Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1939-12-16

the complete cooperation OF the war
department might be abe to recover
valuable cargOeS from some OF these
lost vessels. Since Fort Peck dam has
been completed, all that would be nee
essary would be to locate the spot
where these treasure ships sank then
induce the war department TO shut
off the Missouri river al Fort Peck
dam until the wreck could be dug
out of the sands of the Missouri river
bed. However that might be more
difficult than recovering the sunken
riches without the cooperation of the
( government.
Some years ago the war department
published a very complete survey of
the Missouri river and its steambOating
history from comprehensive reports
made by Gen Hiram M Chittenden,
himself an authority on Missouri river
navigation, and included in this is a
complete list of all steamboats, sunk
on the Missouri together with de-
tailed information concerning dates
cause Of wrecks, cargoes lost and To-
cation of sunken boats.
Steamboating on the Missouri river
began in 1919, when a fleet Of six
river steamers were built under gov
eminent contract for use with the III
fated Yellowstone military expedition
that had as its object the establish
ment of a fortified post at the mouth
of the Yellowstone river The expe-
dition proved a costly failure, and
one of the boats was sunk in the
Missouri near its confluence. This
was the Thomas Jefferson and it was
the first Missouri river steamer wreck.
There were a few other wrecks of
government steamboats, between then
and the beginning of the American
Fur Co.'S steam navigation Of the
Missouri in 1881. one of the boats
being the George Washington, which
went down as the result of striking
a snag below Council Bluffs, La.
The American Fur Co. lost number
of boats with valuable cargoes. One
Of these was the Assinniboine, which
was grounded in 1885 near the present
site of Bismarck. NJ D., at the mead
of Sibley island. This boat was
single-engine sidewheeler. and in 1888
had the distinction Of carrying Maxi
milan, prince of Wied, to Fort Union,
at the mouth of the Yellowstone. Her
cargo was lost when, after being
stranded. the boat caught fire. -Four
live buffalo, which were being taken
to st. Louis. were run into the river
and escaped.
In 1852 the Pontiac, bound for the
upper Missouri, went down at Doni-
phan's bend, below st. Joseph with
a cargo of 500 barrels of whisky, 500
casks of wine and 500 casks Of brandy
aboard. none Of which, it is said, was
ever recovered.
The Louisville, loaded with quick
silver, whisky and general stores for
the new camp of Virginia City in
Alder gulch, went down in what is
known as Louisville bend, 40 miles be-
low Sioux City, and her cargo was
total loss In this same bend are eight
other buried steamboats, but the course
of the river having altered so as to
cut off the bend from the present
channel, these wrecks are now four
miles from the river.
One of the most costly wrecks In
earlier days was that of the American 1
which was coming down the river from
Fort Union in 1855 with Pierre Chou !
teau Jr., aboard, and was. sunk some !
so miles above Sioux City by river with /
an enormously rich cargo Of furs |
aboard-the trade Of two winters I
These furs we're valued at hundreds OF |
thousands of dollars.
Altogether, between 1919 and 1898 I
there were no less than 295 steamboats, I
sunk in the Missouri river and three !
in the Yellowstone. Eighty percent OF /
these boats were wrecked by striking /
Snags, with which the Missouri abound /
ed. Other causes of disaster to the |
river shipping included fire, boiler ex-
blossoms, rapids and, on one or two !
occasions. falling banks. One OF the |
three boats that sank in the Yellow /
stone river was the Osceola, govern /
ment improvement boat, which was I
wrecked by a cyclone in 1877