John McNulty (fl. c. 1860) was a pioneer Columbia River steamboat captain.
John McNulty (fl. c. 1860) was a pioneer Columbia River steamboat captain.
John McNulty was born in Dublin, Ireland on March 21, 1830. He went to sea as a boy. After years of sailing the seas of the World, John McNulty landed in Portland, Oregon in 1852. Almost immediately upon his arrival, he began steamboating the Pacific Northwest's rivers on the Fashion. From its founding in 1860, John McNulty was a steamboat captain for the Oregon Steam Navigation Company and for the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company. For some 3 decades, Capt. McNulty was entrusted with the companies’ steamboat runs on the treacherous middle river of the Columbia. There, then, the Columbia River's two most significant and dangerous rapids, the Cascades and The Dalles, followed one upon the other. Capt. McNulty was the first master of the R.R. Thompson on the middle river, and the Oregon Steam Navigation Company, near, continuously, entrusted its Idaho to Capt. McNulty's able command during its term on the middle river. It has been said that the U.S. state of Idaho, itself, was named for this formidable draft. [1] In addition to the preceding biographical data for Captain McNulty there on same page noted, it is also said of Capt. McNulty in the Marine History of the Pacific Northwest that "His career has been exceedingly fortunate and free of accidents." [2]
It was never thought safe to transport passengers, their property, ores or other freight over the Columbia River rapids. Portage of such cargo around the rapids was required, while the steamboat's captain and a skeleton crew slowly navigated the steamboat through the dangerous Casacades and Dalles. Towards the end of the 19th century, as the railroads began to span along the length of the Pacific Northwest's rivers and about their rapids, the heyday of the more risky and otherwise expensive steamboat river transport came to a close. [3]
After the advancement of the railroads, the first steamboat to be taken off the River to operate in the still financially lucrative shipping on the lower Columbia River, Willamette River and Puget Sound was the R.R. Thompson. Capt. McNulty was ordered to take her through the Cascades to the lower Columbia River on June 3, 1882. Capt. McNulty took his trusted first officer, William Johnson, engineer, William Doran, and assistant George Fuller as crew.
McNulty, in transiting the Thompson to the lower river, showcased his astonishing talents as a riverboatman. No longer encumbered by his duties to passengers and freight shippers and theirs or their property's continued safe transport, he entered the treacherous Cascade rapids with the 215 foot long and 1158 gross ton R.R. Thompson, which was not a shallow craft, but had a significant hold depth of 9.5 ft exposed to the rapids concealed rock hazards and embankments, at full engine stroke. With its 38 ft beam and great girth, the Thompson was built for passenger comfort and to house a maximum of cargo. It was not built to be a fast driven boat even in calm waters. [4]
The Thompson was a big boat for her day. Her two hundred and fifteen foot length and thirty-eight foot beam allowed for spacious passenger accommodations with ample room for freight. Passenger spaces were nicely fitted out and the ladies' cabin boasted carpets, plush settees, and polished panelled walls. The Thompson was not a fast boat. Rather she deliberately was built for comfort and truly qualified for such overblown adjectives as 'palace boat' and 'finest cuisine afloat,' whipped up by enthusiastic passenger agents of the day. [5]
Capt. McNulty, though, ran the behemoth and clumsy R.R. Thompson through the hazards of the 6 mile long Cascades without incident in just 6 minutes and 40 seconds or at the then astounding water speed of about a mile a minute (60 mph). [4] [5] This was an astonishing nautical feat. John McNulty's record set that day for minimal steamboat transit time through the Cascades rapids was never later equaled, let, alone, bested, by any steamboat captain, even, by captains in command of smaller, swifter and more nimble steamboats. Captain James W. Troup was unsuccessful in his attempt to best Captain McNulty's record while Troup was in command of the far more nimble Hassalo.
John McNulty's grave in St. Helens, Oregon has a historical marker. The U.S. community of McNulty, Oregon is named for this pioneer Pacific Northwest riverboat captain.
Wide West was a steamboat that served in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. It had a reputation as a luxury boat of its days.
Many steamboats operated on the Columbia River and its tributaries, in the Pacific Northwest region of North America, from about 1850 to 1981. Major tributaries of the Columbia that formed steamboat routes included the Willamette and Snake rivers. Navigation was impractical between the Snake River and the Canada–US border, due to several rapids, but steamboats also operated along the Wenatchee Reach of the Columbia, in northern Washington, and on the Arrow Lakes of southern British Columbia.
The Bailey Gatzert was a sternwheel steamboat that ran on the Columbia River and Puget Sound from the 1890s to the 1920s. This vessel was considered one of the finest of its time. It was named after Bailey Gatzert, an early businessman and mayor of Seattle, who was one of the closest friends and business associates of John Leary – the person who financed the ship.
