WILLIAM M. BLACK (dredge) - Dubuque IA
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nomadwillie
N 42° 29.725 W 090° 39.753
15T E 692078 N 4707432
William M Black is a steam powered, sidewheel-propelled dustpan dredge built for the US Army Corps of Engineers in 1934.
Waymark Code: WMPH3M
Location: Iowa, United States
Date Posted: 08/31/2015
Views: 3
Today it is a museum permanently moored in the Ice Harbor. It is one of the last steamboats built in the 1930's before diesel power replaced steam. The vessel is 277 feet long and 85 feet wide. It was manufactured by the Marietta Manufacturing Company at Point Pleasant, WV. The hull and main deck are metal . The upper deck and pilot house is constructed of wood.
The dredge William M. Black is an important link in the chain of work performed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on the Mississippi, Missouri, and other western rivers. Since the 1850s, the Corp has been dredging, removing snags, and making and maintaining river channels for navigation. The importance of this continuing program is manifested by the fact that in 1979 alone over 15 million tons of grain, petroleum, steel, and fertilizer passed through lock and dam 11 at Dubuque alone.
The Black was one of the last steam powered vessels used by the Corps of Engineers in its vital river work and thus constitutes a final chapter in the history of a colorful era in river traffic. The Corps utilized this boat from 1934 to 1973 and used it to open navigation channels, excavate pilot channels and boat harbors, and to pump earth fills. Burning up to 7,000 gallons of oil daily, the Black was capable of dredging 80,000 cubic yards of material per day. When operating at full capacity, this steamboat carried a crew of 49 but had sleeping accommodations for up to 63 persons.
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