Francis Hale Leavitt

“ The immediate effect of these many problems was to be seen in the impossibility of maintaining a definite sailing schedule on the Colorado. Schedules on the lower river between La Paz, Yuma, Ehrenberg, and Olive City were fairly dependable, but above these points, if arrival was made within a week or two of the time specified, conditions were considered average. The period of time occupied on a voyage depended on the good fortune of the pilot, the steamer, and the stage of the river. When the vessel was loaded, a speed of five or six miles an hour upstream was a good average. ”

“ This marked the beginning of the Utah-California trade.
The plan of Brigham Young for building a self-sustaining empire in the West called for an outlet to the sea on the Pacific Coast. A portion of the seacoast in the vicinity of San Diego was to serve as the desired outlet for the State of Deseret, organized in March 1849 and designed to include all of Utah and parts of present day Nevada, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and California. It was the plan of the church to connect that harbor with Salt Lake by a line of posts along the Old Spanish Trail. ”

“ Little attention was paid to such insignificant markings of civilization as dress, cleanliness, or community pride; and the ill-kept adobe houses, yards, and streets of Yuma bore mute evidence to a careless and carefree existence. Life, however, was not humdrum. Frontiers thrive on activity. In Yuma the frequent periods of idleness were punctuated by occasional Indian uprisings, the escapades of "gun toting" bad men, and the arrival of the steamer at the wharf.
With the cry of "Steamboat coming!" Yuma sprang into activity, for the arrival of a boat was a festive occasion. ”

“ The Gila's rival was the distinctive two-stack Mohave No. 2, which was launched in 1875. Whether or not the twin smoke stacks gained for her the position of highest esteem among both passengers and pilots is not recorded, but she was the only steamer on the river to boast that distinction in design. She was the particular favorite of Isaac Polhamus, captain and superintendent of the company, who used her as an excursion steamer during the eighties and nineties.^^*
She was really a four-decker forward, since the pilot house was on top of the texas. ”

“ The steamer left here some eighteen days since to go to Fort Mohave, for seventeen of which she has lain high and dry on a sand bar, about thirty miles above La Paz. Provisions are very dear. ... It is reported here that over one thousand tons of freight are now lying at Fort Yuma and at the mouth of the river, waiting for conveyance hither . . . the steamer cannot possibly bring more than thirty tons of freight per trip. ”

“ Steamer service made mining profitable, since it offered a reliable means of getting unrefined ore to the San Francisco market and supplies and machinery in return. Prior to 1864 Yuma had been the only river port of importance, but, as mining developed during the next seven years, river ports at Castle Dome, Mineral City, Ehrenberg, Olive City, La Paz, Aubrey, El Dorado, and Hardyville mushroomed into existence. As a distribution center Yuma carried on a thriving business. From here military supplies were dispatched to Mohave and the army posts of the interior. ”

“ Since five river steamers represented a carrying capacity more than adequate for local needs, boat owners and merchants in both San Francisco and Salt Lake City again took steps to open trade negotiations. In January 1864, an agent from Salt Lake appeared at El Dorado Canyon to investigate the possibility of obtaining supplies for Utah, but as none were there he was obliged to go to Los Angeles.^^ In October 1864, the Mormon Church and a number of Salt Lake merchants decided on a definite course of action. ”

“ The place was given that name from the fact that the first vessel entering that slough was the schooner Isabel. Three miles further up we came to the ship-yard of the C. S. N. Co., which is quite a village. The general buzzing of carpenters' saws, the hammerings of the blacksmiths and boiler-makers, and the clinking noise made by the coppersmith, would lead one to think himself in a much larger place. ”

“ For the return voyage upstream the barge could be reloaded and towed to any landing requiring her service. In size the barges varied widely. The smaller structures such as the Black Crook had a carrying capacity of but thirty to forty tons, while those built at a later period, when river steamers were capable of hauling larger cargoes, ranged well above one hundred tons. The largest barge on the river, the No. 4 of the Colorado Steam Navigation Company, was built in San Francisco, was assembled at Port Isabel, and arrived at Yuma on September 29, 1872. ”

“ In the meantime Samuel Adams again asserted himself in behalf of the Utah trade, and in December 1864 he induced Captain Trueworthy to attempt a trip to the Callville landing, then in the course of construction. On January 5 an Alta California correspondent stated that the Esmeralda was nearing La Paz on her way to Callville, "with freight for the Mormon settlements at Santa Clara." Nothing more was heard of her until Adams and Trueworthy arrived in Salt Lake City in March 1865. ”

“ In addition to operating the ferry business Jaeger held contracts for supplying the army post with meat and sold supplies to the immigrants. He carried on a profitable business until 1877, when the railroad reached Yuma.
The second pressing need on the Colorado, once a ferry was established, was the protection of immigrants from Indian attacks. Realizing this need, the United States Government detailed Major Samuel P. Heintzelman and a detachment of troops to the Gila junction, where they arrived in November 1850 and established Camp Independence. ”

“ Don't pay freight." Since then Mr. Call has reached here and gives me the following information: That the steamer with the freight for Utah Landing got up the river to within ten miles of El Dorado Cañon, where she lay a short time casting off her barges, which went up to El Dorado Cañon, unloaded a quantity of freight for that place and returned, the steamer returning to Hardy's Landing and putting my freight ashore on the opposite side of the river, where there is no protection from Indians or any one else, the Captain and Mr. Hardy stating that that was the head of navigation. . . . ”

“ The sample is of the upland, or short staple variety, and ... is not to be surpassed in the most favored regions of the Southern States. It was grown by a colony of Mormons who have settled within 25 miles of Callville, and have raised this season a crop of between 70,000 and 80,000 pounds, with intent to ship to California. . . . The price of freight between San Francisco and Callville has been 5 cents per pound . ”

