Boats and Ships

Chronology

Coastal and international trade in various kinds of sailing ships was an important part of the American economy since the colonial era.   Master mariners and shipbuilders learned their trades from their English counterparts and passed their skills on to their heirs.   Sailing ships were built in every major river estuary in every state.   U.S. international trade was worldwide, with emphasis after the Revolutionary War on the Northwest fur trade around Cape Horn to obtain otter and other skins for trade with Japan, which had tea, porcelain and silk clothing for trade in the U.S.   Trade eastwards around Cape Hope and into the East Indies, South Asia and Arabia brought back spices and coffee.   Great fortunes were made that provided the capital to transfer the textile Industrial Revolution from Great Britain to the United States.

To 1790

Before 1787, all ships used wind power.   It was cheap, since the wind was free, but unreliable; no wind meant no sailing.   Maneuverability was cumbersome too.   Compared to steam and gasoline power, sailing power was slow, especially against the wind.

In 1787, John Fitch built and ran the first steamboat.   Later, an improved model achieved a speed of 3 miles / hour.   Fitch then established a steamboat business between Burlington, NJ, and Philadelphia and operated for two thousand miles, but it was commercially unsuccessful.   His steamboat was wrecked in a storm and never rebuilt.

In 1787, James Rumsey demonstrated his version of the steamboat on the Potomac River.   Although operable, it was never successful commercially.

1790-1799

1800-1809

Claude Niepce (d.1828) and his younger brother, Josph Niepce (1765-1833) in 1806 built a one-cylinder reciprocating engine using coal dust and lycopodium, a power from the spores of club moss, as fuel.   Ignition was by flame.   Although experimental, it propelled a boat upstream on the Soane river. ^{Cummins 64}

In 1807, Robert Fulton's steamboat, Clermont, traveled from New York City to Albany on the Hudson River in 32 hours at almost 5 mph.   The boat was 150 feet long and used a James Watt engine brought to America from Great Britain.   This was the beginning of commercially successful steam boat navigation and soon opened up an entirely new mode of river, lake and ocean transportation.   (Steamboats were too wide (or canals too narrow) to operate on the canals of that time.)

In 1809, the Phoenix, an ocean sail-steamboat designed by John Stevens, traveled from Hoboken, NJ, to Philadelphia.   It continues operation on the Delaware River. ^{Schles 189}

1810-1819

In 1811, the New Orleans became the first river steamboat to travel from Pittsburgh to New Orleans, a trip lasting 4 months.   It begins a regular run from New Orleans to Natchez, TN.   The fare is $18 downstream and $25 upstream.   In 1816, a regular steamboat trip between New Orleans and Louisville, KT begins. ^{Schles 192,205}

On August 23, 1818, the steamboat, Walk-in-the-Water departed from Buffalo, NY to Detroit, MI, to become the first steamboat to offer service on the Great Lakes. ^{Schles 207}

In 1819, the first American sail-steamboat, Savannah, traveled between Savannah, GA, and Liverpool, England, in 25 days, becoming the first sail-steamboat to make the transatlantic trip.   Most of the trip was made on steam power, but 7 days were spent under sail power. ^{Carruth 161}

1820-1829

In 1827, a British engineer, Robert Wilson, invented a screw propeller, which worked from the ship's stern (rear).   Since it was centrally-placed amidships and under water, it was not affected by ocean turbulence and therefore transmitted power more efficiently than the paddlewheel. ^{Asimov 321}

1830-1839

The first transatlantic steam-sail ship, the Great Western, crossed the Atlantic from New York City to Bristol England for the first time in 1838.   The trip took about 16 days.   Regularly scheduled ("packet") service began in 1840. ^{Carruth 205}

1840-1849

Regular steamship service between England and the U.S. was established in 1840 by the British and North American Royal Mail Steam Packet Company, now known as Cunard Steamship Company. ^{Carruth 209}

In 1842, the first grain elevator was built in Buffalo, NY.   Wheat shipped from the west across the Great Lakes was stored and milled in Buffalo and then shipped across the Erie Canal to eastern cities and Europe.

The first transatlantic steamship was the S.S. Great Britain, launched on July 19, 1843.   It had an iron hull and a screw propeller, and was powered entirely by steam.   It was designed by Isambard Brunel.   It had one funnel and 6 masts for safety.   Later, it was rebuilt with more funnels and fewer sails. ^{Asimov 349}

In 1845, the first clipper ship, Rainbow is launched by John W. Griffiths in New York. ^{Schles 249}

By 1849, Transatlantic packet ships sail from New York to Liverpool in 33.3 days, compared to 39 days in 1820. ^{Schles 227}

1850-1859

1860-1869

1870-1879

1880-1889

The success of steel-clad ships used in the Civil War, the most famous being the northern Monitor and the southern Merrimack (Alabama), led to Congress' authorizing the building of the first 3 steel ships in 1883.   By 1886, 22 ships had either been built or authorized.   Shipbuilding required much steel and gave a big impetus to iron and steel production. ^{Schles 352}

1890-1899

1900-1909

1910-1919

1920-1929

1930-1939

1940-1949

1950-1959

1960-1969

1970-1979

1980-1989

1990-1999