Far West (steamship)
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States
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| Name: | Far West |
| Launched: | 1870 |
| Fate: | Wrecked, October 1883 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Stern-wheel paddle steamer |
| Length: | 190 ft (58 m) |
| Beam: | 33 ft (10 m) |
| Draft: | 30 in (760 mm) (fully laden) |
| Decks: | 3 |
| Propulsion: |
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| Capacity: | 200 tons of freight & 30 passengers |
Far West was a shallow draft sternwheel steamboat (or riverboat) plying the upper Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers in the Dakota and Montana Territories, in the years from 1870 to 1883. By being involved in historic events in the Indian Wars of the western frontier, the Far West became an iconic symbol of the shallow draft steamboat plying the upper Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers in the era before railroads dominated transport in these areas.
The Far West was light, strong and speedy. She was initially owned by the Coulson Packet Line who contracted with the Army in the 1870s to provide steamboats to support Army expeditions on the Yellowstone River in the Montana Territory. The Far West was used in this capacity, along with its sister riverboat the Josephine. The Far West was often piloted by the famous river boat captain and pilot, Grant Marsh. The Far West was known as a fast boat because she had powerful engines, a hull with limited water resistance, and a low profile that reduced wind resistance. She set a number of speed records for both upstream and downstream travel on the Missouri and the Yellowstone. By virtue of her shallow draft and her ability to "grasshopper" over sand bars (using spars and steam capstans on the front of the boat to lift the boat and swing it forward a few feet at a time) she was famous for being able to get through shallow channels and low water conditions on the Yellowstone and Missouri Rivers that turned back other steamboats.
Far West gained a place in military and steamboat history during the Great Sioux War of 1876. The Far West was under contract to support a military column of infantry and cavalry units under General Alfred Terry, Colonel John Gibbon and Lt. Colonel George Armstrong Custer. The column was advancing up the Yellowstone, seeking a large Sioux and Cheyenne encampment which was moving along the river drainages to the south. The Far West brought supplies to the column, and it was used by Terry as a headquarters and also to ferry and move troops on the river. On June 21, the Far West was moored on the Yellowstone at the mouth of Rosebud Creek and was the site of the fateful meeting of officers after which Custer and the 7th Cavalry was dispatched south up the Rosebud seeking the Indian encampment. On June 25, 1876, the 7th Cavalry under Custer suffered a disastrous defeat at the Battle of the Little Bighorn . Five of the companies of the 7th were annihilated along with Custer, and the remaining companies suffering significant numbers of dead and wounded. Far West made her way from the Yellowstone up the Bighorn River to the mouth of the Little Bighorn where she was loaded with the wounded from the battle. Traveling night and day, she returned downriver to Bismarck, Dakota Territory, making the 710 mi (1,140 km) run in the record time of 54 hours and bringing the first news of the military defeat which came to be popularly known as the "Custer Massacre".
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Wikipedia