Whirlwind Freight List & Account Travel Ledger

Collection — Box: 3162, Folder: 001

Identifier: 2008.109

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

Records of freight carried on the steamer “Whirlwind” for trips to and from different destinations on the Mississippi River for the year 1852. John A. Williams was listed as the Master of the steamer. Contains columns for shippers, embarkation, consignees, destination, marks, articles, weight, rate, amount, paid, charges, and remarks. The steamer made trips from St. Louis [Mo] to Cairo [Il], Rush Tower [Mo], Cape Girardeau [Mo], Commerce [Mo], Thebes [Il], and as well as other stops on the Mississippi River. Items shipped include coffins, bags of grain, buggies, barrels of linseed oil, whiskey, vinegar, and ale, boxes of cheese, oak and poplar lumber, sand, ploughs, flour, thrashing machines, and many other things.

Dates

Creation: 1852

Rights Statement

Materials in this collection may be protected by copyright law (Title 17, U.S. Code).

Biographical / Historical

Steamers, more often referred to as steamboats, were a major method of transportation and shipping throughout most of the nineteenth century. This was particularly true on the Mississippi River, were the steamboat has become an icon due to the writings of American author Mark Twain. “Whirlwind” was a steamer that operated along the Mississippi River between St. Louis [Mo] and Cairo [Il]. The Whirlwind carried people and cargo to multiple destinations along its route.