Marietta in Washington County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Boiler Point

Photographed By J. J. Prats, July 11, 2021

1. Boiler Point Marker

Inscription. Named for this cylinder here on the area once known as Flat Iron Square. The boiler, now largely underground, was ordered by Major John Lawrence Lewis circa 1814, sent by boat from Pittsburgh, PA, in care of Dudley Woodbridge, Jr., whose store stood nearby on Ohio St. Lewis failed to pay the charges; and boiler became a public loafing place.

Erected 1987 by Washington County Historical Society.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Parks & Recreational Areas. A significant historical year for this entry is 1814.

Location. 39° 24.641′ N, 81° 27.104′ W. Marker is in Marietta, Ohio, in Washington County. Marker is at the intersection of Greene Street and Front Street and West Ohio Street, on the left when traveling west on Greene Street. It is on the Ohio Riverfront Park just past the west end of Ohio Street. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Marietta OH 45750, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Children Of American Revolutionary Soldiers Memoria (a few steps from this marker); The Ohio River’s Wild Side (a few steps from this marker); The Public Landing (a few steps from this marker); Bicentennial Plaza (within shouting distance of this marker); Marietta’s Historic Corner

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(within shouting distance of this marker); Ohio River Sternwheel Festival (within shouting distance of this marker); Shipbuilding (within shouting distance of this marker); Lafayette (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Marietta.

Regarding Boiler Point. This area of the public landing was also known as Boiler Corner when Ohio Street connected with Front and Greene and the boiler was the prominent landmark here. The boiler was buried and paved over around 1987 as part of the creation of Bicentennial Park.

Additional commentary.
1. An alternative account of the boiler under Boiler Point
Letter to the editor by William Harris and published in The Daily Register June 30, 1902. It was reprinted in the blog Historical Marietta, Ohio in 2017.

The old boiler at the corner of Ohio and Front streets — where did it come from and for what purpose was it used?

The following account, which the writer believes to be correct, was given by the late Ebenezer D. Buell, who was born in 1805, in the old red house which
Photographed By J. J. Prats, July 11, 2021

2. Boiler Point and Its Marker
The Ohio River and West Virginia are in the distance.
stood on bank of the Ohio river, opposite the head of Marietta island on the Ohio side, quite recently torn down. Mr. Buell spent the most of his life here.

He says that a man by the name of Adams had a distillery on the bank of the Little Muskingum, where the road leading to Cornerville strikes the creek, for many years known as the Howe place, but at present the Scott farm. Mr. Buell says this boiler was used in that distillery, that he was often there when a boy, as it was not more than a half mile from his father’s home.

It will be observed that there is a short pipe on one side, 6 inches in diameter, perhaps, without any arrangement for a connection or for closing other than a wooden plug which Mr. Adams made use of to confine the steam; in so doing he had made the discovery that steam had considerable power when confined, and on one occasion called in his wife to witness the operation while he worked the plug. Having much more pressure on than he was aware of, the plug blew out with considerable force, slightly scalding him.

Mr. Buell, in speaking of this old boiler, always claimed that it came from the Adams distillery. We have no means of telling just when this distillery ceased to do business. The writer remembers going to school in a house which was very near where the distillery stood and remembers that it was all gone but two or three rounds
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of the bottom logs. This was as early as 1827 or ’28.

The only other history I ever had of the old boiler was from the late G. M. Woodbridge, who claimed that it was shipped to his father in transit to some other point and that his father had paid some freight charges which he never collected, as the boiler never got any farther.

— Submitted July 28, 2021.

Credits. This page was last revised on July 28, 2021. It was originally submitted on July 28, 2021, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. This page has been viewed 198 times since then and 23 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on July 28, 2021, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio.