SS Columbia (1902 steamboat)
SS Columbia is the last remaining excursion steamship from the turn of the 20th century in existence, the second to last being her running mate and sister ship SS Ste. Claire which burned in 2018. Both were designed by Frank E. Kirby and Louis O. Keil, interior designer. Columbia was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979, and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1992. As of 2019, the vessel is docked at Silo City in Buffalo, New York while work is being done to rehabilitate it. However as of February 2024 the restoration group's website was offline and archived images showed no updates since 2021.
Columbia c.1910. From Columbia's nomination to the National Register.
Columbia at Detroit in 1973, taken from deck of sister ship, Ste. Claire
Columbia docked on the Buffalo River, September 2019
SS Ste. Claire is a steamer located in Detroit, Michigan. Built in 1910, she was one of the last propeller-driven excursion steamers to be operated on the Great Lakes. She was declared a US National Historic Landmark in 1992. In 2018, a devastating fire destroyed the upper decks, leaving only the steel structure. The ship was delisted as a National Historic Landmark and from the National Register of Historic Places in 2023.
SS Ste. Claire
The Ste. Claire in a 1912 advertisement for the Toledo Shipbuilding Company