The National Steamboat Monument, on the Ohio Riverfront in Cincinnati, Ohio, is topped by the original 30-foot diameter paddlewheel of the American Queen, the largest overnight passenger steamboat to be built in the last half century. The paddlewheel was given to the City of Cincinnati when the steamboat was refitted with a slightly smaller one.
Beneath the bright red wheel are two dozen stainless steel columns, or torchiers, built to represent smokestacks. Photo sensers set off steam jets that whistle and hiss through these stacks when a person passes them. The sight and sound is attention getting to say the least.
This monument is a reminder of the steamboat heritage of Cincinnati. At the height of the riverboat era, in the mid 1800s, 8,000 riverboats a year, an average of about 22 per day, docked near this spot.
No comments:
Post a Comment