The Wiggins Ferry – A Connecting Point Between Eastern and Western Railroads by Jo-Ann Roberts

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When I was plotting out the details of Ainsley, Book 8 in the Love Train series, I knew Ainsley MacKenzie was from Boston, and would travel as far as the Mississippi River on regional train lines until she got to East St. Louis, Illinois. In 1872, there were no railroad bridges that spanned the river in that area, so how would she get across to the Union Pacific 1216?

My research discovered the Wiggins Ferry Company. In 1797, Captain James S. Piggott was granted the right to operate a ferry between St. Louis and the opposite shore of the Mississippi River. Passengers loaded into small hollowed-out tree trunks at Piggott’s ferry house just below Market Street and were shuffled across the river by poles or paddles with long sweeps. After a couple changes of hands in the coming years, Piggott’s ferry ended up in the ownership of Samuel Wiggins, whose name would be tied to it for more than a century to come.

The Wiggins ferries, like the one in this painting, had one platform on each side of the pilothouse. Typically, new passengers and cargo loaded onto one side, and outgoing passengers and cargo disembarked on the other. Missouri Historical Society Collections.

In the earliest years of the Wiggins Ferry, crossing the river was a gargantuan task. John Darby, who became mayor of St. Louis in 1835, moved his family and their belongings across to St. Louis in 1818 over a three-day period and for the fee of $50—no small sum of money at the time.

“The ferry consisted of a small keel-boat, which was managed entirely by Frenchmen. Every portion of the body—every muscle, in fact—was brought into play…the vessel rocked so that the trace-chains at the end of the tongue often dipped into the river…meanwhile, the Frenchmen swore in French, ‘prenegard.’ ‘sacre!’—so that the enterprise seemed a dangerous and hazardous undertaking.”

Mr. Wiggins subsequently acquired some 900 acres of land along the Illinois banks of the Mississippi directly across from present day St. Louis, Missouri. The Wiggins Ferry Company not only operated a ferry business for individuals wanting to cross the Mississippi, but it also developed extensive yards, depots, warehouses, railroad tracks and elevators. Eventually, the Wiggins Ferry Company became a major connecting point for the many railroads terminating at East St. Louis, Illinois, and St. Louis, Missouri.

Through the haze of early 1900s St. Louis, the Eads Bridge looms large over the icy Mississippi River. Murphy Library Special Collections, University of Wisconsin–La Crosse.

From those small beginnings and makeshift rafts, the Wiggins Ferry Company built an empire transporting people to and from St. Louis. By the 1820s, Wiggins had a fleet of ferryboats with names fit for battleships, such as Sea Serpent, Rhinoceros, and Antelope. He even experimented with ferries powered by horses on treadmills. In 1830 Wiggins upgraded to steam power, with the St. Clair and Ibez ferries making two regular daily river crossings. By the early 1870s the company was averaging river crossings of 1,500 people, 10,000 bushels of coal, and 750 wagons each day.

Winter river crossings were hazardous to say the least. But in 1839, these crossings became easier thanks to the Icelander and its pointed, ice-smashing iron hull. There were some setbacks, however. In 1851 there was a ferry explosion, and in 1864, four boats were lost to an ice floe (a floating piece of ice causing jams on freshwater rivers) that damaged the hulls.

By 1870, The company’s stock reached $1 million just as the Eads Bridge, St. Louis’s first bridge across the Mississippi, was rising in the middle of the river. As the bridge would not be completed until 1874, I had my answer!

If you’d like to read an excerpt CLICK HERE

I’ll be giving away TWO ebook editions of Ainsley – Love Train Series Book 8 – to two winners!

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As an unmarried woman, would you have dismissed the conventions of the 1870s and traveled alone out West by rail or stagecoach? Why or why not?

 

Jo-Ann Roberts was born and raised in western Massachusetts. Fascinated by America’s Old West, she always felt she was destined to travel on a wagon train following the Oregon Trail. She enjoys writing sweet historical romances which take readers back to a simpler time when families and friends help one another find love and happiness.

Website: https://www.jo-annrobertsauthor.com/

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40 thoughts on “The Wiggins Ferry – A Connecting Point Between Eastern and Western Railroads by Jo-Ann Roberts”

  1. I don’t think I’d be brave enough to travel a great distance with no set destination. BUT, if I were going somewhere specific, I think I would dare.

