Mascot was a sternwheel-driven steamboat built in 1890 which operated primarily on a route running from Portland, Oregon down the Willamette and Columbia rivers to points on the Lewis and Lake rivers. Points served included the town of Woodland, Washington, on the main branch of the Lewis, and La Center, Washington on the east fork.
Mascot also served Ridgefield on the Lake River. Mascot operated briefly as a replacement boat on the upper Willamette River. Mascot has been described as the "prime example of a jobbing boat." Mascot was in operation from 1890 to 1911, including a 1908 reconstruction, which was a relatively long time for a vessel of its type, built entirely of wood.
This sternwheeler should not be confused with the small steamboat Mascot which operated at about the same time on the Alsea River and Yaquina Bay.
Mascot was operated a route that ran between Portland, Oregon and the Lewis and Lake rivers in Cowlitz and Clark counties in southwestern Washington.
Although Mascot was profitable, it had a series of sinkings and other accidents giving it a reputation as a "hoodoo" boat, that is, a jinxed vessel. Much of this reputation was simply newspaper derision, but there were also several fatal incidents, including at least two apparent suicides or attempted suicides and two instances of fatalities to crew members.
Mascot was rebuilt in 1908 at Portland for the Lewis and Lake River Co. Mascot burned in 1911 on the Lewis River.
Construction Who built Mascot is disputed in the sources. In 1901, it was reported that one river man recalled that Charles Bureau had built and named Mascot, and that when Capt. Bureau could not make a profit from the boat, he sold it to Jacob Kamm, who is usually credited with its construction. Mascot’s hull and cabin were built entirely of wood.
Dimensions Mascot was long, exclusive of the extension of the main deck over the stern, called the fantail, on which the sternwheel was mounted. Mascot had a beam of exclusive of the heavy timbers along the upper hull called guards. The steamer had a depth of hold of feet. Mascot measured out at 267.35 gross tons (a unit of volume, not weight) and 199.46 registered tons.
Mascot’s original merchant vessel identification number was 92253. After Mascot was reconstructed in 1908, a new merchant vessel identification number was assigned, 204927.
Engineering
Mascot was driven by twin steam engines, horizontally mounted, each with a bore of 13 (or 15) inches and a stroke of 60 inches. The boiler generating the steam for these engines was wood-fired.
Route The Lewis River emptied into the Columbia river at a point about 9 miles downriver fem the mouth of the Willamette River, and about 25 miles from Portland. In 1896 there was no railroad access to the towns along the river. All traffic in and out of the area either had to go by river or by the very poor roads then in existence.
At a point 3.75 miles from the Columbia, the Lewis River splits into two branches, which were called the North Fork and the East Fork. The North Fork carried more water. The town of La Center was on the east fork, just over 3 miles from the junction of the East and North Forks.
The Lewis River below the forks was generally 400 to 600 feet wide, narrowing to 200 feet at the forks. On the East Fork up to La Center, the river was 150 to 200 feet wide.
Steamboats from Portland could run up the Lewis River and the East Fork as far as La Center except during low water. At low water it was necessary to transfer cargo and passengers to a smaller steamer above the forks, and at extreme low water rowboats had to be used.
From 1892 to 1904, Mascot ran on the Lewis and Lake rivers under the ownership of Jacob Kamm with no opposition. Mascot stopped at about 25 landings between Portland and the head of navigation on the Lewis river. The main towns on the Lewis River were Woodland and La Center, Washington. The main town on the Lake River was Ridgefield, Washington.
The route was reported to be a profitable one. Produce went from the landings on the river to the Portland markets, and better passenger traffic than on other steamboat routes.
Early career
Competition with Toledo In August 1891, Mascot was running against the steamer Toledo, a shallow-draft sternwheeler owned by a consortium of about 600 farmers who had pledged to use Toledo. According to one newspaper report, Toledo was cutting into Mascot’s business. At that time, August, 1891, Mascot was owned by the Lewis River Transportation Company.
Shift to Rainier route In early March 1892 Mascot was expected to start making daily trips from Rainier, Oregon to Portland in opposition to the steamer Joseph Kellogg.
Collision with Sarah Dixon On the morning of Friday, October 20, 1893, Mascot collided with the sternwheeler Sarah Dixon at St. Helens, Oregon. Mascot and Dixon usually approached the St. Helens waterfront at the same time in the morning from opposite directions. In foggy conditions on the Friday in question the two boats collided bow on in front of Muckle’s wharf. Each boat struck the other a strong but glancing blow a few feet off the jack staff, but neither vessel sustained any serious damage.
Flood on the Columbia In June 1894 there was a major flood on the Columbia River. According to Captain A.W. Gray (b.1850), of the Mascot, quoted in the Daily Morning Astorian: Mascot and other steamers rescued people, livestock and cattle, with Mascot alone carrying away 900 head of cattle and horses to the hills. Extensive damage was done to the wharves and docks at St. Helens and Ridgefield. The water was so deep that Mascot could travel as much as four miles inland from the main bank of the Columbia river.
Temporary replacement by Elwood In mid-September 1894, the steamer Elwood was placed on Mascot’s route while Mascot was being repaired. Although Elwood required too much depth of water to go up the Lewis River, Mascot’s owners had "a little steamer that draws very little water and makes a great deal of noise" available for Lewis River work, connecting with Elwood at the mouth of the river. The Portland landing for Mascot was at the foot of Alder street.
