"Taking A Trip Up The Hudson" Edison Concert Cylinder

[FellowCollector]

For anyone interested, I have recently posted a video on my YouTube channel featuring another Edison Concert cylinder from my collection played on my Edison Concert Phonograph.

This one is "Taking A Trip Up The Hudson", an absolutely delightful song about travelling up the Hudson River in eastern New York State on a steamboat (presumably from New York City to points north). The recording is by William Redmond with lovely early piano accompaniment.

I have included the song lyrics within the video so that those interested may follow along. This is one of my favorite Edison Concert cylinders as it shares what was surely a wonderful experience on an early steamboat with beautiful sights along the Hudson River that are surely no longer there.

Doug

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hg1LeVrxzos[/youtube]

[OrthoSean]

What a great record! There were several boats that offered travel between NYC and Albany (and further north) called day line and night line ships, this tune mentions the night. Many of these boats were very luxurious too. A sign of a time that is certainly long gone.

Thanks for sharing this!

Sean

[FellowCollector]

Thanks for your comments, Sean! I was pretty confident that you would have some interesting information to share on this along with some history of the Hudson River.

Doug

[Curt A]

Very interesting topic... Steamboat service started in 1807

Hudson River steamboats were developed by Robert Fulton in the 1800s and 1810s. Hudson River steamboats are unique in that they have two paddlewheels located in the center of the boat on either side. Which is why they are also called "sidewheel steamers." In contrast, Mississippi River steamboats have single, wide paddlewheel at the rear or stern of the boat.

The North River Steamboat or North River (Also known as Clermont) is widely regarded as the world's first vessel to demonstrate the viability of using steam propulsion for commercial water transportation.

The 1870 book Great Fortunes quotes a former resident of Poughkeepsie who described the scene:

It was in the early autumn of the year 1807 that a knot of villagers was gathered on a high bluff just opposite Poughkeepsie, on the west bank of the Hudson, attracted by the appearance of a strange, dark-looking craft, which was slowly making its way up the river. Some imagined it to be a sea-monster, while others did not hesitate to express their belief that it was a sign of the approaching judgment. What seemed strange in the vessel was the substitution of lofty and straight black smoke-pipes, rising from the deck, instead of the gracefully tapered masts that commonly stood on the vessels navigating the stream, and, in place of the spars and rigging, the curious play of the working-beam and pistons, and the slow turning and splashing of the huge and naked paddle-wheels, met the astonished gaze. The dense clouds of smoke, as they rose wave upon wave, added still more to the wonderment of the rustics.

Scheduled passenger service began on September 4, 1807. Steamboat left New York on Saturdays at 6:00 pm, and returned from Albany on Wednesdays at 8:00 am, taking about 36 hours for each journey. Stops were made at West Point, Newburgh, Poughkeepsie, Esopus, and Hudson; other stops were sometimes made, such as Red Hook and Catskill. In the company's publicity the ship was called North River Steamboat or just Steamboat (there being no other in operation at the time).

The Hudson River Day Line dominated the Hudson River passenger trade by the early 20th century. Day Line traffic ended on the Hudson River in 1971 when the Hudson River Day Line was purchased by the Circle Line out of New York City. Passenger boat traffic to Bear Mountain ended completely in the 1980s.

[Curt A]

More info, if interested:
http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/mssc/steamboats/timeline.htm
http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/mssc/steamboa ... e_drew.htm

And this film, which is a documentary type, is fun to watch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmK8HrCtg6k

[FellowCollector]

Thanks very much, Curt, for sharing the wonderful information. It was very enjoyable.

Doug

[OrthoSean]

Here's an ad from 1929 for one of the Albany - NYC lines.

Sean