The Sinking of the Mary D
Muskogee was bustling with economic developments left and right in 1905. For the past thirty years, the Missouri, Kansas and Texas railroad carried the greatest part of both inbound and outbound freight for building the town. The dependability of rail traffic, notwithstanding the occasional train wreck, drove steamboat traffic from the Arkansas River.
After the US Army established a post at Fort Gibson, boat traffic began intermittently traveling up the Arkansas River as far as Muskogee. The river's water height was best between December and June. Inadequate water depth on the river regularly blocked boat traffic during the rest of the year.
Experience showed that the Arkansas River was a fickle transportation corridor even with high water. Mark Twain and every man making a living on America's rivers knew the dangers. Raging floodwaters, shifting sand bars, floating trees and buried tree stumps (called snags) all presented challenges to a daring boat captain.
In 1905, businessmen were growing tired of the higher railroad freight rates. Recalling the heyday of steamboat travel, they turned to a Fort Smith steamboat in hopes of re-establishing permanent steamboat traffic on the Arkansas.
Capt. Benjamin Blakely was operating a smaller, shallow draft steamboat out of the Fort Smith port that year. The "Mary D", Capt. Blakely's boat, proved that a little steamer could again maintain regular traffic on the Arkansas River during most of the year. Local Muskogee investors formed the Muskogee-Oklahoma Packet Company and purchased the Mary D.
In 1906, a petition pleaded that the US Corps of Engineers maintain a channel two feet deep for boat traffic. The Corps still listed the Arkansas River as navigable from earlier decades of use. Because of decreased river traffic, the Corps ceased working to keep the river clear of snags during the past decade.
The Mary D steamboat operated successfully several years ferrying bulk commodities like lumber and cotton to Fort Smith. Then the steamboat crew mutinied. The federal government, which has jurisdiction over waterway shipping, convened an admiralty court in Muskogee to settle complaints between the crew and the boat's owners.
Another time, Mary D crewmembers became angry over the appearance of another steamboat at the Hyde Park docks. Picking up weapons, crew fired upon the new boat in their little harbor. The intruding boat returned rifle fire in defense. Fortunately, no one on either side was hurt.
The Mary D then became the property of a gravel company. The little steamboat remained in this occupation until its abrupt demise. The end of the Mary D came after a fall storm. By most measures, the storm was not a major one. Like countless other storms, this one raised the river's water height and cut away at the river's banks in places.
The latter caused the end of the Mary D. Near the mouth of the Grand River, raging waters cascading downstream undercut an embankment. Standing above the undercut was a majestic tree that toppled into the Arkansas River.
In the process of falling, the tree struck the little steamboat and rolled it over. The Mary D sank upside down in the river throwing its captain and crew into the water. Fortunately, all aboard swam to shore.
A couple of days latter, James Swift retrieved the boat's steam whistle, steam gauge and signal bell. He found the Mary D's smokestack to be sticking in the bottom of the Grand River's mouth.
The loss of the Mary D was quickly forgotten. The new, grander City of Muskogee steamboat already plied the Arkansas River.
After the US Army established a post at Fort Gibson, boat traffic began intermittently traveling up the Arkansas River as far as Muskogee. The river's water height was best between December and June. Inadequate water depth on the river regularly blocked boat traffic during the rest of the year.
Experience showed that the Arkansas River was a fickle transportation corridor even with high water. Mark Twain and every man making a living on America's rivers knew the dangers. Raging floodwaters, shifting sand bars, floating trees and buried tree stumps (called snags) all presented challenges to a daring boat captain.
In 1905, businessmen were growing tired of the higher railroad freight rates. Recalling the heyday of steamboat travel, they turned to a Fort Smith steamboat in hopes of re-establishing permanent steamboat traffic on the Arkansas.
Capt. Benjamin Blakely was operating a smaller, shallow draft steamboat out of the Fort Smith port that year. The "Mary D", Capt. Blakely's boat, proved that a little steamer could again maintain regular traffic on the Arkansas River during most of the year. Local Muskogee investors formed the Muskogee-Oklahoma Packet Company and purchased the Mary D.
In 1906, a petition pleaded that the US Corps of Engineers maintain a channel two feet deep for boat traffic. The Corps still listed the Arkansas River as navigable from earlier decades of use. Because of decreased river traffic, the Corps ceased working to keep the river clear of snags during the past decade.
The Mary D steamboat operated successfully several years ferrying bulk commodities like lumber and cotton to Fort Smith. Then the steamboat crew mutinied. The federal government, which has jurisdiction over waterway shipping, convened an admiralty court in Muskogee to settle complaints between the crew and the boat's owners.
Another time, Mary D crewmembers became angry over the appearance of another steamboat at the Hyde Park docks. Picking up weapons, crew fired upon the new boat in their little harbor. The intruding boat returned rifle fire in defense. Fortunately, no one on either side was hurt.
The Mary D then became the property of a gravel company. The little steamboat remained in this occupation until its abrupt demise. The end of the Mary D came after a fall storm. By most measures, the storm was not a major one. Like countless other storms, this one raised the river's water height and cut away at the river's banks in places.
The latter caused the end of the Mary D. Near the mouth of the Grand River, raging waters cascading downstream undercut an embankment. Standing above the undercut was a majestic tree that toppled into the Arkansas River.
In the process of falling, the tree struck the little steamboat and rolled it over. The Mary D sank upside down in the river throwing its captain and crew into the water. Fortunately, all aboard swam to shore.
A couple of days latter, James Swift retrieved the boat's steam whistle, steam gauge and signal bell. He found the Mary D's smokestack to be sticking in the bottom of the Grand River's mouth.
The loss of the Mary D was quickly forgotten. The new, grander City of Muskogee steamboat already plied the Arkansas River.
Labels: Mary D
posted by Wally Waits at
4:20 PM
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