Florida's Inland Graveyard of Ships

Florida's Inland Graveyard of Ships. . The wooden wrecks visible along the shoreline here are all that remain of once luxurious paddlewheel steamboats that plied the Apalachicola River from 1820s to the 1930s., Marine archaeologists documented a large number of these vessels between the Jim Woodruff Dam and the railroad bridge, labeling the vicinity as "Florida's Inland Graveyard of Ships." The concentration of 19th century and early 20th-century boats is one of the largest in the country., Paddlewheel steamers were vital means of transportation on the Apalachicola River and its tributaries, the Chattahoochee and Flint. These multi-decked vessels used steam power to navigate up and down the river system., Chattahoochee became a major port for river traffic and support structures at what is now River Landing Park included warehouses, a tavern, and a wharf. Passengers and cargo boarded here for trips as far upstream as Columbus on the Chattahoochee and Albany on the Flint. The boats also traveled downstream to the important seaport of Apalachicola., The lifespan of a paddlewheel steamboat was very short, with some boats only operating for one or two years before they sank after striking snags or suffering steam explosions. Such accidents account for a number of the wrecks visible here. Other vessels were tied up and abandoned after modern highways replaced the river as avenues for commerce. , The Seminole and Civil Wars , Paddlewheel steamboats brought soldiers and vital supplies to and from Chattahoochee's Apalachicola Arsenal (named for the river) during the Second Seminole War (1835-1842) and the Civil War. A special wharf here at River Landing Park served the arsenal., John W. Callahan, Jr. , The last commercial paddlewheel steamer to operate regularly on the Apalachicola River was the John W. Callahan, Jr. Owned by the Callahan line of Bainbridge, she continued to steam up and down the river until the 1930s when she was tied up and abandoned here., Layers of Maritime History , The strong current forced many different disabled vessels to run aground at this site. Archaeologists even found three different steamboats, each older that the one above it, piled up in one single spot on the riverbank.