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Lakes of North-eastern USA : Lakes Champlain, George, Cayuga and Winnepesaukee
These two neighbouring lakes in north-eastern USA are
good
examples of "lake" paddle steamer operation. Combining a transportation
and tourist role, the latter has now come to dominate and both lakes
have lively services in the modern era. Both ran paddle steamers. Lake
Champlain is important as the home of the only preserved side-wheel
passenger paddle steamer in the USA (Ticonderoga) and Lake George as
the home of
the oldest operational steamship (screw steamer Mohican II) in the USA
Lake Champlain, Vermont
Lake
Champlain is important as an example for an inland lake with paddle
steamers and not part of the nearby "Great Lakes" system. Paddle
Steamers provided an essential form of transport in rural Vermont, both
locally and for longer journeys, for example to the nearby city of
Montreal in Canada. At 107 miles (172 km) long and 14 miles (23 km) at
its widest, it is still of substantial size. Its very northern part is
within Canada and it is drained into the St Lawrence River by the
Richelieu River.
The first steamer on the lake was the Vermont
in 1809 and the current Lake Champlain Transportation Company traces
its origins back to 1836. The company has owned numerous steamboats and
at least four are known to have sunk in the lake. These include A
Williams (built in 1870 and owned 1874-1893).
Paddle steamer Ticonderoga (1906-1953) is the only preserved example of a passenger paddle steamerin North America
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ticonderoga_(steamboat)
Above : A Williams was bought in 1874 from her original operator, a Mr A Williams
Vermont (1871-1902)
025845
Built in 1871 at Shelburne VT
Wood 261.4 x 36 ft 810 GT
Reindeer (1881)
110497
Built in 1881 at Alburg VT
Wood 168 x 27.6 ft 498 GT
Maquam (1897-1905)
091334
Built in 1881 at Grand Isle VT
Wood 142.3 x 24.8 ft 370 GT
Chateaugay (1888)
126487
Built in 1888 by Harlan & Hollingsworth and assembled at Shelburne
Steel 196 x 29.7 ft 742 GT
Was later used as a clubhouse for a yacht club
Hull dismantled and moved to Lake Winnepesaukee in 1940 for use in SS (now MV) Mount Washington
Vermont (1903)
161944
Built in 1903 at Shelburne VT
Steel 251.5 x 34.9 ft 1195 GT
Ticonderoga (1906-1953)
Built at Newburgh NY and reassembled at Shelburne
Steel 212.2 x 37.7 ft 802 GT Beam engine 52 x 108 in by Fletcher of Hoboken
Lake George, New York
Lake
George is considerably smaller than neighbouring Lake Champlain and
drains into it at the town of Ticonderoga which lies on both lakes. The
River Hudson, on its course north of Albany, runs very close to Lake
George at its closest point, but each is in a different watershed. The
Lake George Steamboat Company as established in 1817 and in 1872 it
became owned by the Delaware & Hudson Railway Company and the lake
became the missing transport link in their expanding network. Alongside
paddle steamers the company operated a screw steamer Mohican, reeplaced
by Mohican II in 1909. After the contraction of the fleet due to the
Great Depression, Mohican II was the only vessel in service after 1939.
Under new ownership after the war, the company's fleet expanded and has
been a three-ship operation for many years, with one motor
sternweeler and a large traditionally styled motor vessel alongside the
historic Mohican II
Click here for a full history : https://www.lakegeorge.com/history/steamboat-co/
Paddle steamers operating in the 20th century :
Horicon (1877-1908)
Wood 195 x 32 ft
Ticonderoga (1884-1901)
Wood 172 x 28 ft
Lost to fire on 29th August 1901
Sagamore (1902-1932)
Steel 203 x 57.5 ft, lengthened to 233 ft
Horicon (1911-1939)
Built at Newburgh and reassembled at Baldwin
Steel 230 x 59 ft
Lake Cayuga, New York
Frontenac
Built in 1870 at Ithaca NY by TD Wilcox
On 27th July 1907 Frontenac caught fire in the middle of the lake and was beached but seven lives were lost
Lake Winnepesaukee, New Hampshire
Veteral
Paddle Steamer Mount Washington sailed long into the twentieth century
until being lost in a lakeside fire on 23rd December 1939 when tied up
at her berth.
Details : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MS_Mount_Washington
Mount Washington (1872-1939)
187 x 49 ft Beam engine
Above : Mount Washington at Wolfeboro
Above : Motor Vessel Mount Washington - built in 1940 using the hull of Lake Champlain's Chateugay
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New York City, Coney Island and Northern New Jersey Coast
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Lakes Champlain, George, Cayuga and Winnepesaukee
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