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Towboats and Barges
TOWBOATS AND BARGESTOWBOATS AND BARGES. The deficiencies of railroad transportation during World War I led to the Transportation Act of 1920, which created the Inland Waterways Corporation (1924) and its Federal Barge Line. The completion of the nine-foot channel of the Ohio River in 1929 was followed by similar improvements on the Mississippi and its tributaries and the Gulf Intra-Coastal Canals. Each improvement marked a giant step by the U.S. Army Engineers (Corps of Engineers) in promoting inland waterways development. Private capital followed these improvements with heavy investments in towboats and barges. In the years before World War II, towboat power soared steadily from 600 to 1,200 to 2,400. The shift from steam to diesel engines cut crews from twenty or more on steam towboats to an average of eleven to thirteen on diesels. By 1945 fully 50 percent of the towboats were diesel; by 1955, the figure was 97 percent. Meanwhile the paddlewheel had given way to the propeller, the single propeller to the still-popular twin propeller; the triple propeller became fairly common during the 1960s. In 1974 the Valley Line added the 10,500-horsepower triplescrew W. J. Barta to its fleet of twenty-one towboats and 750 barges. Capable of handling forty barges with a capacity of 50,000 tons, the W. J. Barta transported twenty-two times the record-breaking 9,266 cotton bales carried by the Henry Frank in 1881. By the end of the twentieth century, 10,500-horsepower towboats were common on the Mississippi. The pilothouse is the key to modern towboat expansion. Electronics are everywhere: main control panels, radar, computers, communication systems, and circuit television scanners that monitor the entire boat for the pilot, who can communicate with pilots of approaching boats. The pilot is in telephone communication with the numerous marine services that have sprung up to cut out barges from a tow while it is under way, thus saving time and money. Some towboats have thrusters (like the bowboats of rafting days) that aid the pilots in passing other large tows, negotiating sharp bends, passing bridges, or entering locks. Traffic on the Mississippi system climbed from 211 million short tons to more than 330 million between 1963 and 1974. The growth in river shipping did not abate in the final quarter of the century. Traffic along the Upper Mississippi rose from 54 million tons in 1970 to 112 million tons in 2000. The change from riveted to welded barges, the creation of integrated barges, and the innovation of double-skinned barges have led to improved economy, speed, and safety. Shipping on Mississippi barges became substantially less expensive than railroad transport, but at a cost to taxpayers. Barge traffic is the most heavily subsidized form of transport in the United States. A report in 1999 revealed that fuel taxes cover only 10 percent of the annual $674 million that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers spends building and operating the locks and dams of the Mississippi River. BIBLIOGRAPHYClay, Floyd M. History of Navigation on the Lower Mississippi. Washington, D.C., 1983. Petersen, William J. Towboating on the Mississippi. Washington, D.C.: National Waterways Study, U.S. Water Engineer Water Resource Support Center, Insitute for Water Resources, 1983. Willliam J.Petersen/a. r. See alsoBargemen ; Engineers, Corps of ; Inland Lock Navigation ; Inland Waterways Commission ; Lakes-to-Gulf Deep Waterway ; Mississippi River ; River Navigation ; Waterways, Inland . |
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"Towboats and Barges." Dictionary of American History. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Towboats and Barges." Dictionary of American History. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3401804232.html "Towboats and Barges." Dictionary of American History. 2003. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3401804232.html |
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barge
barge, probably from the Latin barca, which would make it the equivalent of bark or barque. In its oldest use (1), this is probably the case, as it was the name given to a small seagoing ship with sails, next in size above a balinger. From about the 17th century onwards the names barge and bark diverged into separate meanings. (2) A ceremonial state vessel, richly decorated and propelled by rowers, used on state occasions and for river processions. Such was Cleopatra's barge described by Shakespeare in Antony and Cleopatra (Act II, sc. ii), which… like a burnished throne
Burn'd on the water: the poop was beaten gold: Purple the sails, and so perfumed, that The winds were love-sick with them; the oars were silver; Which to the tune of flutes kept stroke, and made The water, which they beat, to follow faster, As amorous of their strokes … Cleopatra's was probably carried a bit to extremes, but most state barges were immensely ornate even if their oars were wooden not silver. Shakespeare must have seen such barges on the Thames in Elizabethan times, and they continued in use down to the 19th century. (3) A modern derivative of the barge as a ceremonial vessel is an admiral's barge, used by naval officers of flag rank for harbour transport. When in commission, the royal yacht, HMY Britannia, had a motor boat known as the Royal Barge, as does the Port of London Authority. (4) A large flat-bottomed coastal trading vessel having a large spritsail and jib-headed topsail, a fore staysail, and a very small mizzen; occasionally a jib was set on the bowsprit. They were fitted with leeboards in place of a keel so that they could operate without difficulty in shoal water. This type of barge was normally only found in the River Thames and estuary, and on the south-eastern coast of England. Those still afloat have been turned into recreational sailing vessels or houseboats. (5) In the days of sail, the second boat of a warship, a double-banked pulling boat with fourteen oars; later, the largest boat of a battleship, with mast, sails, and a centreboard but also fitted with fourteen oars. (6) In the USA, a double-decked vessel without sail or power, for carrying passengers and freight, towed by steamboat. See also dumb barge. (7) The name given on board ship to the wooden dish in which bread or biscuit is placed on a mess table. |
