The riverboat captain is a storyteller. Captain Don Sanders shares the stories of his long association with the river — from discovery to a way of love and life. This a part of a long and continuing story.
By Capt. Don Sanders
Special to NKyTribune
Today, Sunday, August 31, and tomorrow, Monday, September 1, are the last two days to vote for the inclusion of steamboat fireman Ed “Seth” Smith into the National Rivers Hall of Fame.
Mr. Smith, “an extraordinary ordinary man,” who heroically saved the Steamer DELTA QUEEN, at great personal peril, not just once — as testified by the late Captain Clarke C. “Doc” Hawley, a soon-to-be-inducted member of the NRHOF — but twice. Ed also mentored and guided numerous “greenhorn” steamboat crew members, some of whom, like myself, eventually rose to leadership positions on the very same riverboat.
Of the countless unreckonized men and women who toiled to keep steamboats operating on the Mississippi River System, Ed Smith will be their representative, honoring them as well as himself, if selected.
Last week, this river column featured the tale of my recent acquisition of the extraordinary oil painting of Captain Dennis Trone’s JULIA BELLE SWAIN by Peoria, Illinois, artist Patricia Dale in 1971. That was also the same year Captain Trone launched his steamboat, christened by the original owner of the painting and the namesake of two steamboats honoring her, Mrs. Julia Belle Swain Shelton. This week, I’ll share some other relics among my “collection of steamboat stuff,” none of which have much monetary value, but more than make up for the difference in sentimental worth.
Let’s begin with a needlework portrait of the second Cincinnati excursion sidewheeler, ISLAND QUEEN, seen landed at the Coney Island Amusement Park. Whoever carefully crafted this personal artistry remains unknown, as does the fact of how, when, and why it came into my possession.
For many years, this often-overlooked picture, meticulously crafted from thousands of tiny threads, has hung above my bed. However, with the acquisition of the JULIA BELLE painting, my vastly overcrowded walls will soon undergo a makeover — if I can muster the energy to do so. Whenever I look at the framed needlepoint, I think of Ms. Carmen Winkler of Germany, one of the most incredible supporters of steamboats on the Mississippi River and a needlepoint aficionado herself. This mention is the first time the ISLAND QUEEN needlepoint has received public attention.
What could be more exciting than the nighttime passage of the DELTA QUEEN as seen from the busy shore at Ghent, Kentucky, with the evening lights of Vevay, Indiana, glimmering on the northern shore of the Ohio River? Close to the observer, on the waterfront of the small town in Carroll County, Kentucky, founded by one of my kinfolks so long ago, a deckhand waves an auto aboard the sidewheel ferry MARTHA A. GRAHAM. At the same time, a pickup truck scrambles up the ferry landing road into town.
Aboard the shantyboat GUIDING STAR, nosed into the southern riverbank, a figure on the for’d deck waves at a gathering of revelers clustered around a campfire where one plays a scratchy tune on an old fiddle. Overhead, a shooting star blazes in the heavens above Vevay as passengers aboard the DELTA QUEEN settle in for the evening, while a few stragglers linger on the ironwood dancefloor to swoon to a slow piano melody played by musician Harmon Mize. Vevay artist Josiah “Joe” Leatherbury graciously captured a long-ago moment in time in this sentimental painting, now residing in my collection of steamboat memorabilia.
Few, if any other paintings by the legendary shantyboat artist and author Harlan Hubbard, could be more directly affiliated with the artist during their acquisition than these two in my river-related accessories. The larger artwork, entitled “Gray Days,” depicts the rocky bar on the Ohio River at Payne Hollow, the home of Harlan and Anna along the riverbank in Trimble County, Kentucky. Harlan personally presented this painting to me at his first public showing of his artworks at the Covington, Kentucky Carnegie Library in 1978, in recognition of giving him and his wife a guided tour of the DELTA QUEEN at Madison, Indiana several years earlier.
The smaller painting is titled “Tell City Waterfront,” depicting the Tell City, Indiana, waterfront, complete with a wharfboat and a couple of steamboats. This painting was acquired directly from Mr. Hubbard by Capt. Bela Berty in 1978 when we stopped at Payne Hollow aboard the sternwheeler WINIFRED. Harlan invited us and other members of the WINIFRED crew to his art studio, where live snakes hung festooned from its gutters, and inside, he dug out the painting from stacks piled high within the hot, snake-infested workspace. Several years later, when Bela decided to sell the Tell City artwork, I purchased it, and it has resided next to Gray Days ever since.
Atop the bookcase, next to my computer, fluvial memorabilia lie packed close together. Nowhere in the room is there a flat surface with an inch of space available for another item. On the edge closest to the observer is a Beatles’ yellow submarine trinket, along with a painted river stone depicting two lads rowing a small wooden boat decorated with a yellow Sun Star.
There’s even a cap off a bottle of Ale-8 soda. Inside the case rests the model of the Rafter CLYDE by West Virginia model-maker Bob O’Neill. Stacked atop the case, a DELTA QUEEN model from the 1960s and ’70s finds a home. Baby Jonathan and Princess Peach peer through the transparent case from two aging photos.
To the left of the model case, a small porcelain Indian bust and a couple of ceramic mugs depicting the DELTA QUEEN by Kohrman Studios, Cincinnati, 1971, stand their ground. Protruding from the tall gray stein are the bristles of a brush I fashioned from a grass line (rope) over half a century ago. Behind them, the bullet-shaped form is the top of a brass acorn decoration from the MISSISSIPPI QUEEN– a gift from Captain J. Theadore “Ted” Davisson. On the wall hangs the original depiction of the “Two CLYDEs,” showing the small paddlewheeler CLYDE with the original 1870s raftboat of the same name reflected in the river, drawn by the young Winona, Minnesota artist, Matthew Joseph Cooper.
Just about everywhere in my hideaway, where I retreat now that I no longer have a boat, is something related to the nearly three-quarters of a century since I first found solace, then a rewarding career on the water. As I mentioned about my “steamboat stuff” at the beginning of this, my 270th column written for the NKyTribune, “none have much monetary value.” But regardless of their worth, I enjoy being in their presence as much as I hope you enjoyed a quick glimpse of what surrounds me as a reminder of many happy times on the river.
Captain Don Sanders is a river man. He has been a riverboat captain with the Delta Queen Steamboat Company and with Rising Star Casino. He learned to fly an airplane before he learned to drive a “machine” and became a captain in the USAF. He is an adventurer, a historian and a storyteller. Now, he is a columnist for the NKyTribune, sharing his stories of growing up in Covington and his stories of the river. Hang on for the ride — the river never looked so good.
Purchase Captain Don Sanders’ The River book
Capt. Don Sanders The River: River Rat to steamboatman, riding ‘magic river spell’ to 65-year adventure is now available for $29.95 plus handling and applicable taxes. This beautiful, hardback, published by the Northern Kentucky Tribune, is 264-pages of riveting storytelling, replete with hundreds of pictures from Capt. Don’s collection — and reflects his meticulous journaling, unmatched storytelling, and his appreciation for detail. This historically significant book is perfect for the collections of every devotee of the river.
You may purchase your book by mail from the Northern Kentucky Tribune — or you may find the book for sale at all Roebling Books locations and at the Behringer Crawford Museum and the St. Elizabeth Healthcare gift shops.
Click here to order your Captain Don Sanders’ ‘The River’ now.