I would guess the teams are probably on that boat. I keep in mind that teams were people's "life lines" in those days. If you had a good team you tended to take care of it, keep it with you and possibly, sadly in some cases were taken care better than their families.

I have read accounts of earlier settlers getting to The Dalles and being faced with the decision of going around the mountain (Barlow) or flat boating their wagons and teams down the Columbia.

No doubt there were those who did possibly sell their old teams, because they were worn out at say The Dalles, then purchase new ones say in Portland.

Charlott on 23rd February 2015 @ 7:14am

Covered wagon in 1910?
Surprising number of life-boats. Also, interesting support cable network holding the boat together?

Rawhyde on 23rd February 2015 @ 7:30am

The entire lower deck was freight, wagons and livestock. The number of lifeboats is an indication of how many passengers were accommodated on the upper deck. Surprised it was a single engine boat.

Kenn on 23rd February 2015 @ 7:58am

Teams and wagons were still a common mode of transportation in 1910 and I suspect any wagon could be a "covered" wagon, when a cover was put over the wagon to protect the cargo.
I wonder if there were stables in the lower deck? Seems like you would want a confined space in case a horse or cow went bazerko. And did they feed them while traveling up and down the river?
Loading and unloading sure would have been more time consuming than just driving a car onto a ferry.

l.e. on 23rd February 2015 @ 8:23am

And....because of Historic Hood River, I learned what those slanted boards on the side are used for.

Arthur...a 10 year old from 1910 would probably laugh at a lot of our questions.

l.e. on 23rd February 2015 @ 8:28am

No reason to believe that whoever had the wagons owned the horses/mules/oxen that might have pulled them. Everything may well have been rented, that is what livery stables were all about. Owning a horse or other draft animal would have been an onerous expense to one not needing them every day.

The cables would have been there to try to prevent the wooden hulled boat from hogging, the tendency for the hull to slow deform upward midship. The stays fulfill this function on a sailing vessel, but need to be added to an engine powered vessel. Boats that didn't have cables would have had angle bracing added into their structure to do the same function.

Longshot on 23rd February 2015 @ 8:33am

Kenn, what makes you conclude that it is a single engine boat? And wouldn't a steam engine be more reliable than gas or diesel, thereby possibly negating the need for two engines? Claim no personal expertise--just wondering.

Buzz on 23rd February 2015 @ 8:38am

Kinda like a modern day "Noah's Ark" for the time.

judy on 23rd February 2015 @ 9:26am

If you notice there to the right of the covered wagon there are other wagons. The wagon on the left looks more like a wagon that was used by a "sutler" who was one that went hither and yon plying his wares. Teams of horses could have been housed behind that sliding door. That would have been easy access for them.

Charlott on 23rd February 2015 @ 9:32am

Keep in mind also that ship's boats were more than lifeboats, but the method of getting to shore, going between boats, bringing supplies, transferring men, communicating with other boats, etc. Even these flat bottomed river boats couldn't always touch a soft bank. Sometimes would have to anchor out, or await dock space. And when aground, one of first alternatives is to row out an anchor and kedge the ship off the sandbar. Note the different hull shapes of the boats, where "lifeboats" tend to be uniform.

spinsur on 23rd February 2015 @ 10:07am

The wagon on the far side reminded me of this wagon.
http://historichoodriver.com/index.php?showimage=263

l.e. on 23rd February 2015 @ 10:15am

Columbia River Images has a great section on the stern wheelers and even features a Lyn Topinka post card with both The Dalles City and the Tahoma docking at Warrendale.
http://columbiariverimages.com/Regions/Places/steamboats_columbia_river.html

There are photos of the paddle wheel from the "Henderson" which is at the HR Museum. Are we going to see an HHR photo of the "Henderson"?

l.e. on 23rd February 2015 @ 12:42pm

Wonder what the Henderson was named for. I live 30 miles from Henderson, KY.

Norma on 23rd February 2015 @ 8:14pm

Don't know who the M.F. Henderson was named for, but it was built by Shaver Transportation in 1901.

It's real claim to fame was in the movie "Bend of the River." In 1952 there was a race between the Henderson and the Portland. More of a promotional race than actual race to promote the movie. Jimmie Stewart even called the race on KEX radio.

Charlott on 24th February 2015 @ 5:59am

OK Arthur. You gave us four photos of the movie "Bend of the River". You need to find one that shows the "Henderson".
http://historichoodriver.com/index.php?showimage=843

Asked with a smile.

l.e. on 24th February 2015 @ 6:52am

The Hood River Glacier, January 13, 1910, page 3
http://oregonnews.uoregon.edu/lccn/sn97071110/1910-01-13/ed-1/seq-3/
Dalles City Gets A New Hull

Jeffrey Bryant on 30th June 2015 @ 4:18am