“ In September, a year later, Sneath called together a group of fifty merchants at the Exchange in San Francisco to discuss again the revival of trade with Utah. He pointed out that in 1866 he had taken goods costing $37,000 in San Francisco to Callville and, after adding a freight bill of $3 1,000 more, had been able to sell them at a profit.^^ Two more meetings were held in October at which Samuel Adams, with the aid of Captain Rogers, testified
to the unlimited possibilities of navigation on the Colorado. ”

“ Across the end facing the gulf were constructed floodgates to hold or release the water of the dry dock. The tide did the rest. The average range of the gulf tide is about twenty-one feet, although spring tides often reach more than thirty feet. To operate the dock the gates were raised at high tide. and the steamer was towed into position immediately above skids which previously had been arranged on the dock floor. When the tide receded, the boat dropped quietly into place on the elevated skids and was left high and dry for any necessary repairs. ”

“ Amidships, the hull is left open, like a skiff, the boiler occupying a third of the vacant space. At the bow is a little deck, upon which stands the armament— a four-pound howitzer."43
Captain D. C. Robinson was secured from the Johnson Company to pilot the Explorer, since he had had considerable experience on the river. The expedition got under way on December 31, 1857. After proceeding some distance, Ives left the boat and proceeded overland to the fort, where other members of his expedition were awaiting him. ”

“ According to Adams, they were met at Roaring Rapids by messengers from Callville, who informed them that the freighters from Utah who were expecting the supplies had received letters, from someone opposing the enterprise, stating that the steamer had broken down and the expedition had been abandoned. Trueworthy then returned to El Dorado Canyon, where he left his boat and cargo, and with Adams traveled overland to Salt Lake to inform the merchants of their arrival.^^ Adams then went to San Francisco, where he again took up his campaign. ”

“ Albert H. Payson states that during the nineteen months from May 1877, to January 1879, the company transported 2,286 passengers, which again indicates the volume of travel to Arizona.^* Obviously a business such as that conducted by the Colorado Steam Navigation Company required a large personnel. More than one hundred men were engaged in this service, their number fluctuating with the amount of business being transacted. ”

“ Here the Indians were taught to cut and cord the wood into the required lengths, and for their services they were paid two dollars and fifty cents a cord at the fueling station.
The great seasonal variation in the volume of water on the Colorado created still another problem. During extremely dry periods as little as one thousand second feet have been measured,^^* whereas a peak flood measurement of 150,000 second feet was recorded in June 1909.^^^ In both extremes little could be done except wait for conditions to revert to normal. ”

“ The party constructed a kiln, burned lime from rock found in the vicinity, and with the aid of the Indians erected in twenty-seven days a stone warehouse seventy-five feet long and thirty feet wide, with walls twelve feet thick. Adjoining the warehouse was an office eighteen by thirty-four feet divided into two apartments.^^ Supplies were purchased from William H. Hardy, of Hardyville, and sent up the river on flatboats.^* Hardy visited the warehouse in January and selected two lots, intimating that he would "commence business in the mercantile line" at once. ”

“ She was the 130-foot, 50-ton Esmeralda, which had been constructed in San Francisco in 1862 and was operating on the Sacramento.^^ By March she reached the Colorado. Trueworthy was ready for business, and on the eleventh of that month, the Alta California carried the first advertisement of vessels scheduled to sail for the "New Union Line" to the Colorado. ”

“ The boat might be rocked off, if the pilot were skillful, or she might be pried loose. Often patience was the only solution to the problem, for if the boat were allowed to remain long enough, the changing current would eventually wash her free. Captain Mellon is said to have remained in such a position for fifty-two days.^^^ If the vessel was in very shallow water. the pilot, by using the stern paddle wheel to cut through the silt, often backed the steamer upstream when it became impossible to proceed bow first. ”

“ It was impossible to chart a river course which would be reliable for more than several hours, and consequently the most experienced river pilots were required to "tie up" along the bank during the night to await daybreak before proceeding. ”

“ In contrast to the import trade, the Arizona export trade consisted chiefly of raw ores, wool, hides, and pelts. By 1 864 the mines had started producing in sizable quantities, and from that time the bulk of all exports consisted of gold, silver, and copper ores.^^*
Freight rates to San Francisco from the various river ports are described by the Sentinel in 1873. Over a long period of time they, of course, varied considerably. On ore: "From Mohave or Hardy ville, $25 per ton, . . . From William's Fork or Camp Colorado, 1 1 5 per ton. Ehrenberg or Castle Dome, $12.50 per ton; Yuma, $10." ”

“ The most important revolution in her design, however, was the stern-wheel, which had been recommended four years earlier by Lieutenant Derby. Tests soon proved that to operate efficiently in narrow channels, through shallow water or for cutting through sand bars, the stern- wheel was indispensable. ”

“ Thomas E. Trueworthy, then engaged in steam transportation on the Sacramento, was interviewed and agreed to begin operations on the Colorado within sixty to seventy-five days. Trueworthy acted immediately, and on February 1 7 his combination barge-schooner Victoria sailed for the Colorado, where she was to act as a store ship for freight until it could be sent to the interior. '^^ The first river steamer belonging to the new company put out from San Francisco shortly after the Victoria. ”

“ On December 12, 1853, John and Enoch Reese of Salt Lake dispatched twenty-four wagons and eighty head of stock to San Bernardino, opening trade with California on a large scale.^^ During the next sixteen years, business between Salt Lake and Los Angeles continued in an amazing volume. In January 1864, the Alta California reported: "It is a common occurrence to see trains of from 5 to 20 wagons . ”