Previously on “The Secret History of Vermont”

Introduction
Part 2

Chapter 2: Paddlewheel Boats on the Missisquoi River

Before the age of the railway train it was the paddlewheel boat that fueled commerce in Vermont. Fleets of majestic steam powered paddlewheel boats would transport goods on Lake Champlain and the Hudson River to the west, on the Connecticut River to the east, and on the mighty Missisquoi River to the north. The Missisquoi River was particularly heavily traveled because it connects Lake Champlain, northwest Vermont, Quebec, and the western side of the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. Typical cargo was cigarettes and beer, the source and destination of which changed as a function of relative tax rates; fugitives from the Quebec Language Police; and, of course, maple syrup and cows.

Many of the paddlewheel boats were equipped to transport passengers and offered amusements such as gambling and facilities like small expensive boutiques, 24 hour buffets, and heated swimming pools. People would spend their entire vacation on a “paddlewheel boat cruise to nowhere” although everyone had to go ashore when the boat docked at the Town of Richford.

The Missisquoi River starts deep in the Green Mountains and flows north into Quebec where it loops around back into Vermont and eventually empties into the Missisquoi Bay of Lake Champlain. The Town of Richford is located where the Missisquoi reenters Vermont from Quebec. As the paddlewheel boat industry grew so did Richford until, at its heyday, Richford was one of Vermont’s largest commerce centers and the envy of the other Towns. Docks and wharves extended into the Missisquoi and hundreds of boats would be clustered around as cargo was loaded and unloaded. Luxurious passenger paddlewheel boats with names like “The Missisquoi Queen” would come and go announcing their intentions with blasts of their steam powered horns. All cargo and passengers had to be cleared by the Customs House before and after crossing the border and the Master of the Customs House was the richest and most powerful person in the Town. Local entrepreneurs capitalized on the perpetual transient population and the whole Town was lit with thousands of lights advertising large theme hotels and casinos, magnificent star-studded shows, Institutes of Adult Entertainment, and pawnshops.

The problem of keeping the paddlewheel boats running during the winter was solved in a typical Vermont fashion. Instead of trying to keep the water channels open, the paddlewheels were affixed with chains, the entire boat was mounted on sled runners, and a snowplow was attached to the front. As a result, the paddlewheel boats ran considerably faster on the ice during the winter than they did in the water during the summer. The summer slowdown was tolerated because it typically only lasted 15 days.

The era of paddlewheel boats in Vermont ended shortly after The Unfortunate Burlington Cow Wharf Incident when the paddlewheel boat company lost the resulting lawsuit and went bankrupt. Most of the paddlewheel boats were sold to a foreign firm that made use of them on a minor river somewhere down south. The single surviving example can be seen at the Shelburne Museum, but if you go there don’t bother asking about paddlewheel chains, sled runners, or snow plows. Native Vermonters run the Shelburne Museum and they will deny that such things existed.