Cobblestone articles from November 2006

Cobblestone archives from November 2006

Editor's note.(Editorial)
November 1, 2006... Today, we think nothing of hopping on a plane to get from one coast of the United States to the other--and of doing it within a matter of hours, too! Before the invention of planes and airways--and trains and railways and cars and highways, for...

Race for the golden antlers.
November 1, 2006... In the second half of the 1800s, farmers along the Mississippi River relied on steamboats to transport their goods to market. The fierce competition to be the first vessel to land and load tons of cotton, tobacco, and livestock onboard gave...

When rivers were roads.
November 1, 2006... Long before it was discovered by Europeans, the area today known as New York functioned as an important trading post. American Indians took advantage of and traveled on its natural crossroads--the Mohawk and Hudson rivers. The Mohawk River...

Steam's evolving engine.
November 1, 2006... "THE FACT IS, THAT ONE NEW IDEA LEADS TO ANOTHER, THAT TO A THIRD, AND SO ON THROUGH A COURSE OF TIME UNTIL SOME ONE, WITH WHOM NO ONE OF THESE IDEAS IS ORIGINAL, COMBINES ALL TOGETHER, AND PRODUCES WHAT IS JUSTLY CALLED A NEW...

Folly or fortune?(Robert Fulton)
November 1, 2006... Fulton's Folly," people jeered as they passed Browne's Shipyard in New York City. It was 1807, and Browne's was the site where a very strange boat was being built by inventor Robert Fulton and his partner, Robert R. Livingston, Jr. The two men...

The steamboat crew.
November 1, 2006... In the mid-1800s, trade along the Hudson, Ohio, Mississippi, and Missouri rivers revolved around steamboats. A wide range of men, from powerful captains to lowly firemen, were needed to run these vessels. The average crew consisted of about 30...

No bottom ahead!
November 1, 2006... You probably recognize the name Mark Twain, author of American classics such as The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. But did you know that in the language of the steamboat crew, Twain's name really means...

Measuring the steamboat way.
November 1, 2006... How big do you think your classroom or living room is if measured the way steamboat crews measured depth (see page 20)? Make your own leadline and measure your world the steamboat way! you NEED an empty paper towel roll about...

S.O.S.!(shipwrecks)
November 1, 2006... Shipwrecks are a fascinating part of our maritime lore, and studying how and why they happen is important for advancing nautical engineering. Over the past two centuries, while hundreds of boats and ships met their ends on America's rivers and...

Dangerous waters.
November 1, 2006... The sinking of the Titanic in 1912 may be the most well-known maritime disaster in history. Yet, it was not the first--or even the worst--involving a steam-driven vessel in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The introduction of boats powered by...

Safety first.(steamboat accidents)
November 1, 2006... Shocked by stories of death and destruction in steamboat disasters, Americans urged government leaders to investigate and improve maritime safety. "The federal government had to step in to regulate the industry in order to save lives," explains...

Hear the whistle blow.
November 1, 2006... Of course you know from where steamboats drew their power. But did you realize that their "voices" were steam-driven, too? That's right--the steam in the boats' boilers was able to blow special whistles. These whistles, made from brass pipes,...

Whistle wonders.
November 1, 2006... On a steamboat, the whistle was powered by the ship's boiler. which sent steam rushing through pipes and valves. This activity shows you how to make a replica of these historic whistles. You already have the most important part, because to make...

Settling an argument.
November 1, 2006... Gibbons v. Ogden The trouble started over a steamboat. When Robert Fulton and Robert R. Livingston, Jr., launched the first successful steamboat in 1807, they hoped their creation would bring them money and fame. New York State gave them...

Cruising.(THE PAST IS PRESENT)(Cover story)
November 1, 2006... More than 10,000 paddle-wheel steamboats once sailed America's rivers. Many of the earliest steamboats were used to carry mostly goods and cargo up and down rivers. As the number of passengers grew, however, the vessels changed from floating...

Did you know?(steamboats and steamships)
November 1, 2006... Read about some famous steamboats and steamships that made history: In 1819, the Savannah became the first steam-powered vessel to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Considered an engineering marvel, the Savannah was an American sailing ship filled...

Steamboats.(Letter to the editor)
November 1, 2006... The first financially successful steamboat was invented by Robert Fulton in 1807. It wasn't very efficient because it took 32 hours to travel from New York City to Albany. Technology has greatly changed steamboats since then. Tristan...

I Wish.(Poem)
November 1, 2006... I Wish I wish I could travel to unknown places-- places of my imagination, where the sky is always bright, and birds chirp cheerfully all year. I wish I could travel to places where there is no sadness,...

After The Rain.(Poem)
November 1, 2006... AFTER THE RAIN Rain is the rebirth of the world. After the rain, the grass is bright green. After the rain, the flowers bloom. After the rain, the sun radiates warmth. After the rain, the crickets...

Steamboats of the Mississippi.(Letter to the editor)
November 1, 2006... The steamboats of the Mississippi River were the heroes of river transportation because they brought people and cargo upriver and downriver like lightning. The steamboat Clermont was made by a man named Robert Fulton. It was nicknamed...

Flowers.(Poem)
November 1, 2006... FLOWERS A summer flower stands tall, with pink petals opened wide. It reaches up high to all, revealing its bright yellow pollen inside. Nature displays many beauties on pedestals of green. But not...

A Day at the Amusement Park.(Poem)
November 1, 2006... A DAY AT THE AMUSEMENT PARK I see hands waving in the air as though they were reaching for clouds made of ice cream. The stars are glistening on the rides as though they were angels' halos. I hear...

