Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1885-01-30
THE FIRST STEAMSHIP.
Lieutenant WriEht's "reminiscences of Old
Times in Baltimore Ship-Building.

Times in Baltimore Ship-Bnilding.
Lieutenant Wright, of the Southern
Police District. is one of the oldest
ship carpenters nov living in Mary
land. He worked on many of the
clipper ships which in the palmy days
of the ship-building interest of this city
made the vessel built here famous on
every sea. Sometimes he gets to think
inc about the DAYS when a launch was
a frequent occurrence at the numerous
wards in the basin and harbor, and
which attracted large crowds of inter-
ested spectators. While speaking of
these things to a 'S0~ reporter he said;
.Did YOU know that the first steamship
eyer built in the United States was
built in BALTIMORE Well, it is a fact.
She was called the Natchc.. She was
built in 1856 by Brown, Rogers &
Culley, on Hughes street, at the foot
of what is O known as johnson
street. The Brown in the firm was
John S. Brown. who was for a long
time librarian at the city hall, and who
died a few years ago. The ship was
not constructed exactly on the plan of
the steamships of the present day. The
Natchez did not have a saloon, but a
large cabin below in the stern. She
was a double-decker. Her tonnage
was nearly eleven hundred. She was
also different from the present steam
ships in the way she was rugged. She
bad three masts, and was rugged eN-
actlv like a full-rigged ship, having I'LL
the sails Of a ship of that kind, even to
the royals. She was built for a New
York firm. and ran between that city
and Natchez. Miss, touching at i'm
p%ortant gulf ports and New Orleans.
Hcr commander was Captain Joe
Swiler. She was a side-wheeler. of
course, q propeller being unknown in
those days. [ helped to build her. and
/ tell you it was a big day here when
we launched her. All the big men in
town were at the launch. Everybody
was proud of her. and there were
lots of headaches the next day after
the Notification. I don't know if shoe
horns were common in those days. but
I suspect some gentlemen would have
liked to have had them when they put
their hats on next morning.
''This firm built many steamboats,
from 1880 to some time in the tifties.
Among them were the Arrownette. a
little steamer which ran on the james
River; the Paul Jones. for the Potomac
River trade. ,This steamer afterward
blew mp t Washington. The hulk was
brought around here and the steamer
,.a1riff Cha ,,C+nir h1n,-- ~ -, Az,
basin this timc-and her hulk was
abandoned. The Merchant was an
other steamer built for the Mississippi
River trade: the Monmouth for Phila-
dalphia parties, che Cuba, for the
Mississippi River; the Cambridge, Kent,
Medora. Juniata. Cecil and Lancaster,
for Chesapeake waters; the Louis Led
lum, for New York, and the James
Adams, for Charleston, S. c.. I worked
on all these steamers except tho Kent.
The Medera blew up'whilc at her wharf
in the basin Il day. OF all these
steamers, and others. the nane of
which [ II not recal, the only steam
ers l now know to be in existence are
the Kent. ,suniaal and Lancaster which
are still fine boats. Tzkc first steamboat
ever built in Baltimore was the Ghesa-
peake. The Eagle was the next. They
were built Oh Fe1l's Point.
'John surhofl. who became.a part
ner in the irm when Rogers anG Gull
ley drew ost. laid down MANY of ahese
steamers. He was a great %draughts-
man, and built some of the Easiest
steamers which went out of this port
III his days ST active work, which, beat
che fastest boats in Philadelphia and
New York. He is still living in South
Baltimore, though his days of active
work are oyer. '-Baltin0ye SUM.