CHAPTER IV.
Expansion of Steamboating on the Niagara—its Decline—a Final Flash and a Move To the North.
During this decade the Niagara River was more increasingly traversed by many steamers, and became the main line of travel between the Western and Centre States by steamer to Buffalo, and thence, via the Niagara River to Boston and New York via Ogdensburg and Albany, or by Montreal and Lake Champlain to the Hudson.
Lewiston had become a place of much importance, being the transhipping point for a great through freighting business. Until the opening of the Erie Canal all the salt used in the Western States and Canada was brought here by water from Oswego, in thousands of barrels, from the Onandaga Salt Wells. Business in the opposite direction was greatly active, report being made of the passing of a consignment of 900 barrels of "Mississippi sugar," and 200 hogsheads of molasses for Eastern points in the United States and Canada.
In addition to the sailing craft five different steamers left the docks every day for other ports on the lake.
A new era was opened in 1847 by the introduction with great eclat and enterprise of the first iron steamers. The "Passport," commanded first by Captain H. Twohey and afterwards by Captain Thomas Harbottle, was constructed for the Hon. John Hamilton, the iron plates being moulded on the Clyde and put together at the Niagara shipyard by James and Neil Currie. The plates for the "Magnet" were similarly brought out from England and put together for J. W. Gunn, of Hamilton, the principal stockholder, with Captain J. Sutherland her captain. Both these steamers in their long service proved the reliability of metal vessels in our fresh water. Both formed part of the Royal Mail Line leaving Toronto on the arrival of the river steamers.
In the early "fifties" the "American Express Line," running from Lewiston to Toronto, Rochester, Oswego and Ogdensburg, consisted of the fine upper cabin steamers "Cataract," "Bay State," "Ontario," and "Northerner."
The "New Through Line," a Canadian organization, was comprised of six steamers: the "Maple Leaf," "Arabian," "New Era," "Champion," "Highlander," "Mayflower." The route they followed was: "Leave Hamilton 7 a.m.; leave Lewiston and Queenston about half past 8 p.m., calling at all north shore Ontario ports between Darlington and Prescott to Ogdensburgh and Montreal without transhipment. Returning via the north shore to Toronto and Hamilton direct." The through time down to Montreal was stated in the advertisement to be "from Hamilton 33 hours, from the Niagara River 25 hours."
A good instance of the frequency of the entrances of the steamers into the harbours is afforded by an amusing suggestion which was in 1851, made by Captain Hugh Richardson, who had become Harbour Master at Toronto.