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The initial use of the steam engine in water craft was in England around the early 1800's. It was used in bulk trades across the english channel so that massive amounts of low-value goods such as coal, stone, ore, brick and tile could be shipped and then distributed. In the beginning it was slow to take off due to the high maintenance needed and the manufacturing cost. Instead, the early steam boats were used to carry mail, some goods, and even live animals sometimes because of their durability while on the water. Around the mid-19th century, the invention of screw propulsion instead of a paddle gave the steam boat the necessary push to become a competitor against sailing ships. The large bulk steamers made of steel were almost impervious to the wind and weather, which gave them an extreme advantage over the sailing ships that relied on the ever fickle wind to propel them. This first use of a steam engine in watercraft was the stepping stone that many would soon follow and would slowly transform the shipping industry. (Fenton, Roy)
America began to utilize the idea of steam powered schooners on the West Coast in broad numbers starting in the late 1880's. These were used to ship lumber up and down the coast for those who had migrated West during the Gold Rush. The wooden steam schooners replaced the small wind-driven schooners: in actuality, the sailing schooners were literally transformed into a steam schooner by adding a steam engine, like the Newsboy in the image to the left. These small wooden steamers normally weighed 200 to 300 tons which was about the weight of a wooden schooner. The largest wooden steam schooner to be built weighed a whopping 2,935 tons. With the turn of the century came a new concept in steam boating: the use of steel. This addition allowed the steamers to become much larger than the average wooden steamer (each averaged around 1,800 tons) and the steaming business began to include perishable items that could be stored in the hull of the ship (sugar, salt, and cement). After World War 2, there were huge steam ships referred to as "lakers" that weighed well over 3,000 tons and could carry more lumber and goods than any of it's predecessors. The most economically influential use of the steam boat came in tug boats. These little boats could pull rafts 1000 ft. long holding 5,000,000 feet of boards. The steam engine transformed the shipping industry on the West coast in a matter of 50 years, and has had repercussions ever since. (Terrence, Ryan)
(Terrence, Ryan)
The Newsboy was a revolutionary step in the right direction as far as shipping goes. Being relatively small, this schooner weighed 218 tons and probably did not carry much lumber. The great thing about these small schooners was that they were able to maneuver around the smaller ports (called dog-hole trade) up and down the West Coast. As time went on, the larger steamers could not fit in the small ports and were harder to control around the cliffs and rocks jutting out all around the coast. Eventually these small schooners were outdated, and the dog-hole ports with them. The loss of steam business (as well as the lack of Locomotives in the area) allowed for the major port on the West Coast, and basically in the Pacific, to become San Francisco. (Terrence, Ryan)
Overall, the addition of steam in both Britain and the United States provided a huge economic boost. In Britain, the eventual durability of the ships in the Mid-19th century forwarded the shipping of coal, ore, stone, and brick. The steel bulk trading ships could stand the test of wind and weather and insured that the cargo made it to its destination. In the U.S., the introduction of steam transformed an entire industry and added new goods to the pile. After years of shipping wood quickly and efficiently up and down the coast, the steel steamers could move salt, sugar, cotton, and even asphalt. The expansion of steam boats into all corners of the trade made it a formidable invention and a necessity in the evolution of commodity transportation.
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