Transportation

Americans have always been a people on the move—on rails, roads, and waterways (for travel through the air, visit the National Air and Space Museum). In the transportation collections, railroad objects range from tools, tracks, and many train models to the massive 1401, a 280-ton locomotive built in 1926. Road vehicles include coaches, buggies, wagons, trucks, motorcycles, bicycles, and automobiles—from the days before the Model T to modern race cars. The accessories of travel are part of the collections, too, from streetlights, gas pumps, and traffic signals to goggles and overcoats.

In the maritime collections, more than 7,000 design plans and scores of ship models show the evolution of sailing ships and other vessels. Other items range from scrimshaw, photographs, and marine paintings to life jackets from the Titanic.

The 1818 steamboat Savannah was the first steamship to cross the Atlantic Ocean. It was built as a sailing vessel in New York, measuring 98 feet in length and 320 tons.
Description
The 1818 steamboat Savannah was the first steamship to cross the Atlantic Ocean. It was built as a sailing vessel in New York, measuring 98 feet in length and 320 tons. During construction, sidewheel paddle steam propulsion machinery was added under the oversight of the ship's captain, Moses Rogers. Savannah was purchased by a shipping company in Savannah, Georgia. While in Georgia awaiting its first ocean voyage, President James Monroe excursioned aboard the vessel and was so impressed he asked the owners to send it to Washington, D.C. for inspection and possible purchase by the U.S. Government.
On May 24 1819, Savannah cleared port under steam for Liverpool, England. However, its owners had so little faith in the success of the voyage that not a single passenger or cargo item was aboard. Over the next 29-1/2 days to Liverpool, the engine was deployed for only about 80 hours due to the limited amount of coal the ship could carry. Savannah's engine was removed in 1820, and the ship served as a coastal packet ship until 1821, when it ran aground at Long Island, NY and was lost.
Heavily restored, Savannah's logbook recorded the vessel's travel from 28 March when the steamboat left New York for Savannah to 17 December 1819, when it was in Washington, D.C. The logbook is covered with stained sailcloth–a heavy, stitched canvas believed to be from the original sails of the famous steamship.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1819
ID Number
TR.180607
accession number
18474
catalog number
180607
After a horrific battle with the British frigate Endymion in early October 1814 that the Prince de Neufchatel barely won, the American privateer returned to Boston for a refit. Around that time the vessel changed hands, and a new set of articles was drafted.
Description
After a horrific battle with the British frigate Endymion in early October 1814 that the Prince de Neufchatel barely won, the American privateer returned to Boston for a refit. Around that time the vessel changed hands, and a new set of articles was drafted. Delivered on 30 November 1814, these articles laid out the terms and conditions of employment between the vessel’s owners and crew for a four-month cruise.
The owners paid for all the initial armaments and provisions; the privateer was expected to replenish its supplies from captured vessels. The owners received half of the proceeds from any vessels taken, known as prizes. The crew divided up the other half by rank. The ship’s commander earned 12 shares. The doctor was paid six shares; the chief cook earned two shares. The drummer and fifer were each paid a single share, and the ship’s boys were at the bottom of the scale with ½ share each.
The first crewman to spot a ship that became a prize received an extra half share in that vessel’s prize money. The first two crewmen to board an enemy warship each received six extra shares; if the prize was a merchant vessel, two extra shares were earned by the first two crew aboard. Any compensation for losing an arm or leg in the line of duty was at the captain’s discretion.
date made
1814
1814
associated date
1813
ID Number
AF.59977-N(2)
catalog number
59977-N(2)
accession number
1978.2467
Operating out of New York, the Black Ball Line pioneered scheduled packet ship service to Liverpool, England in 1818, and the firm continued operating until it was dissolved in 1879.
Description
Operating out of New York, the Black Ball Line pioneered scheduled packet ship service to Liverpool, England in 1818, and the firm continued operating until it was dissolved in 1879. Its success resulted from focusing on the lucrative passenger trade, at a time when immigration to the United States was at its highest level.
In 1851, the massive three-deck packet Isaac Webb was the seventh and last Black Baller launched from the shipyard of famous New York shipbuilder William H. Webb, who also owned a 1/16 share of the ship. Named after the builder’s father, the Isaac Webb measured 185 feet in length and 1,359 tons. It made about four round trips per year between New York and Liverpool, England from 1851–1879. The average length of a passage was 37 days, with the shortest voyage recorded as 25 days.
In June 1863, while westbound from Liverpool to New York with 658 passengers, the Isaac Webb was captured by the Confederate commerce raider Florida. A bond for a $40,000 ransom freed the ship to complete the passage. In late December 1866, while westbound for New York, the Webb encountered a gale so cold that it killed three crew, and several others were badly frostbitten. On the same passage nearly two years later, another powerful gale killed the captain.
