I miss the Queens

I miss the Queens. I miss watching the American Queen lower her stacks to be able to fit her massive frame underneath the Mississippi River bridges. I miss the calliope music that drifted down the river as the Mississippi Queen left City Front on her way to Natchez or Greenville. I miss the friendly waves from passengers aboard the Delta Queen as she readied to leave City Front to continue on her adventure. I always wanted to go with them for I knew that riding on one of those majestic boats was going to be the ride of a lifetime. I miss the paddlewheels as they fought the current or rode one to even faster speeds. I miss the Queens.

The Sprague...or what's left of it

One of the greatest preservation tragedies to ever befall Vicksburg is occurring as we speak on Washington Street. No, it's not a building. Instead, it's a Vicksburg icon, more closely linked with the city than anything I can think of. It's the remains of the Sprague. A few pieces of the grand old boat are used in the art park downtown, but the remainder of what's left of the sternwheeler is rusting away alongside Washington Street just north of downtown. I am so saddened by that. I stop every once in a while and photograph the remnants. Included in these photos are the sternwheel itself, the smokestacks and numerous gears and mechanical devices I can only guess at what they do. But each piece is precious to me. It's a part of this city's history and summer after summer I watch it get consumed by weeds and beaten by the elements, only to re-emerge in the fall a little rustier, a bit more fragile. 

However, with the demise of the American Queen, Mississippi Queen and Delta Queen, it would be prudent of us to try to recapture as much of the steamboat heritage we can claim as our own. The solution? I don't know. But I take as many people as I can to the site so they can see the smokestacks and the pieces of what was once the greatest steamboat in the world. I never saw her intact, but the photos — and the mural — harken me back to those times and I can see the ol' girl now making her way to City Front loaded with cotton and people, smoking bellowing out of her twin smokestacks. The city has forgotten her, but I haven't. Now you can remember her, too.

The Delta Queen

The Delta Queen made its way to its new home in Chattanooga last week. I was hoping it would come up the Mississippi one more time, but, alas, it went up the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway to its new destination. I still have not grasped the fact that I may never see another steamboat ply the waters of the Mighty Mississippi. I usually am an optimist, but it is hard to envision it ever happening again. I am hoping that my children's generation is not the last to see such a sight.

As far as I can discern, the top image is the last photo taken of the Delta Queen in Vicksburg. It was taken right before midnight on Nov. 3, 2008, as she was leaving Vicksburg. She had been docked here with the American Queen and the next two photos are of those two ships docked side-by-side at City Front. Look carefully and you will see a train coming across the old bridge to light it up for me at just the right time. Is that cool or what?

The bottom two photos are two of my favorites of the majestic boat.

I was also able to be along the river as the American Queen left the city on Nov. 11. The calliope was in full form as she chugged down the river. I told my son and nephew,  who were with me in the truck, to listen carefully to that sound for they may never hear it again and will one day have to describe it to their children.