1809 - Voyage of a Steamboat from New York to Philadelphia

For the first time a 50-foot long steamboat, the Phoenix, has sailed the open ocean, over 120 miles from New York to the mouth of the Delaware river. Then she has gone upstream over extra 90 miles to Philadelphia. The journey has been done under steam solely since Phoenix is deprived of sail.

As everybody knows, Robert Fulton's partner, Robert Livingston, 63, obtained the monopoly of navigation on the Hudson river as early as 1798. The success of the steamboat Clermont two years ago has fulfilled and confirmed the rights. It thwarted the plan of John Stevens, 60, and of his son Robert, 22, of transporting passengers on the Phoenix, built at the same time for that purpose between New York and New Brunswick through the Hudson river and the Raritan river.

Phoenix is a sidewheel 10-hp boat equipped to transport 37 passengers, 25 of them being in cabins. The details of the machinery are unknown. Stevens is both a lawyer and an inventor, which makes two reasons for keeping secret the features of his boat.

¤ He is a pioneer but certainly not a beginner. He looked into steam machinery from 1799 on, for the original purpose of supplying water to New York on behalf of the Manhattan company.

¤ He produced a prototype of steamboat as early as 1802. It is noteworthy that she had a screw propeller, a outstanding feature which already was a bold innovation. The propeller, set at the bow, was supposed to be driven by a rotating steam engine, which turned to be a total failure as certainly too challenging. He nevertheless achieved to make a second boat which sailed five years ago. That one was still fitted with a screw propeller, still at the bow, but composed of twin screws made of flat blades, but was powered by a high pressure reciprocal engine - a very innovative design which worked properly, at least during the trials, but had no future.

¤ Stevens patented the screw propeller in 1804. He abandoned it afterwards. We have no detail but it seems that Stevens discovered that a flat-blade propeller was not efficient. He may also have incriminated the position at the bow as inappropriate for a steady submersion of the device. Whatever the reason, he has changed his mind and designed a sidewheel propeller for Phoenix.

¤ He designed the boilers, the engines, the propellers, perhaps the boats themselves.

The Stevens dared to make their boat sail to Philadelphia to transport the public on the Delaware river. As one can easily imagine, the trip has been stressful despite the escort of a schooner. A storm made it even more hectic, the schooner being swept away. The low-freeboard steamboat had to take shelter halfway for a few days before resuming her journey.

This voyage is obviously a feat of daring rather than an industrial proof of concept, but it nevertheless proves that a steamship could sail the open ocean over miles and over days if appropriately designed.

Phoenix has started to serve on the Delaware river at once.

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LINK WITH PREVIOUS CHRONICLES

1807 - Fulton's steamboat, the Clermont

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IN RETROSPECT FROM TODAY

Note - on further Stevens' career

In 1811, Stevens will launch the first steam ferry, Juliana, between Hoboken and New York. He also designs and builds a steam locomotive in 1825. He is 76 then. He invents a multi-tube boiler for that purpose.

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SUGGESTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

George Henry Preble - A Chronological History of the Origin and Development of Steam Navigation - New York, 1883 - available on the internet

John Archibald Trunbull - John Stevens, an American record - New York, 1928 - available on the Internet

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CREDIT

Author & source of the engraving not found