    But I can say that because from 10yo I used to bus across town, by myself, on a regular basis. It’s not that I was fearless, but I knew how to navigate the system and the streets where I was going.
    (I’d never let my kids so some of the things my folks let me do.)

    • Good morning! Thank you for stopping by P & P to read and comment. The last sentence struck a chord with me. We’d get on our bikes and be gone all day. Even after supper, we’d go outside and play until the streetlights came on. I know it sounds trite but that’s the way it was…and I agree that I’d never let my kids do some of the things I did. Even thinking about it makes me cringe1

  2. When I was a younger woman, I definitely would have answered “Yes!” I always felt like I should have been born back in those days and been a daring, adventurist! I would have loved to meet my one true love by him rescuing me from some terrible villain and we would fall in love at first sight!! This would have happened while I was traveling by, train, stagecoach, or wagon train. I would have had to been a nanny to some married couple with children or begged my way on to the wagon train by some means such as that, had I been a single woman, but I believe, if the circumstances had been right, I could have done it. I probably would have died trying!! Your book sounds so wonderful!! I love the research you did! My family had a ferry way back when between Indian Territory and Texas, and believe it or not, my husband’s great grandfather ran Love’s Ferry in Love County, Oklahoma when it was Indian Territory. It was called Love’s Valley then. They were about 30 miles apart from each other on the Red River.

    • Good morning! I share so much of what you said. I always said I’d been born in the wrong century. It’s still on my bucket list to take a wagon train trip on the Oregon Trail. How wonderful to trace your family history back to the Indian Territory and Texas. I will do some research into Love’s Ferry in Oklahoma. Thanks for stopping by P & P to comment.

    • Good morning, Debra! I imagine I might feel the same. Leaving behind one set of problems to willingly take up another might not be the answer. Sometimes the devil we know is better than the devil we don’t. Thanks for stopping by to read and comment on the blog. Happy Thursday!

  4. I think I would have if I had grown up with the same parents. We were allowed to test our wings at an early age and were quite self-reliant.

    • Hello, Rhonda! Thanks for stopping by P& P to read and comment on the blog. I agree! Both my parents worked until 5:00 in the evening. We had chores to do, homework, and get supper ready. I raised my children the same way….roots to grow and wings to fly. Happy Thursday!

    • Good morning! It certainly does. The yearning for adventure, a better position, religious beliefs, to provide for a family might have been all contributing factors why an unmarried would travel alone. Thanks for stopping by P & P to read and comment on the blog.

  6. I probably would, because my father raised me to be independent, and I have traveled extensively, including abroad, by myself.

    • Good morning, Janice! I was raised to be independent as well. In turn, we raised our children in the same manner. Today, they both travel extensively for work and pleasure…especially my daughter. She just returned from a trip to Nova Scotia, and last year she went to Iceland. Once the gas prices return to a manageable cost, and Covid transmission rates are down, we hope to resume traveling again. Thanks for stopping by P&P to read and comment on the blog.

  7. I think I would have in my younger years. When I was newly married, I traveled from Chicago to Guam by myself to join my husband at his duty station. That was in 1971.
    I lived in St. Louis for 20 years. I have crossed bridges to and from Illinois several times. It is a marvel that the mighty Mississippi used to be crossed by ferry.

    • Hello, Paula! Thank you for reading and commenting on the P&P blog today. While doing the research, I found so many instances of accidents, fires, and ice floes that damaged and/or capsized the ferries. I imagine it took a leap of faith to step aboard some of these boats! Have a lovely Thursday!

  8. Depending on the circumstances, I probably would. I do now, so I don’t see why I wouldn’t then.

    • Hello, Trudy! Being a determined, independent person myself, I would agree. Women have broken the rules of convention throughout history…and continue to do so even today! Thanks for stopping by to read and comment on the post! Happy Thursday!

  9. I’m not really sure. It depends on the reason I needed to leave. If I was desperate and didn’t have a choice I would have. I would have preferred traveling by train, but often you had to travel on both to reach an outlying destination.

    • Hello, Connie! Since so many of the rails were destroyed during the Civil War, especially in the South, passengers most likely traveled by train, stagecoach, or wagon to reach their destination. What an arduous trip! Thank you for stopping by P&P to read and comment on the blog.

  10. welcome and thanks for sharing this information. that is a good question. I think as a single women, if traveling that far, I would probably have someone with me. for company and for safety. I know how to shoot and hit my target with no problem.

