Steamboat Pilot’s Wheel

I’m just back from my annual summer trip to Montana and am happy to report that I located the pilot’s wheel for the steamboat Rose Bud in the Montana Historical Society Museum – which is where my earlier post stated it might be.

It’s a little difficult to tell from this picture, but the wheel is rather large – probably about 5′ tall.  Below this photo is a photo of the museum label for this exhibit piece – see item #4 “Steering wheel”.

Rose Bud pilot wheel

Rose Bud

Note the “c. 1877” date, which seems to confirm my research that the steamboat was built in 1877.


Note: The featured image for this post is courtesy of the Montana State University Library, James Willard Schultz Photos and Personal Papers.

“What is Home Without a Mother”

This drawing is yet another item from Mary’s vast collection.  The artist is unknown, although the handwriting at the bottom of the page leads me to believe it may have been Mary’s brother, WilliamWhat is home without a mother_drawing

I did a little research and came across the song sheet below from the Library of Congress.  The song was written in 1854 by Alice Hawthorne, which it turns out is the pseudonym used by the songwriter Septimus Winner, better known for the song “Listen to the Mockingbird”.  Also below is a YouTube video of the song performed by Caroline Moseley, recorded at Taplin Auditorium at Princeton University.song sheet_what is home without a mother