First Towboat to Pass Portsmouth

Article taken from The Portsmouth Times, Saturday, June 5, 1965


Condor First Towboat to Pass Portsmouth

The first towboat that passed Portsmouth was the Condor, built in 1835 by the Pomeroy Coal Company.

The Condor also was the first steamboat on the Ohio River used for towing coal.

Pittsburgh coal was not sent down the Ohio River by steamboats until 1845.

The Water Forward was the first steamboat to tow coal from Pittsburgh.