Canemah (sidewheeler)
Encyclopedia
Canemah was one of the first steamboats to run on the Willamette River
above Willamette Falls
. Canemah was the first steamboat to load grain at Corvallis
, the first to carry the mail on the Willamette River, and the first steamboat in Oregon to suffer a fatal boiler explosion.
in 1844. Hedges saw that the volume of commerce passing down the Willamette was growing too great to be hauled by the canoes and flat boats that were being used in the late 1840s. Hedges and his partners had accumulated several thousand dollars and in late 1849 Hedges went east to arrange for the purchase of machinery for the steamboat he planned to build. In New Orleans Hedges bought two steam engines and arranged to have them shipped to Oregon around Cape Horn
.
Hedges returned to Oregon in late 1850, and he and his partners began construction of Canemah. By the end of September 1851, Canemah was launched. The Willamette River had many shallow sections at that time, called "bars". Canemah was designed to pass over all but the shallowest of bars, drawing only 17 inches when fully loaded.
had to be unloaded, portaged around the falls, and loaded again on vessels above the falls. For commercial purposes, the upper Willamette ran from above the falls to the head of navigation, and included important tributary rivers such as the Tualatin
and the Yamhill
. In the early 1850s the head of navigation was considered to be Corvallis
, then known as Marysville.
Until 1851 no steam-powered vessel had ever run on the Upper Willamette. In 1851 several steamers arrived at just about the same time as Canemah. Most of early vessels were smaller and did not run on regular schedules. Canemah was large for the time, and was the first steamer to enter regularly scheduled service. Canemahs first commanders were captains Bennett and McClosky. Typical freight of freight rates for Canemah was the charge of 20 cents per bushel for wheat shipped to Canemah from the Avery Brothers warehouse at Corvallis, which handled most of the grain then produced in Benton County
.
The owners of Canemah were able to obtain the mail contract for the upper river, and the vessel became a floating post office for Nathaniel Coe, who was appointed the postal agent for the Oregon Territory
in 1852. He sorted all the letters and packages as the vessel moved along the river, picking up and dropping off the mail at each landing. Canemah made the mail route twice a week between Canemah and Salem
. Mail deilvery was informal in those days, and it sometimes occurred that residents could wave a letter at a landing to flag the steamer down. Canemah also operated on the Yamhill River up to the town of Lafayette
.
Steamers in those days in Oregon were fueled by wood, and they could burn four cords in an hour. What a steamer needed for regular operation were regular wood depots, which were called "wood yards." In the early 1850s woodyards were scarce along the Willamette River, and Canemah was forced to pay farmers five dollars a cord for wood. Few farmers were willing to cut wood and sell, so if Canemah could not embark sufficient fuel at a journey's outset, her trip might be cut short.
In 1851, the Oregon territorial legislature voted to move the capital from Oregon City to Salem. In 1852 Canemah transported all the legislators and all the records of the territorial government upriver to Salem. On other occasions, Canemah carried territorial governor Joseph Lane
and other officials. In 1854 the Hedges partners sold Canemah to the Citizens Accommodation Line, a concern organized by Captain George E. Cole and E.M. White. Cole and White also bought the Franklin (ex Shoalwater ex Fenix and operated both vessels out of Canemah. The company had a carriage which hauled passengers up from Oregon City along the one or two-mile road to Canemah, where twice a week Canemah or Franklin departed twice weekly for Corvallis.
Willamette River
The Willamette River is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States...
above Willamette Falls
Willamette Falls
The Willamette Falls is a natural waterfall on the Willamette River between Oregon City and West Linn, Oregon, in the United States. It is the largest waterfall in the Pacific Northwest and the eighteenth largest in the world by water volume. Horseshoe in shape, it is wide and high with a flow...
. Canemah was the first steamboat to load grain at Corvallis
Corvallis, Oregon
Corvallis is a city located in central western Oregon, United States. It is the county seat of Benton County and the principal city of the Corvallis, Oregon Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Benton County. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 54,462....
, the first to carry the mail on the Willamette River, and the first steamboat in Oregon to suffer a fatal boiler explosion.
Design and construction
Canemah was designed and built by Absalom F. Hedges (1817-1890), who settled at Canemah, OregonCanemah, Oregon
Canemah was an early settlement in the U.S. state of Oregon located near Willamette Falls on the Willamette River. It is now a district within Oregon City.-Location:...
in 1844. Hedges saw that the volume of commerce passing down the Willamette was growing too great to be hauled by the canoes and flat boats that were being used in the late 1840s. Hedges and his partners had accumulated several thousand dollars and in late 1849 Hedges went east to arrange for the purchase of machinery for the steamboat he planned to build. In New Orleans Hedges bought two steam engines and arranged to have them shipped to Oregon around Cape Horn
Cape Horn
Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...