Operations in later 1890s
In May 1895, the Lewis River Transportation Company advertised Mascot as the "fastest and most comfortable steamer between St. Helens, Oregon and Portland." Every day except Sunday, Mascot left St. Helens at 6:30 a.m. and arrived at Portland at 10:00 a.m. Returning, Mascot left Portland at 3:00 p.m. and arrived at St. Helens at 6:00 p.m. Fare was 25 cents.
On Tuesday, March 24, 1896, Victor Davis (1881–1910), the 14-year-old son of Captain W.A. Davis of the Mascot was arrested and charged with shooting at a deckhand on the Mascot. The details of the charges were not immediately available, but according to newspaper accounts, somehow the steamer had come by while young Davis was sitting on a bridge fishing.
A deckhand on Mascot then threw a potato (Mascot used to transport a lot of potatoes) at the boy, who in retaliation, threw a stone at the deckhand. The deckhand then threw another stone at young Davis, who then somehow managed to get hold of a shotgun and shot it at the deckhand, but fortunately missed hitting anyone.
The next month, April 1896, Victor Davis pled guilty in Clark County Superior Court to the charge of simple assault, and fine of $25 and court costs was imposed.
Victor Davis later became a steamboat captain himself, and when he died on Sunday, May 29, 1910, in Portland, following funeral services at Holman's undertaking, his body was taken back to La Center aboard Mascot. His father, W.A. Davis, then pilot of the sternwheeler Beaver, survived him.
Mascot was capable of carrying a herd of 400 sheep, as it did on the morning of August 3, 1898, running them to Morgan's ranch on Sauvie's Island.
On the morning of Tuesday April 14, 1896, as Mascot was coming down the Lake River from Ridgefield, Washington, a man who was not identified, climbed on the railing on the cabin deck and jumped into the river. Captain Lee of Mascot signaled some fishermen to pick up the man. They did so, and he turned out to have a mental illness.
Snag problems on the Lewis River Steamboat operations on the Lewis River were made difficult by the presence of numerous sunken trees and logs, called "snags." Steamboat operators had to plan ahead for striking snags and be ready to beach their vessels in case of emergencies. According to a January 1900 Morning Oregonian report, "the north fork of the Lewis river just below Woodland is a perfect next of snags, enough to make a steamboatman’s hair stand on end, and the only wonder is that more boats are not sunk there."
1898 sinking
On December 7, 1898, Mascot hit a snag in the Lewis River and sank. The incident occurred in mid-channel at Richardsons Landing. The accident occurred just after the steamer had left Woodland at 5:30 a.m. The steamer reached a point about one-half mile from the mouth of the river, and had just passed the most dangerous part, after which Captain Davis left the pilot house and turned the wheel over to the mate.
Just as the captain was sitting down to breakfast, he felt the boat suddenly lurch to a stop. The snag broke through the hull in the middle of the boat, causing Mascot to sink in six feet of water. The lower deck was submerged under about two feet of water, while the water just covered the bow.
There were about 50 passengers on board at the time, and a newspaper report stated that "for a moment considerable excitement prevailed, but as soon as they realized that the boat was resting on the bottom, order was restored." The steamer Walker came by to take off the passengers and assist the sunken Mascot. There was no loss of life or damage to cargo. The estimated damage to the steamer was $400.
Capt. Charles Tilton Kamm (1860–1906), superintendent of the Lewis River Transportation Company, stated that the wreck was caused by the steamer getting out of the channel and running into a hard clay bank, out of which projected a huge snag which tore a large hole in the hull, much worse than had been originally thought. The hole went from under the boiler back to the cylinder timbers, which were the heavy wooden braces under the engines near the rear of the vessel.
Until Mascot could be repaired, its route would be covered by the Sarah Dixon.
1900 sinking
On Thursday, January 4, 1900, Mascot "found another of the snags in the Lewis River", prompting the Morning Oregonian to quip that "the steamer Mascot will never have any luck till her name is changed to Hoodoo." The sinking happened near the mouth of the north fork of the Lewis River.
Mascot had been running under Captain Davis at the time. He was able to beach the vessel on a bar in the river with the objective of keeping its deck dry until the hole in the hull could be repaired. It was initially anticipated that Mascot would be refloated again in a few days. In the meantime, the company's steamer G.W. Walker took over its route.
However it turned out that the sandbank on which Mascot had been beached was actually quicksand which was being pushed downwards under the weight of the boat. The steamer Undine left Portland on the evening of January 6 with a barge and lifting equipment to raise Mascot off the bar. The raising was going to be much more difficult than had been originally thought.
More detailed reports of the salvage efforts followed. According to one report, Andrew Allen was in charge of the salvage effort. Allen found Mascot lying on its side in quicksand, in a position where it would be difficult to get a barge between the boat and the riverbank. Allen took a work crew and heavy chains and timbers to the wreck site, and with these, he developed a plan to raise the Mascot. He would have a barge placed on both sides of the boat, and then run two 14 inch by 16 inch timbers, each 60 feet long, across the deck of the sunken boat.