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24 MARINE REVIEW January, 1926 THE LATEST TYPE OF STEEL FLOAT—ALL STEEL, EVEN THE PLATFORM AND HOOD—366 FEET LONG, CONSIDERABLY LONGER was more theory than fact. Imitators otf Hendrick Hudson were still in swaddling clothes and the sail boat was still supreme. After the Civil War and continuing up to about the year 1910, sail lighters plied about New York harbor doing a regular de- livery business. Towboats were first used in this harbor in about the year 1860. Barges, scows and lighters of all types followed as the different demands arose and as the different railroads, THAN THE OLD WOODEN TYPE railroads, has developed into a super- division. From a few thousand dollars worth, the capital accounts of marine equipment has risen to many mil- lions of dollars. The draft horse of the harbor is the tug boat. We still have with us types of this craft built as far back as 1859, and I believe that I am correct in stating that the WILLIAM S. EARL of the Cornell Steamboat Co., was one of the first craft to be built of the present and common type of FER FLOAT MOVING FREIGHT CARS that go to make up the New York group were built. There was no uni- formity of dimension as wharfage was not based on tonnage as now pre- vails. Inter-lighterage orders were carried by messengers until the advent of the telephone. Departments Have Grown Large The accounting, billing and contract work was carried on fundamentally the same then as now, except the volume has increased enormously and many short cuts have been formulated to speed up orders. The marine depart- ment of the past, a wart on_the side of the freight departments of the AN OLD TYPE OF OPEN WOODEN TRANS- were wood and it was quite a few years” after the Civil War _ before iron was first employed in hull con- struction. Ferryboats were first con- structed of iron about the year 1860 and it was shortly after this that it was first employed in tug boat con- struction. Hulls Now Built of Steel The first steel boats came to us in about 1896 in the form of ferry- boats and in 1899 tug boats followed suit, but after all these years of prog- ress the wooden tug boats are still in the majority. These are engined with many types of steam plants but during the last two years quite a number of Diesel motors have come into use. It is a conservative state- ment to say that from now on diesel installations will outnumber those of steam. This is borne out by the number of internal combustion units installed CAR FLOAT WITH TUG ALONGSIDE, PLATFORM STATION FLOAT, STEEL HULL WITH WOOD STAVING AND WOODEN PLATFORM AND CANOPIES ; tug boat, as we know them. The ATLAS of the Newtown Creek Towing Co., built in 1864 is still plying about this harbor and is another fine ex- ample of what the artisans of old could turn out. These original tugs of course in the last year and those contem- plated, together with the apparent satisfaction the ones now in opera- tion are giving. Ferryboats have undergone a more (Continued on Page 44) 3