.
Hedges returned to Oregon in late 1850, and he and his partners began construction of Canemah. By the end of September 1851, Canemah was launched. The Willamette River had many shallow sections at that time, called "bars". Canemah was designed to pass over all but the shallowest of bars, drawing only 17 inches when fully loaded.
Operations on the Willamette River
The upper Willamette River is much longer than the lower Willamette. The division between the two stretches of the river occurs at Willamette Falls, which was impassable to waterborne traffic. All cargoes bound further south than Oregon CityOregon City, Oregon
Oregon City was the first city in the United States west of the Rocky Mountains to be incorporated. It is the county seat of Clackamas County, Oregon...
had to be unloaded, portaged around the falls, and loaded again on vessels above the falls. For commercial purposes, the upper Willamette ran from above the falls to the head of navigation, and included important tributary rivers such as the Tualatin
Tualatin River
The Tualatin River is a tributary of the Willamette River located in Oregon in the United States. The river is approximately long, and it drains a fertile farming region called the Tualatin Valley southwest and west of Portland at the northwest corner of the Willamette Valley...
and the Yamhill
Yamhill River
The Yamhill River is an tributary of the Willamette River, in the U.S. state of Oregon. Formed by the confluence of the South Yamhill River and the North Yamhill River about east of McMinnville, it drains part of the Northern Oregon Coast Range...
. In the early 1850s the head of navigation was considered to be Corvallis
Corvallis, Oregon
Corvallis is a city located in central western Oregon, United States. It is the county seat of Benton County and the principal city of the Corvallis, Oregon Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Benton County. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 54,462....
, then known as Marysville.
Until 1851 no steam-powered vessel had ever run on the Upper Willamette. In 1851 several steamers arrived at just about the same time as Canemah. Most of early vessels were smaller and did not run on regular schedules. Canemah was large for the time, and was the first steamer to enter regularly scheduled service. Canemahs first commanders were captains Bennett and McClosky. Typical freight of freight rates for Canemah was the charge of 20 cents per bushel for wheat shipped to Canemah from the Avery Brothers warehouse at Corvallis, which handled most of the grain then produced in Benton County
Benton County, Oregon
-National protected areas:*Siuslaw National Forest *William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 78,153 people, 30,145 households, and 18,237 families residing in the county. The population density was 116 people per square mile . There were 31,980...
.
The owners of Canemah were able to obtain the mail contract for the upper river, and the vessel became a floating post office for Nathaniel Coe, who was appointed the postal agent for the Oregon Territory
Oregon Territory
The Territory of Oregon was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from August 14, 1848, until February 14, 1859, when the southwestern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Oregon. Originally claimed by several countries , the region was...
in 1852. He sorted all the letters and packages as the vessel moved along the river, picking up and dropping off the mail at each landing. Canemah made the mail route twice a week between Canemah and Salem
Salem, Oregon
Salem is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary between Marion and Polk counties, and the city neighborhood...
. Mail deilvery was informal in those days, and it sometimes occurred that residents could wave a letter at a landing to flag the steamer down. Canemah also operated on the Yamhill River up to the town of Lafayette
Lafayette, Oregon
Lafayette is a city in Yamhill County, Oregon, United States on the Yamhill River and Oregon Route 99W. It was founded in 1846 and incorporated in 1878...
.
Steamers in those days in Oregon were fueled by wood, and they could burn four cords in an hour. What a steamer needed for regular operation were regular wood depots, which were called "wood yards." In the early 1850s woodyards were scarce along the Willamette River, and Canemah was forced to pay farmers five dollars a cord for wood. Few farmers were willing to cut wood and sell, so if Canemah could not embark sufficient fuel at a journey's outset, her trip might be cut short.
In 1851, the Oregon territorial legislature voted to move the capital from Oregon City to Salem. In 1852 Canemah transported all the legislators and all the records of the territorial government upriver to Salem. On other occasions, Canemah carried territorial governor Joseph Lane
Joseph Lane
Joseph Lane was an American general during the Mexican-American War and a United States Senator from Oregon.-Early life:...
and other officials. In 1854 the Hedges partners sold Canemah to the Citizens Accommodation Line, a concern organized by Captain George E. Cole and E.M. White. Cole and White also bought the Franklin (ex Shoalwater ex Fenix and operated both vessels out of Canemah. The company had a carriage which hauled passengers up from Oregon City along the one or two-mile road to Canemah, where twice a week Canemah or Franklin departed twice weekly for Corvallis.
Further reading
- Timmen, Fritz, Blow for the Landing, Caxton Press, Caldwell, ID 1973 ISBN 0-87004-221-1