River Commerce in Kansas

 

When the first actual white settlers came to Kansas, there were no railroads west of the Mississippi River, and the various water courses were depended upon to furnish the means of transportation. As early as 1819 four steamboats -- the Thomas Jefferson, Expedition, R.M. Johnson and Western Engineer -- were built for the navigation of the upper Missouri River, and were used in the first Yellowstone expedition. Prior to that time the only water craft on the western streams were the Indian canoes or the keel boats and flat-bottomed boats of the fur traders. In 1830 a steamboat called the Car of Commerce was built for the Missouri River trade, but sank near the mouth of the river two years later.   The Yellowstone ascended the river in 1831, and between that time and 1840 the Assiniboine and the Astoria made regular trips. About the time Kansas was organized as a territory, the best known steamers on the Missouri River were the A.C. Goddin, the A.B. Chambers and the Kate Swinney.   The last named, a side-wheeler 200 feet long and 30 feet Wide, sank on the upper river on August 1, 1855. Others steamers on the Missouri River were the Keystone (upon which Governor Geary came to Kansas), the Robert Campbell, the Paul Jones, the Polar Star and the J.M. Converse.   Lewis and Clark's journal for June 5, 1804, contained the following entry: "Passed the Creek of the big rock about 15 yards wide on the left side at 11:00 o'clock, brought to a small raft in which was two French men, from 80 leagues up the Kansas River where they wintered, and brought a great quantity of Beaver." .   It may be, that this early report was partially responsible for the popular belief some years later that the Kansas River was navigable for a distance of 80 leagues. The first attempt to navigate the river by steam was in 1854, when Captain C.K. Baker bought the Excel, a vessel of 79 tons with a draft of only two feet, for the Kansas River trade. On one trip down the river, this boat made the run from Fort Riley to Kansas City in 24 hours, stopping at thirty landings. In 1855, eight new steamboats attempted the navigation of the Kansas River, including the Bee, New Lucy, Hartford, Lizzie, Emma Harmon, Financier No. 2, Saranak and Perry. The Hartford made but one trip. On June 3rd she ran aground a short distance above the mouth of the Blue River, where she lay for a month waiting for high water. With a rise in the river she dropped down to Manhattan, where she unloaded her cargo, and with the next rise started for Kansas City, but grounded opposite St. Mary's Mission, where she caught fire and was burned. The bell of this boat is later was installed in the steeple of the Methodist Church in Manhattan.   In 1856 the steamers Perry, Lewis Burns, Far West and Brazil made their appearance on the Kansas River. In this year the flat-boat Pioneer took out the first load of freight from up the river, arriving at Kansas City in April. The following year four new steamboats were added. They were the Lightfoot, Violet, Lacon and Otis Webb. The Lightfoot of Quindaro, a stern-wheeler, was the first steamboat ever built in Kansas. The Violet was built at Pittsburg. She arrived at Kansas City on April 7, 1857, and two days later reached Lawrence. Here, the captain noticed that the river was falling and declined to go any farther. Discharging his cargo and passengers, he started back down the river and arrived at Kansas City on May 10th, having spent the greater part of a month on the sand bars. The vessel never tried a second trip.   In 1858, the Otis Webb, the Minnie Belle and th Kansas River, but in 1859 came the Silver Lake, Morning Star, Gus Linn, Adelia, Colona, Star of the West and the Kansas Valley. In 1860 the Eureka, Izetta and Mansfield were added to the list. Then came the Civil War and but little was done in the way of river commerce until peace was restored to the country. The Tom Morgan and the Emma began the navigation of the Kansas River in 1864; the Hiram Wood, Jacob Sass and E. Hensley were put in commission in 1865, and in 1866 the Alexander Majors was added.

The early navigation of the Kansas River was attended by many difficulties. Wood was used for fuel, and it was no unusual occurrence for a boat to tie up while the crew went ashore to fell trees and lay in a supply of wood. On one occasion the Financier No. 2 ascended the Republican River for a distance of 40 miles by way of experiment. This was the farthest that river has ever been navigated. A correspondent of the St. Louis Democrat, on November 18, 1855, said: "The bed of the Kansas River, like that of the Missouri, is quicksand, ever changing and ever dangerous while the water will not average over two feet in depth at any place for a distance of 500 feet along its banks. If the bottom was rock and the banks precipitous, a line of steamers would pay well; but as it is, no sensible capitalist will invest his money in a single boat. Kansas is destined by nature to be the Railroad state."

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