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"barge." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "barge." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-barge.html "barge." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-barge.html |
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barge
barge large boat, generally flat-bottomed, used for transporting goods. Most barges on inland waterways are towed, but some river barges are self-propelled. There are also sailing barges. On the Great Lakes and in the American coastal trade, huge steel barges are used for transporting bulk cargoes such as coal. Large flat-bottomed barges called lighters are used for transporting cargo to or from a vessel that cannot be berthed at a pier or dock; LASH (for lighter-aboard ship) vessels are equipped to receive and unload lighters on board and thus reduce the time spent in port. Barge towing, done in the past by men or by horses or mules, is now accomplished mostly by steam or motor tugboat or by other, self-propelled barges. In use since the dawn of history, barges were common on the Nile in ancient Egypt. Some were highly decorated and used for carrying royalty; use of such state barges persisted in Europe until modern times. |
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"barge." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "barge." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-barge.html "barge." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-barge.html |
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barge
barge / bärj/ • n. a flat-bottomed boat for carrying freight, typically on canals and rivers, either under its own power or towed by another. • v. 1. [intr.] move forcefully or roughly: we can't just barge into a private garden. ∎ (barge in) intrude or interrupt rudely or awkwardly: sorry to barge in on your cozy evening. 2. [tr.] convey (freight) by barge. |
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"barge." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "barge." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-barge.html "barge." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-barge.html |
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barge
barge n.
1. a flatbed vessel capable of navigating in shallow water. It has no structures on its surface, and is used to transport cargo, ships' supplies, or for general utility purposes, typically on canals and rivers, either under its own power or towed by another. 2. a boat used by the chief officers of a warship. |
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Cite this article
"barge." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "barge." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-barge.html "barge." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-barge.html |
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barge
barge.
1. Coping on a gable, so a barge-stone is one of the stones forming the raked top of a gable. 2. Projecting ledge or drip at the base of a chimney following the line of the pitched roof, also called a water-table. |
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JAMES STEVENS CURL. "barge." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JAMES STEVENS CURL. "barge." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O1-barge.html JAMES STEVENS CURL. "barge." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O1-barge.html |
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barge
barge long heavy boat XII. — (O)F. barge, poss. :- medL. *barica, f. Gr. bâris Egyptian boat. Cf. BARQUE.
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T. F. HOAD. "barge." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "barge." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-barge.html T. F. HOAD. "barge." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-barge.html |
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Barges
BARGESBARGES. SeeTowboats and Barges . |
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Cite this article
"Barges." Dictionary of American History. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Barges." Dictionary of American History. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3401800375.html "Barges." Dictionary of American History. 2003. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3401800375.html |
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barge
barge
•barge, charge, enlarge, large, marge, raj, reportage, sarge, sparge, Swaraj, taj, undercharge
•turbocharge • countercharge
•cover charge • surcharge
•camouflage • espionage
•barrage, garage
•massage • dressage • sabotage
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"barge." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "barge." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-barge1.html "barge." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-barge1.html |
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