A Head Full of Notions: A Story About Robert Fulton.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2006... A Head Full of Notions: A Story About Robert Fulton by Andy Russell Bowen (Minneapolis, Minnesota: Carolrhoda Books, 1996, www.lernerbooks.com) begins with Fulton's childhood in Pennsylvania, follows his footsteps as a painter in the United...

Robert Fulton: Innovator With Steam Power.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2006... Robert Fulton: Innovator With Steam Power by Peggy J. Parks (San Diego, California: Blackbirch Press, 2004, www.galegroup.com/blackbirch/), a book in the Giants of Science series, combines images and text in a lively manner to make reading...

The Mississippi Steamboat Era in Historic Photographs: Natchez to New Orleans 1870-1920.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2006... The Mississippi Steamboat Era in Historic Photographs: Natchez to New Orleans 1870-1920 by Joan W. Gandy and Thomas H. Gandy (Mineola, New York: Dover Publications, 1987, www.doverinformation .com) is a collection of 170 photographs from the...

Steamboats on the Mississippi.(Young adult review)(Brief article)(Book review)
November 1, 2006... Steamboats on the Mississippi by Ralph K. Andrist (Jefferson City, Missouri: Troll Communications, 1988, www.scholastic.com) traces the history of steamboats on the Mississippi River, beginning with the first steamboat to travel the river in...

On the Web.(www.fultonsteam.com/home_page_north_river_steamboat_fulton_steamboat project)
November 1, 2006... The Saugerties Fulton Steamboat Association is proceeding with a project to construct a working replica of the first steamboat. If successful, the Clermont again will be plying the waters of the Hudson River by 2009, carrying tourists between...

Clermont State Historic Site.(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Clermont State Historic Site, Germantown, New York. Clermont is the home of the Livingston-Fulton steamboat and a museum dedicated to the Livingston family. In 2007, the museum will host many events to celebrate the 200th birthday of the...

The Delta Queen Steamboat Company, Inc.(PLACES to Visit)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... The Delta Queen Steamboat Company, Inc., New Orleans, Louisiana. Tour America's heartland by river on the Delta Queen, Mississippi Queen, or American Queen paddle-wheel steamboat. Moving at a relaxing eight miles per hour, you can revisit...

Hampton Roads Naval Museum.(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Hampton Roads Naval Museum, Norfolk, Virginia. Dedicated to the study of 220 years of naval history in the region, the museum also is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the battleship Wisconsin. Go to www.hrnm .navy.mil/ for more...

Mariners' Museum.(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Mariners' Museum, Newport News, Virginia. Among the myriad permanent exhibitions here are the Great Hail of Steam, which displays oceangoing commercial steamships, and The Age of Exploration, which details the development of shipbuilding...

Arabia Steamboat Museum.(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Arabia Steamboat Museum, Kansas City, Missouri. The side-wheeled steamship Arabia traveled the Ohio, Mississippi, and Missouri rivers until it was snagged and sunk in 1856, only to be rediscovered in 1987. Thousands of artifacts--including some...

Old Court House Museum.(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Old Court House Museum, Vicksburg, Mississippi. Formerly used as a courthouse, the museum reflects much of Vicksburg's history, including the steamboat era. A set of gilded antlers and Captain Thomas P. Leathers's rocking chair, which was used...

Gibbons v. Ogden: Controlling Trade Between States.(Brief article)(Children's review)(Book review)
November 1, 2006... GIBBONS V. OGDEN: CONTROLLING TRADE BETWEEN STATES by Isabel Simone Levinson (Springfield, New Jersey: Enslow Publishers, 1999, www.enslow.com) takes a look at the landmark 19th-century Supreme Court case of Gibbons v. Ogden. After steamboat...

From the archives.
November 1, 2006... Steamboating was one of the first methods of transportation that helped the United States transform from a young nation into an industrial power. Following are some other COBBLESTONE issues that trace the ways America expanded as a nation: The...

Yes, she was a steamboat man.(FLASHBACK TO ...)(Blanche Douglass )
November 1, 2006... Blanche Douglass had loved the big river for as long as she could remember. Her father owned a large cotton plantation in Tensas Parish, Louisiana, and their home was right by the Mississippi. Steamboats often stopped to pick up cotton and...

Brain ticklers.
November 1, 2006... GIVE YOUR BRAIN A LITTLE TICKLE TO SEE HOW WELL YOU READ AND UNDERSTOOD THIS ISSUE ON THE GOLDEN AGE OF THE STEAMBOAT. IF YOU BELIEVE THE ANSWER TO BE FALSE, GIVE YOURSELF THE ULTIMATE TEST AND SEE WHETHER YOU CAN EXPLAIN WHY IT IS FALSE....

A final word.
November 1, 2006... THINK OF A MODERN INVENTION THAT HAS IMPACTED THE WORLD. FOR EXAMPLE, CELL PHONES FOREVER HAVE CHANGED HOW PEOPLE COMMUNICATE BOTH LOCALLY AND GLOBALLY IN THE 21ST CENTURY, JUST AST THE STEAM ENGINE AND STEAMBOAT CHANGED FOR GOOD HOW THE WORLD...

Cartoon connection with Ebenezer & the Colonel.(Comic)(Brief article)(Cartoon)
November 1, 2006... LOOK! Barely away from the dock, and FULTON'S monstrous STEAM-THINGY is already DEAN in the WATER. I knew it would never work! What a RIDICULOUS IDEA for a boat! [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] We forgot to check our fuel supply, Mr....

What is it?
November 1, 2006... That featherbrained Colonel scrambled this photo of a scene connected to steamboats. Can you unscramble these boxes and put the image back together? Try making a copy of the cover and then cutting out the pieces to move them around. The full...