Riverboat travel

larry_cockerham · #1 08-30-2007, 12:32 PM

If a federal officer was using river transport from Mississippi north along the Mississippi and then the Ohio, can someone tell or speculate on the rate of travel? miles per hours, miles per day???

ole · #2 08-30-2007, 01:49 PM

Upstream or down, Larry? Let's say that the Ohio and Mississippi normally flow at about 7 mph. A really fast riverboat might do 15 mph. So it could net 22 mph downstream and 8 upstream.

A couple of examples. Grant, in Savannah, hears or hears of fighting at Pittsburg Landing. He limps to his boat and it takes an hour or so to beat the 9 miles upriver. The CSS Arkansas leaves port and sails downriver, creating all sorts of consternation among the Union's brown-water navy. Once she's beyond the action and downriver, she's scuttled. Why? OK, some damage. But realistically, she can't get back upriver.

Back to the time thing. A net gain of even 5 mph over 24 hours is still 120 miles per day. Three or four days could get you anywhere worthwhile.

ole

larry_cockerham · #3 08-30-2007, 06:41 PM

Ole, I was trying to begin answering a question from Richard Young concerning the time frame for the travels of Eli Lilly from southern Mississippi upstream in the direction of Columbus, Ohio. You have given me an idea of capabilities of craft against the 'current' of which I had no particular reference. I'm from New River country in North Carolina where it was easier to walk. I need to put Eli's travel in time focus to figure out who (Union or Confederate) had control of what. I suspect he took other opportunities for transport rather than river. Thanks very much for the input!

richard · #4 08-30-2007, 09:06 PM

Thanks to both of you. I am not sure as to where he would have left from. Vicksburg would have been in direct line west. Hood was already in Tennessee. One source says he left for Memphis and then on to camp chase. The Key work is left. He could have gone to St Louis and then taken the train but I have no idea. I will estimate the time to that place via river and see it it is within the time frame that I am looking at. Thanks for your help.

ole · #5 08-31-2007, 01:06 AM

Sorry, guys. I seem to have gotten in the middle of a private conversation.

ole

larry_cockerham · #6 08-31-2007, 09:40 AM

Ole, as usual, you were/are a great help!

Richard has a concentrated study of Major Eli Lilly's career going and is doing some tracking and fact finding. Eli crossed the path of the AOT at Pulaski, Tennessee and prior to that in Mississippi and Alabama. As for me, I'm still into geography.

Blockaderunner · #7 08-31-2007, 10:13 AM

I seem to remember reading somewhere that 'period replica' steamboats operate pleasure cruises on the Mississippi. I think they run between New Orleans and Vicksburg. If you can find the timetables for the cruises, that would give you a rough idea.

larry_cockerham · #8 08-31-2007, 04:50 PM

Good point. The Mississippi Queen and Delta Queen visit Nashville occasionally. I'll bet they have posted schedules. I doubt Lilly in a restricted time span used the river. The federals held contol of much of Kentucky, so he would have had some options rather than water.

richard · #9 09-01-2007, 12:20 AM

Ok, by what I have learned, today it would take about 10 days to sail from Vicksburg to Cincy. About 7 days from Memphis. Now going from Enterprise, Ms to these cities to get the boat would take about 3 days. To get to Camp Chase from Cinci would more than likely be by train so add a days. Take two days maybe for processing and then another 3 to 4 days to reach Nashville (Edgefield) so that would be just about right. The time frame was December 10th leaving Enterprise and arriving back at Nashville by Jan 2nd of '64. If any of you see any extra days involved, let me know. And I Thank You all so much.
Richard

whitworth · #10 09-01-2007, 09:46 AM

"Before the invention of the steamboat, a trip from Louisville to New Orleans often required 4 months. In 1820, the trip was made by steamboat in 20 days. By 1838, the same trip was being made in 6 days."

"In 1814, the Orleans made the 268-mile trip from New Orleans to Natchez in 6 days 6 hours 40 minutes. In 1880, the Robert E. Lee made the trip in 17 hours 11 minutes."

Source: http://www.mvn.usace.army.mil/PAO/hi.../steamboat.asp
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The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County

Inlands River Library
History of the Ohio-Mississippi River systems

"Among the earliest maps in the collection are river guides. Published between 1800 and 1870, these guides contain maps and navigational directions, plus they also provide descriptions of towns along the river."