain Trone and not had enough time to digest what has gone on. She states that the Julia Belle Swain will do something to commemerate Captain Trone and for all that he has done for the boating industry. She states that when the boat sold to the company she works for in 1995, there will still ties to Captain Trone with the Engineer being Niel Conklin who 'came with the boat' so to speak. The current Captain Diekman of the Julia Belle Swain also had great respect for the design work and of Captain Trone himself. Ms. Keenan states that they are affected by this terrible news and plainly haven't had a chance to see how they will steer through this horrible news. She states that the true 1830's design of the boat was carried out very meticuously and that was what drew a lot of respect from folks all over the country. As soon as more information comes out, I will keep you posted, but right now the folks at the Julia Belle Swain want to be respectful of its designer and yet remember him in an appropriate way.
Being from Evansville, Indiana, we had the Julia Belle Swain here for a few summers, evidently when Captain Trone owned it. I went on a cruise for the July 4th Fireworks and it was the highest paid ticket I ever paid at that time in the lat 1970's but it was surely worth it. Seeing the fireworks over the Ohio River was a spectacular sight. I won't ever forget it. The folks in our city feel that the Julia Belle Swain is our boat. Mention that boat's name and everyone my age and older stop, have a warm smile on their face and feel it is their own. So, our city has a great love for that boat. It is in the same category of the Delta Queen in great respect, but the Delta Queen is the Queen. So, our thoughts and prayers go to the folks, family, and friends of the Captain Trone and the Julia Belle Swain.
Mary