The Isaac Webb continued to sail after the Black Ball Line closed. In late October 1880, while bound from Europe to New York, it was abandoned at sea by its crew of 24, who were rescued by a passing steamship bound for Boston. British marine painter Samuel Walters completed this oil painting around 1851, when the ship was new.
Date made
1851
ship was launched
1851
ship made transatlantic voyages from New York and Liverpool
1851-1880
ship was abandoned
1880-10
shipping firm
Black Ball Line
shipbuilder
Webb, William H.
ship's namesake
Webb, Isaac
maker
Walters, Samuel
ID Number
TR.317527
catalog number
317527
accession number
229943
The steamer Savannah holds pride of place in American history as the first steamboat to cross the Atlantic. Measuring 98’-6” and 320 tons, the little two-decker began as a sailing vessel at a New York shipyard.
Description
The steamer Savannah holds pride of place in American history as the first steamboat to cross the Atlantic. Measuring 98’-6” and 320 tons, the little two-decker began as a sailing vessel at a New York shipyard. Local ship captain Moses Rogers and his partner William Scarbrough of Savannah, Ga. formed a Savannah-based steamship line, and Rogers had the shipyard convert the vessel to a 75-hp auxiliary steamer for a total cost of $66,000. It was luxuriously appointed, with 32 berths in 16 cabins, full-length mirrors, mahogany-lined public areas, and other amenities.
On May 22, 1819 the Savannah cleared Savannah, Ga. under steam for Liverpool. It carried 25 cords of wood and 1,500 bushels of coal for fuel, but neither a single passenger nor any cargo. No one—not even the owners—trusted the new technology enough on the open ocean to invest their own money. On the 29-day passage to Liverpool, the Savannah operated its engines for about 100 hours, or 16% of the time. The rest was spent under sail.
The failure to secure any paying cargo or passengers altered the company’s plans for transatlantic service. The steamer left Liverpool for Stockholm, Sweden on July 23, 1819, again unladen. Under steam 28% of the passage to Sweden, the Savannah became the first steamboat in the Baltic on August 13. Capt. Rogers declined an offer for the ship from Swedish King Charles XIV for $100,000 in hemp and iron, as well as an offer from Russian Tsar Alexander for an exclusive monopoly on steam navigation in the Black and Baltic Seas.
The Savannah returned to Savannah in November 1819 and almost immediately sailed for Washington, DC. After two months in Washington, Rogers had failed to interest the U.S. Navy in his vessel, and it was sold to Capt. Nathan Holdridge of New York. He promptly removed the engine and began packet service between New York and Savannah. On its first voyage in October 1820, the Savannah sailed with 24 passengers and a full cargo hold. Ironically, four of its prior owners consigned cargo aboard the ill-fated vessel, now that it was an old-fashioned sailing ship. After a successful year as a packet, the Savannah wrecked at Fire Island, NY on November 5, 1821.
In 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt designated May 22 as National Maritime Day, in honor of the day that the Savannah hoisted anchor on its inaugural transatlantic passage. The Smithsonian has Savannah’s original logbook detailing that pioneering voyage.
Date made
1961
cleared Savannah, Georgia
1819-05-22
sailed from Liverpool to Stockholm
1819-07-23
sailed in the Baltic
1919-08-13
returned to Savannah
1819-11
sailed from New York to Savannah
1820-10
wrecked at Fire Island
1821-11-05
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt named May 22 as National Maritime Day in honor of the <I>Savannah</I>
1933-05-22
ship captain and owner
Rogers, Moses
owner
Scarbrough, William
ship captain
Holdridge, Nathan
designated 05-22 as National Maritime Day in honor of the <I>Savannah</I>
Roosevelt, Franklin Delano
ID Number
TR.319026
catalog number
319026
accession number
236167
The coach gun was developed in England in the late 18th century to defend coaches against highway robbery. This 10-gauge double-barreled “scattergun” was made by Richard Bolton of Birmingham, England.
Description
The coach gun was developed in England in the late 18th century to defend coaches against highway robbery. This 10-gauge double-barreled “scattergun” was made by Richard Bolton of Birmingham, England. A shotgun’s ammunition, in the form of round pellets or shot, spread out after leaving the smooth bore making it highly useful for close range combat. The two barrels allowed a second blast before reloading. This example features a spring-loaded bayonet that can be deployed after both barrels are fired.
Date made
1800-1810
maker
Bolton, J. H.
ID Number
AF.43449
catalog number
43449
accession number
164794
The privateer schooner Prince de Neufchatel was built by Adam and Noah Brown at New York in 1813. It measured 117 feet long and 320 tons.
Description
The privateer schooner Prince de Neufchatel was built by Adam and Noah Brown at New York in 1813. It measured 117 feet long and 320 tons. With a recorded speed of 13½ knots and a crew of 129 men, and armed with 18 cannon, it was one of the swiftest and most successful privateers of the War of 1812.
