PINKELMAN ADDED TO LIST OF SPEAKERS Clint Pinkelman, Hartington, has been added to the list of speakers slated for the 2004 ‘Meeting of the Trails’ Conference to be held April 17th at historic St. James Marketplace. ‘Meeting of the Trails’ is joint conference between the Outlaw Trail Scenic Byway and the Shannon Trail Promoters. St. James is located 1 miles east of Wynot, NE., on the Outlaw Trail Scenic Byway (Highway 12). Pinkelman will be discussing and showing pictures of the remains of a partially submerged riverboat that he discovered in the Missouri River on March 12, 2004. The boat is partially buried on a sandbar close to Goat Island, which is located northeast of the tiny village of St. James. Only a portion of the boat was visible but he estimates it to be about 100 to 160 feet long and 30 feet wide. The stump of a huge cottonwood tree is near what he thinks is the front of the riverboat. He said, “It looked like it hit the snag and sank.” Professors from the University of South Dakota at Vermillion said there is also a possibility the vessel could have been a military steamboat. Historians believe there could be as many as 12 submerged boats between Yankton, SD., and Sioux City, IA.

The low water level of the Missouri River for the past several months exposed the riverboat bringing with it a look into the past and a reminder of the role riverboats played in the late 1800’s in river travel, transportation and the settlement of America. The remains are again underwater and solving the mystery of the identity of this particular boat will have to wait until the Missouri decides to again reveal her secret. For more information on the ‘Meeting of the Trails” Conference, please contact: Northeast RC&D 402-582-4866 or North Central RC&D 402-684-3346, or Sally L. Snowe; P.O. Box 6; Wynot, NE 68792-0061; Phone (402) 357-2429; or email: villageofwynot@gpcom.net.

welcome | agenda | articles | map | minutes | partners | tourism