Talk:Lucy Walker steamboat disaster

United States: Indiana / Kentucky / Louisville Low‑importance

	United States portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject United States, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of topics relating to the United States of America on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the ongoing discussions. Template Usage Articles Requested! Become a Member Project Talk Alerts United StatesWikipedia:WikiProject United StatesTemplate:WikiProject United StatesUnited States articles
Low	This article has been rated as Low-importance on the project's importance scale.
	Indiana portal This article is supported by WikiProject Indiana (assessed as Low-importance).
	Kentucky portal This article is supported by WikiProject Kentucky (assessed as Low-importance).
	Kentucky portal This article is supported by WikiProject Louisville (assessed as Mid-importance).

Ships

This article is within the scope of WikiProject Ships, a project to improve all Ship-related articles. If you would like to help improve this and other articles, please join the project, or contribute to the project discussion. All interested editors are welcome. To use this banner, please see the full instructions.ShipsWikipedia:WikiProject ShipsTemplate:WikiProject ShipsShips articles

Indigenous peoples of North America

	This article is within the scope of WikiProject Indigenous peoples of North America, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of Native Americans, Indigenous peoples in Canada, and related indigenous peoples of North America on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.Indigenous peoples of North AmericaWikipedia:WikiProject Indigenous peoples of North AmericaTemplate:WikiProject Indigenous peoples of North AmericaIndigenous peoples of North America articles
???	This article has not yet received a rating on the project's importance scale.

Untitled

I am ready to write an article about the explosion, fire, and sinking of the steamboat "Lucy Walker" on the Ohio River near Louisville,KY on Oct. 23, 1844. This event was a major factor leading to Federal legislation and regulation for steamboat safety (which was a major part of the issue of states rights (Jacksonian) versus a strong central government (i.e. "internal improvements" of Henry Clay).

Among those killed on the "Lucy Walker" was a prominent Whig polititian, an inventor, and a man who fought a knife fight with Cassius Marcellus Clay (cousin of Henry). The crew of the boat were mainly African-American slaves and the owner and captain was a Cherokee Indian (who may have been the wealthiest person at that time). Most accounts state that the cause of the explosion was mechanical malfunction, but other sources state that the boat was engaged in a race with another, and that the engineer was forced at gunpoint by the captain to drive the boiler to its limits.

This story is linked to steamboats, boiler explosions, technology, national politics and polititians, slavery, Cherokee Indians, and much else.

I have copies of newspaper advertisements for the Lucy Walker (including her Oct. 23, 1844 departure announcement at Louisville), an artist's engraving in 1856 of the boat's explosion, a map of the Ohio river at the site of the accident, a drawing of the "Falls of the Ohio", a picture of "Rich Joe" Vann, a picture of snag boats, a picture of the Louisville waterfront, and some other visual items. How do I add them to the article? In addition, I will read and try to master Wikipedia's proceedures on footnoting and referencing sources. (Oconostota (talk) 12:34, 19 June 2009 (UTC))[reply]