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NavSource Online: Army Ship Photo Archive

USED Towboat Ellen

Sternwheel Towboat:
  • Built in 1907 at La Crosse WI.
  • Launched in 1907
  • Delivered in 1907 to the Sawyer Austin Lumber Company, La Crosse, WI. where she was used as a rafter and for pleasure by W.W. Sawyer
  • Ellen sunk 3 miles miles south of Brownsville, TX., 8 October 1918, and was raised
  • Purchased by the US Army Corp of Engineers circa 1930
  • Ellen's wooden hull was replaced with a steel hull after purchase by the US Army
  • Christened, commissioned and placed in service, circa 1930 by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers as USED Ellen
  • Assigned to the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers Rock Island District
  • Ellen worked on the Mississippi River
  • Ellen was fitted with air conditioning and an elevator in anticipation of a visit by President Franklin D. Roosevelt which did not materialize
  • Sold in 1943 to Mr. Ralph M. James
  • Sold in 1944 to Standard Oil of Ohio in 1944 who in turn resold the towboat to Industrial Marine Service of Memphis, TN. who converted her in to a diesel twin prop
  • Final Disposition, fate unknown
    Specifications:
    Displacement 173t.
    Length 156'
    Beam 30'
    Hull Depth unknown
    Draft 5'
    Speed unknown
    Crew unknown
    Propulsion reciprocating steam engine
    sternwheel
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		Size Image Description Source
    Ellen
    303014201    		 112k USED Towboat Ellen tied up to a river bank, date and location unknown
    University of Wisconsin-Madison LaCrosse Steamboat Photograph Collection    		 John Spivey
    Ellen
    303014202    		 89k USED Towboat Ellen on the Mississippi River with bluffs in the background, date and location unknown.
    University of Wisconsin-Madison Great Lakes Maritime History Collection, Donor William Petersen    		 John Spivey
    Ellen
    303014203    		 90k Post card image of USED Towboat Ellen pushing USED Hydraulic Dredge No.3 at Lansing IW., circa 1910.
    Ebay    		 Tommy Trampp
    Ellen
    303014204    		 131k USED Towboat Ellen tied up to a river bank, circa 1915, location unknown.
    Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library>    		 Tommy Trampp
    There is no history available for USED Ellen at NavSource
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
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    Last Updated 12 January 2024