W. P. Snyder Jr.

W. P. Snyder Jr. at permanent mooring inMarietta, Ohio
History
United States
Name	W. H. Clingerman (1918–1938) J. L. Perry (1938–1945) A-1 (1945–1945) W. P. Snyder Jr. (1945–)
Owner	Carnegie Steel Company (1918–1945) Crucible Steel Company (1945–1955) Ohio Historical Society (1955–)
Builder	Rees & Sons Company
Launched	1918
Status	Museum ship
General characteristics
Length	175 ft (53 m) (LOA)
Beam	28.4 ft (8.7 m) (original) 32.3 ft (9.8 m) (modified)
Depth	5.2 ft (1.6 m)
Installed power	2 × Tandem compound steam engines 750 hp (560 kW)
Propulsion	Sternwheel
W. P. Snyder Jr. (steamboat)
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. National Historic Landmark
Location	Muskingum River docked as part of theOhio River Museum inMarietta, Ohio
Coordinates	39°25′13″N81°27′48″W / 39.42028°N 81.46333°W /39.42028; -81.46333
Built	1918
Architect	Rees, James & Sons
NRHP reference No.	70000522
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	10 November 1970[1]
Designated NHL	29 June 1989[2]

W. P. Snyder Jr., also known asW. H. Clingerman,W. P. Snyder Jr. State Memorial, orJ. L. Perry, is a historictowboat moored on theMuskingum River inMarietta, Ohio, at the Ohio River Museum. ANational Historic Landmark, she is the only intact, steam-driven sternwheel towboat still on the nation's river system.

W. P. Snyder Jr. is asternwheel, steam driven,towboat that was originally built as theCarnegie Steel Company towboatW. H. Clingerman in 1918 by Rees & Sons Company ofPittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In 1938, she was renamedJ. L. Perry, and in 1945A-1. In August 1945, she was sold to Crucible Steel Company of Pittsburgh, and renamed theW. P. Snyder Jr. in September 1945.

She was a sister vessel ofW. H. Colvin Jr., and she towedcoal on theMonongahela River until being laid up on 23 September 1953, atCrucible, Pennsylvania. In the summer of 1955, the boat was given to theOhio Historical Society for exhibit at theOhio River Museum inMarietta, Ohio.W. P. Snyder Jr. was the last steamboat locking through Lock 1, on theMuskingum River, before thatlock was removed. She arrived in Marietta, Ohio, withCaptain Fred Way Jr. asmaster on 16 September 1955.

As one of the firststeelhull towboats constructed, she was fitted with the prominent anti-hogging struts and cables necessary on wooden hulled stern wheelers. At the time it wasn't known if they would be needed with the steel hull construction.

W. P. Snyder Jr. has been permanently moored on theMuskingum River inMarietta, Ohio, at the Ohio River Museum. Visitors to the museum receive a guided tour ofW. P. Snyder Jr..

She is "the only intact, steam-driven sternwheel towboat still on the nation's river system", but was "in danger of sinking" in 2009.^[3] On 21 November 2009,W.P. Snyder Jr. was towed from Marietta toSouth Point, Ohio, to have her hull replaced.^[4]W. P. Snyder Jr. made her way home starting 15 September 2010 and arrived back in the Muskingum River at Marietta on 17 September 2010.^[5]

• Foster, Kevin J. (February 5, 1989)."National Register of Historic Places registration form / W. P. Snyder Jr. (river towboat)"(pdf).National Park Service. RetrievedSeptember 24, 2012.
  • "Accompanying Photos"(pdf).National Park Service. RetrievedSeptember 24, 2012.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toW. P. Snyder, Jr. (tugboat, 1918).

• Photo ofW. P. Snyder Jr. at the Ohio River Museum website

• Steamboats of the United States
• National Historic Landmarks in Ohio
• Ships on the National Register of Historic Places in Ohio
• Tugboats of the United States
• Tourist attractions in Washington County, Ohio
• National Register of Historic Places in Washington County, Ohio
• Museum ships in Ohio

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