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The steamboat ''Ticonderoga'' is America's last remaining side-paddle-wheel passenger steamer with a vertical beam engine of the type that provided freight and passenger service on America's lakes and rivers from the early 19th to the mid-20th centuries. Commissioned by the Champlain Transportation Company, ''Ticonderoga'' was built in 1906 at the Shelburne Shipyard in Shelburne, Vermont on Lake Champlain. ''Ticonderoga'' measures 220 feet in length and 59 feet in beam, with a displacement of 892 tons. Her steam engine, handmade by the Fletcher Engine Company of Hoboken, New Jersey, was powered by two coal-fired boilers and could achieve a maximum speed of (14.77 knots). ==History== The ship's crew numbered twenty-eight, including the captain, pilots, mate, deckhands, engineers, and firemen to operate the boat. The purser, stewardess, freight clerk, bartender, hall boys, cook, waiters, scullion, and mess boys attended to passengers and freight arrangements. Initially, ''Ticonderoga'' served a north-south route on Lake Champlain. Daily, she docked at Westport, New York, where she met the New York City evening train. The next morning she carried travelers and freight northward to St. Albans, Vermont. In addition to passengers, ''Ticonderoga'' transported local farm produce, livestock, and dry goods on a regular basis, and during both world wars ferried U.S. troops between Plattsburgh, New York and Burlington, Vermont. Over the years she also operated on the east-west run from Burlington to Port Kent, New York and had a brief career as a floating casino. When more modern ferries made her obsolete, ''Ticonderoga'' managed to persist in operation as an excursion boat for several years; however, by 1950 the steady decline in business threatened her future. Ralph Nading Hill saved ''Ticonderoga'' from the scrap heap when he persuaded Electra Havemeyer Webb to buy her for her growing museum.〔 〕 While the Shelburne Museum attempted to keep her in operation, the steamboat era had passed making it difficult to find qualified personnel to operate and maintain the aging vessel. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Ticonderoga (steamboat)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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