Lake steamers of North America include large, steam-powered non-government vessels with displacement hulls on American freshwater lakes excluding the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...

. They may have served as passenger boats, freighters, mail-boats, log-boom vessels or a combination thereof. The construction of such vessels posed unique problems on water bodies located away from established dry-docks and marine railways, or connecting canals to such facilities. In some countries such as

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

, lake steamers may have been preserved in their original configuration. In the United States with its dynamic economy and changing cultural mores, the survival of such boats often depended on reuses and power plant changes. The MS ''Mount Washington'', with four different power-plants and changes from side-wheeler to screw steamer to diesel power, provides a fine example. Few such vessels survive in the US where the first commercial steamers were launched.

Smaller steamers

Surviving vessels in near original condition: * ''Louise''—Steam yacht preserved on Geneva Lake, Wisconsin, available for cruises. Built in 1902 by the Racine Boat Works for Chicago banker John J. Mitchell, it is an elegant vessel now in passenger excursion service. Originally utilizing a coal-fired boiler, it has been extensively upgraded to a more efficient and environment-friendly diesel-fired Scotch marine boiler, powering a two-cylinder double expansion steam engine. This is a steel-hulled vessel, with mahogany trim, and in operation with the Gage Marine Corporation under the auspices of Bill Gage, third-generation owner of the company. * '' Minnehaha''—1906 "Streetcar" style commuter steamer raised from the bottom of

Lake Minnetonka Lake Minnetonka (Dakota: ''Mní iá Tháŋka'') is a lake located about west-southwest of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Lake Minnetonka has about 23 named bays and areas. The lake lies within Hennepin and Carver counties and is surrounded by 13 i ...

, Minnesota. Wood hull. Available for cruises. * ''

Virginia V Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...

''—1922

Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ) is a sound of the Pacific Northwest, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean, and part of the Salish Sea. It is located along the northwestern coast of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected m ...

"Mosquito Fleet" steamer based in

Lake Union Lake Union is a freshwater lake located entirely within the city limits of Seattle, Washington, United States. It is a major part of the Lake Washington Ship Canal, which carries fresh water from the much larger Lake Washington on the east to P ...

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region o ...

, but known for cruises on

Lake Washington Lake Washington is a large freshwater lake adjacent to the city of Seattle. It is the largest lake in King County and the second largest natural lake in the state of Washington, after Lake Chelan. It borders the cities of Seattle on the west, ...

. Wood hull with 1898 steam engine. Available for cruises. The ''Virginia V'' and Mystic Seaport's ''Sabino'' are the nation's two surviving wooden screw steamers. * '' Ticonderoga''—One of the nation's two surviving walking-beam side-wheel steamer built in 1906 for service on

Lake Champlain , native_name_lang = , image = Champlainmap.svg , caption = Lake Champlain-River Richelieu watershed , image_bathymetry = , caption_bathymetry = , location = New York/ Vermont in the United States; and Quebec in Canada , coords = , type ...

. Now a stationary museum at the Shelburne Museum in

Shelburne, Vermont Shelburne is a town in Chittenden County, Vermont, United States. Located along the shores of Lake Champlain, Shelburne's town center lies approximately south of the city center of Burlington, the largest city in the state of Vermont. As of th ...

Dieselized steamer hulls

* MV ''Mount Katahdin''—The of 1914 sails on Moosehead Lake in

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and nor ...

. The Bath Iron Works-built ship served as a log drive vessel as well as providing summer excursions. It is owned and operated by the Moosehead Maritime Museum. Its outward appearance adheres closely to its lake steamer roots. Available for cruises. * MV ''Mohican II''—The MV of Lake George in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

is on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

. It was launched in 1907, replacing an earlier wood steamer with the same name. Available for cruises. * MS ''Mount Washington''—The of

Lake Winnipesaukee Lake Winnipesaukee () is the largest lake in the U.S. state of New Hampshire, located in the Lakes Region at the foothills of the White Mountains. It is approximately long (northwest-southeast) and from wide (northeast-southwest), covering ...

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

replaced an earlier wooden side-wheel steamer that burned in 1939. Parties interested in continuing the tradition of a lake steamer purchased an old sidewheel vessel on

: the ''Chateaugay'', a , iron-hulled sidewheeler that was being used as a clubhouse for the Burlington yacht club. It was cut into sections and transported to Lake Winnipesaukee on rail cars. A new twin-screw vessel was designed for the hull being welded back together at

Lakeport, New Hampshire Lakeport is a neighborhood in the city of Laconia in Belknap County, New Hampshire, in the United States. It was once known as "Lake Village" and is centered on a power dam on the short river channel between Paugus Bay (an arm of Lake Winnipesau ...

. Powered by two steam engines taken from an ocean-going yacht, the new ''Mount Washington'' made her maiden voyage on August 15, 1940. The ship has been renovated multiple times, including several upgrades to the ship power plant, and hull extensions added to lengthen the ship.

Notes

References

Steamboat ''Minnehaha''

cruiselakegeneva.com

virginiav.org

External links

MS ''Mount Washington'' cruises

katahdincruises.com

lakegeorgesteamboat.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lake steamers of North America Water transportation in New Hampshire Passenger ships of the United States