The Prince was initially owned by Mme. Flory Charreton, a French widow who moved to New York and became an American citizen sometime before 1812. It was sailed to France under Capt. J. Ordronaux and fitted out as an armed privateer at Cherbourg. In March 1814, it captured nine British prize vessels in the English Channel.
In June 1814, the Prince took six more prizes in just six days. That summer, the Prince evaded no fewer than 17 British warships that chased and tried to capture the swift American privateer. In October 1814, it survived a battle off New England with a much larger British frigate. Two months later, a squadron of three British frigates finally captured the Prince and promptly sailed it back to London to have shipwrights copy the lines of the speedy vessel at Deptford Dockyard. The Royal Navy planned to purchase the American vessel, but it was badly damaged coming out of the dry dock and sold as a wreck.
The original October 1814 articles of agreement that accompany this model list it as a brig, which is a two-masted vessel with both masts rigged with square sails. However, ship captains had the authority to rig their vessels as they pleased, and this model portrays the Prince as a hermaphrodite brig. This was a rare and short-lived rig from the early 19th century, and modern scholars disagree on its exact layout. The foremast is rigged with square sails, and the main sail on the mainmast is fore-and-aft rigged, but the upper sails on the mainmast can be rigged differently.
The lines of the Prince de Neufchatel were redrawn by the Smithsonian’s Howard I. Chapelle from the original line drawings by the British Admiralty. They are available from the ship plans collection at the National Museum of American History (americanhistory.si.edu/csr/shipplan.htm).
Date made
1965
associated date
1813
ID Number
AF.59447-N
accession number
266053
catalog number
59447-N
59447N
The frigate President was built by Christian Bergh of New York; William Doughty of Philadelphia was the naval constructor. It measured 175 feet in length, 44 feet 4 inches in beam, 13 feet 11 inches in depth of hold, and 1,576 tons.
Description
The frigate President was built by Christian Bergh of New York; William Doughty of Philadelphia was the naval constructor. It measured 175 feet in length, 44 feet 4 inches in beam, 13 feet 11 inches in depth of hold, and 1,576 tons. The ship was launched on April 1, 1800, sister ship of Constitution and United States. Famous for its speed and appearance, contemporary accounts credit President with being a faster ship than USS Constitution. It served as a flagship in the Mediterranean in 1801-02 and 1804-05. It was on the American coast from 1809 to the War of 1812. During the War of 1812, President served as flagship for Commodores John Rogers and Stephen Decatur. It was captured by the British in 1815 after being disabled and grounded in battle. It was then taken into the Royal Navy but was never serviceable. Its lines were taken off in the Portsmouth Dockyard in 1815, and it was broken up there in 1817. Subsequently, the British built a frigate on its lines, slightly modified and with the same name. It became part of the Royal Navy in 1847.
In all but size, President represented the highest development in frigate design, for it combined the desired features of its class to such a degree that no marked changes were made from its model in the best of the later frigates.
The President model was probably built at Dartmoor Prison, 14 miles from Plymouth, England, where many of American prisoner-of-war models were built.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1815
maker
unknown
ID Number
2005.0279.089
accession number
2005.0279
catalog number
2005.0279.089
In this ca.
Description
In this ca. 1814 scene by artist Thomas Birch, the American privateer brig Warrior has just captured the English schooner Hope, which was en route from Glasgow, Scotland to Buenos Ayres, Brazil with a cargo of English manufactured goods.
A bitter offshore battle has left large jagged cannonball holes in the sails of both vessels. The Warrior's crew has removed the Hope's cargo, and is placing a prize crew aboard the Hope via the two small craft going between the two ships. The prize crew will sail the Hope to an American port, where the prize can be formally registered and auctioned off, with the proceeds shared among the Warrior's owners and crew. Prize crews manned captured enemy ships, which could otherwise escape too easily.
Contemporary sources indicate that the 430-ton armed privateer brig Warrior was built on the swift pilot boat model and carried 21 guns and 150 crew during the War of 1812. Large crews were required by privateers not only to fight enemy shipping, but to provide prize crews if successful. The Warrior's captain Guy R. Champlin was one of the American sailors most feared by the British, as he had a remarkable record of bold action, great bravery and fearless aggression.
Anglo-American artist Thomas Birch (1779-1851) began painting marine scenes in the early 19th century. He is known to have painted several War of 1812 engagements based upon eyewitness accounts—this is a rare preserved example. The British schooner Hope was insured by the oldest marine insurer in North America, the Insurance Company of North America (INA), which bought the painting. It was donated to the Smithsonian in 2005 by CIGNA, INA’s successor corporation.
Date made
ca 1814
Associated Date
early 19th century
captained the ship depicted
Champlin, Guy R.
purchased and donated the painting
CIGNA
maker
Birch, Thomas
ID Number
2005.0279.021
accession number
2005.0279
catalog number
2005.0279.021

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