The steamboat Hassalo operated from 1880 to 1898 on the Columbia River and Puget Sound. Hassalo became famous for running the Cascades of the Columbia on May 26, 1888 at a speed approaching 60 miles (97 km) an hour. This vessel should not be confused with other steamboats with the same or a similar name, including Hassalo (1899) and Hassaloe (1857).
Lurline was a steamboat that served from 1878 to 1930 on the Columbia and Willamette rivers. Lurline was a classic example of the Columbia river type of steamboat.
R. R. Thompson was a large sternwheel steamboat designed in the classic Columbia River style. She was named after Robert R. Thompson, one of the shareholders of the Oregon Steam Navigation Company, the firm that built the vessel.
The Colonel Wright was the first steamboat to operate on the Columbia River above The Dalles in the parts of the Oregon Country that later became the U.S. states of Oregon, Washington and Idaho. She was the first steamboat to run on the Snake River. She was named after Colonel George Wright, an army commander in the Indian Wars in the Oregon Country in the 1850s. She was generally called the Wright during her operating career.
The sidewheeler Idaho was a steamboat that ran on the Columbia River and Puget Sound from 1860 to 1898. There is some confusion as to the origins of the name; many historians have proposed it is the inspiration for the name of the State of Idaho. Considerable doubt has been cast on this due to the fact that it is unclear if the boat was named before or after the idea of 'Idaho' as a territory name was proposed. John Ruckel also allegedly stated he had named the boat after a Native American term meaning 'Gem of the Mountains' he got from a mining friend from what is now Colorado territory. This steamer should not be confused with the many other vessels of the same name, including the sternwheeler Idaho built in 1903 for service on Lake Coeur d'Alene and the steamship Idaho of the Pacific Coast Steamship Line which sank near Port Townsend, Washington.
Nez Perce Chief was a steamboat that operated on the upper Columbia River, in Washington, U.S., specifically the stretch of the river that began above the Celilo Falls. Her engines came from the Carrie Ladd, an important earlier sternwheeler. Nez Perce Chief also ran up the Snake River to Lewiston, Idaho, a distance of 141 miles from the mouth of the Snake River near Wallula, Wash. Terr.
The Belle of Oregon City, generally referred to as Belle, was built in 1853, and was the first iron steamboat built on the west coast of North America.
James William Troup was an American steamship captain, Canadian Pacific Railway administrator and shipping pioneer.
Kootenai was a sternwheel steamboat that ran on the Arrow Lakes in British Columbia from 1885 to 1895. Kootenai was the second sternwheeler to run on the Arrow Lakes. This vessel should not be confused with the similarly named Kootenay, an 1897 sternwheeler that also ran on the Arrow Lakes.
The Carrie Ladd was an important early steamboat on the lower Columbia and lower Willamette rivers. The vessel established the basic design of the Columbia River steamboat, which was later used throughout the Pacific Northwest, British Columbia, Alaska, and the Yukon.
Teaser was a steamboat which ran on the Columbia River and Puget Sound from 1874 to 1880.
Emma Hayward commonly called the Hayward, was a steamboat that served in the Pacific Northwest. This vessel was once one of the finest and fastest steamboats on the Columbia River and Puget Sound. As newer vessels came into service, Emma Hayward was relegated to secondary roles, and, by 1891, was converted into a Columbia river tow boat.
Jennie Clark, also seen spelled Jenny Clark, was the first sternwheel-driven steamboat to operate on the rivers of the Pacific Northwest, including British Columbia. This vessel was commonly known as the Jennie when it was in service. The design of the Jennie Clark set a pattern for all future sternwheel steamboats built in the Pacific Northwest and in British Columbia.
Harvest Queen was the name of two stern-wheel steamboat built and operated in Oregon. Both vessels were well known in their day and had reputations for speed, power, and efficiency.The first Harvest Queen, widely considered one of the finest steamers of its day, was constructed at Celilo, Oregon, which was then separated from the other portions of the navigable Columbia River by two stretches of difficult to pass rapids.
The People's Transportation Company operated steamboats on the Willamette River and its tributaries, the Yamhill and Tualatin rivers, in the State of Oregon from 1862 to 1871. For a brief time this company operated steamers on the Columbia River, and for about two months in 1864, the company operated a small steamer on the Clackamas River.
Clara Parker was a sternwheel-driven steamboat which was operated on the lower Columbia and lower Willamette rivers in the 1880s. The steamer ran for about ten years out of Astoria, Oregon in towing and jobbing work. In 1890 Clara Parker was rebuilt and renamed Astorian.
Relief was a stern-wheel steamboat that operated on the Columbia and Willamette rivers and their tributaries from 1906 to 1931. Relief had been originally built in 1902, on the Columbia at Blalock, Oregon, in Gilliam County, and launched and operated as Columbia, a much smaller vessel. Relief was used primarily as a freight carrier, first for about ten years in the Inland Empire region of Oregon and Washington, hauling wheat and fruit, and after that was operated on the lower Columbia river.