Delta Queen The Delta Queen is an American sternwheel steamboat that is a U . S . National Historic Landmark . Historically , she has been used for cruising the major rivers that constitute the tributaries of the Mississippi River , particularly in the American South . She is docked in Chattanooga , Tennessee and serves as a floating hotel . The " Delta Queen " is long , wide , and draws . She weighs 1 , 650 tons ( 1 , 676 metric tons ) , with a capacity of 176 passengers . Her cross - compounded steam engines generate , powering a stern - mounted paddlewheel . History . The hull , first two decks , and steam engines were ordered in 1924 from the William Denny & Brothers shipyard on the River Leven adjoining the River Clyde at Dumbarton , Scotland . " Delta Queen " and her sister , " Delta King " , were shipped in pieces to Stockton , California in 1926 . There the California Transportation Company assembled the two vessels for their regular Sacramento River service between San Francisco and Sacramento , and excursions to Stockton , on the San Joaquin River . At the time , they were the most lavishly appointed and expensive sternwheel passenger boats ever commissioned . Driven out of service by a new highway linking Sacramento with San Francisco in 1940 , the two vessels were laid up and then purchased by Isbrandtsen Steamship Lines for service out of New Orleans . During World War II , they were requisitioned by the United States Navy for duty in San Francisco Bay as USS " Delta Queen " ( YHB - 7 / YFB - 56 ) . Three different United States Presidents have sailed on " Delta Queen " : Herbert Hoover , Harry Truman , and Jimmy Carter . In 1946 , " Delta Queen " was purchased by Greene Line of Cincinnati , Ohio and towed via the Panama Canal and the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers to be refurbished in Pittsburgh . On that ocean trip she was piloted by Frederick Way , Jr . In 1948 she entered regular passenger service , plying the waters of the Ohio , Mississippi , Tennessee , and Cumberland Rivers between Cincinnati , New Orleans , St . Paul , Chattanooga , Nashville , and ports in between . Ownership of the vessel has changed seven times over the last fifty years . In 1966 , Congress passed the first Safety at Sea Law that would put the " Delta Queen " out of business . After consulting with attorney William Kohler , Richard Simonton , Bill Muster , and Jay Quinby traveled to Washington , DC , to save their boat . As chairman of the board of Greene Line Steamers , Jay Quinby testified before the Senate to ask for an exemption to the law . Greene Line had to renegotiate the exemption every two to four years . The boat ' s Betty Blake Lounge is named in honor of the woman who rose from public relations officer to savior of the boat when Congressman Garmatz tried to block the 1970 exemption . Thanks to the efforts of Betty Blake and Bill Muster , the " Delta Queen " was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970 and was subsequently declared a National Historic Landmark in 1989 . One unusual feature of " Delta Queen " is her steam calliope , mounted on the Texas deck aft of the pilot house . It covers approximately three octaves , and was used to play the ship in and out of her berth while she was docking and undocking . The Master of the " Delta Queen " sometimes extended this courtesy to other vessels as well . Current duty . The vessel was most recently operated by Majestic America Line . The vessels were purchased from the Delaware North Companies in April 2006 . Besides " Delta Queen , " the company also owns the " American Queen " and " Mississippi Queen " , modern steamboats designed along " Delta Queen " s lines but carrying around 400 passengers . The company also owns riverboats that have seen service on the Columbia and Snake Rivers in Oregon and Washington , and the Alaska Inside Passage . " Delta Queen " cruised the Mississippi River and its tributaries on a regular schedule , with cruises ranging from New Orleans to Memphis to St . Louis to St . Paul to Cincinnati to Pittsburgh , and many more . In some cruises , the vessel probed rivers such as the Arkansas , Red , Tennessee - Tombigbee Waterway , Black Warrior , Mobile , and more . " Delta Queen " recreated historic steamboat races each year during the Kentucky Derby Festival , when she raced with the " Belle of Louisville " on the Ohio at Louisville in the Great Steamboat Race . The winner of the annual race received a trophy of golden antlers , which was mounted on the pilot house until the next race . They also raced during the Tall Stacks festivals celebrating steamboats , held every three or four years in Cincinnati ( " Delta Queen " s former home port ) . On August 1 , 2007 , Majestic America Line announced that " Delta Queen " would cease operations permanently at the end of the 2008 season . The temporary exemption from SOLAS needed to keep " Delta Queen " running was being ended by Congress . In response to this announcement , in September 2007 the MSP for Dumbarton , Jackie Baillie , backed by 15 other Members , submitted a motion to the Scottish Parliament calling for the preservation of the ship . In the United States , devotees of the boat created a renewed " Save the Delta Queen " campaign similar to the one undertaken in the 1970s . However , at the end of the 2008 season , " Delta Queen " ceased all service . On her official website , the Majestic America Line announced it is ending all operations , would not operate in 2009 , and that its assets , including all its riverboats , are for sale . On February 11 , 2009 , " Delta Queen " arrived in Chattanooga , Tennessee to become a floating boutique hotel , as it was feared the vessel could be vandalized if she remained in New Orleans . Under lease to Chattanooga businessman Harry Phillips , she ' s now docked at Coolidge Park Landing on Chattanooga ' s North Shore . The Delta Queen Hotel officially opened for overnight guests on June 5 , 2009 , offering dining , a lounge , live period music and theatrical performances . The ship is currently owned by Ambassadors International , and is leased and operated by a company called All Aboard Travel , operating as Delta Queen LLC , which began leasing the vessel in August 2010 . Ambassadors International listed the ship for sale beginning in late 2008 at a price of US $ 4 . 75 million , and in November 2010 it was announced that a group called Save the Delta Queen 2010 was planning to place a bid to purchase the ship . If it succeeded , the group would place the ship into operation , carrying only 49 people in order to be exempt from federal fire safety regulations , which apply to ships carrying upwards of 50 people . For a time , with the steamer " American Queen " turned over to MARAD and " Mississippi Queen " sold for scrap below New Orleans , " Delta Queen " was the only steamboat to have been owned by the Delta Queen Steamboat Company ( formerly Greene Line Steamers ) to remain in service , albeit without running trips . However , as of November 2011 , the Great American Steamboat Company of Memphis , Tennessee was booking cruises on " American Queen " along the Upper and Lower Mississippi river . On May 14 , 2013 , the bill To amend title 46 , United States Code , to extend the exemption from the fire - retardant materials construction requirement for vessels operating within the Boundary Line ( H . R . 1961 ; 113th Congress ) was introduced into the United States House of Representatives by Rep . Steve Chabot ( R , OH - 1 ) . The bill , if passed , would again extend the exemption to , the provision of law that prevents the Delta Queen from sailing with 50 or more overnight passengers . Hauntings . For a few years , there have been rumors about the ghost of Mary Greene , a woman who served as Captain on " Delta Queen " in the 1940s , haunting the craft . Guests and employees have reported sounds and activity on board which they attribute to her spirit , particularly around her former quarters . Dispute and Potential Removal from Chattanooga . Recently the mayor of Chattanooga , Andy Berke , had put into motion a plan to have the " Delta Queen " removed from its mooring in Chattanooga as he considered it an " obstruction " . A deadline of September 30 , 2013 has been given . This dispute seems to rest on the " Delta Queen " having not paid its rent , which the owners of the " Delta Queen " have disputed on their Facebook page . This news is in light of the " Delta Queen " being honored as a " National Treasure " by the National Trust for Historic Preservation on September 21 , 2013 . In addition , congress is expected to vote on giving the " Delta Queen " an exemption to allow it to travel the rivers again .