    • Hi, Lori! I’m sure lots of unmarried women took the old adage, “There’s safety in numbers,” to heart, traveling with a companion to places unknown. Kudos to you for learning to shoot and to hit a target. You might have surprised a few unsuspecting outlaws with that skill! Thanks for stopping by P&P to read and comment on the blog. Happy Thursday!

    • Hello, Teresa! I’m certain several unmarried in the 19th century felt the same way. Whether it was a result of false rumors, poverty, religious beliefs, or lack of an income, these women gathered up their courage and made the choice to find a better life. Thanks for stopping by to read and comment on the blog.

  12. I’d probably would not travel by myself for safety reasons, but it would depend on the the reason and motivation.

  13. If I needed to leave my current circumstances, it’s possible I might have chosen to go to the West.

    • Hello, Denise! Thanks for stopping by P&P to read and comment on the blog. I think it would have taken a leap of faith to leave the familiar behind to face an unknown future. Yet so many women did just that whether for financial or personal reasons. Some found love; some security, and some heartache, but they all made the choice to change their circumstances.

    • Thanks for commenting, Shanna. As I stated, I had to find some way to get Ainsley across the river. When I hit upon the Wiggins Ferry, I knew I found my answer. I definitely would have traveled by myself. I’d prefer to think of myself as adventurous with a health does of curiosity. Thanks for stopping by P&P today, dear friend. I appreciate it.

  16. I think when you’re younger, regardless of the era, you take mods risks with convention and your safety.

    • I agree. When one is younger, they feel invincible, show more courage, and take more risks. On the whole, I think people still possess the spirit of adventure to explore new possibilities. Thanks for stopping by P&P to read and comment on the blog.

  17. Good morning, Jo-Ann. I’m such a chicken when it comes to traveling alone. I doubt I would have unless I was desperate. 🙂

    I truly enjoyed your blog. Boy, you really have to admire the industrialists back in previous centuries who had the vision and found the ways (and money) to make their dreams work. They knew what had to be done for the country to grow and progress, and they accomplished it. Samuel Wiggins is to be applauded!

    Thank you SO much for being our guest today!

    • Pam, it was my pleasure to contribute to P&P today…always so much fun. I l think the entrepreneurial spirit is still alive and well in our country. Despite the current climate, there are people who want us to excel. Going on a wagon train on the Oregon Trail is high on my bucket list….maybe someday!

  18. Hi Jo-Ann! We’re excited to have you. Your blog is interesting and you pose a great question. I could and would do anything I had to but I really hate traveling alone. It would’ve been very scary with so many rough men and conditions. I don’t think I would’ve liked it. I’m reading Ainsley and enjoying the story. The kids are so cute. It’s a good story and I’m wishing you lots of success!

    • Hello, Linda! It’s always a pleasure to join the Fillies on this blog. I’m a determined (my husband says “stubborn”) and independent person so if an opportunity presented itself, I’d definitely head West by myself. I’m so happy you are enjoying Ainsley and Lucas’s story. It was an honor and pleasure to be part of this MAPs project. Happy Thursday!

  19. I would like to think I would have but it would really depend on what was going on in my life at the time. Sometimes you just don’t have that much choice at what is put into your life to make you do things.

    • Hello! Sometimes these women had to make a choice to take a chance and change their circumstances…hopefully for the better. For me, that why I enjoy writing and reading sweet romance. Thanks for stopping by the P&P blog today to read and comment on the post. Happy Thursday!

  20. I don’t think I would have been brave enough to travel out west back then all by myself. Mainly due to all the dangers and the worry of how to pay for it all. I suppose it just depends on what your life was like back East though, as to whether going through all the would have been worth it.

    • Welcome, Megan! I’m certain many women felt the same way. Leaving the familiar–as bad as it might be–was often more frightening that stay….like the old adage “the devil you know is better than the one you don’t”. As you said, money could be a deterrent as well. Thanks for stopping by P&P blog to read and comment. Happy Thursday!

  21. I am certain I would have. I was in the Peace Corps and served in a country where females were still expected to travel with a companion. If not, they were considered fair game. I did travel alone frequently but was careful. Being an American made a bit of a difference, but then again, their image of Americans was from the movies and that could cause problems. After serving, I traveled to several countries on my way home and was traveling alone. Again, being careful and not putting yourself in a situation that could cause issues is important. I did find myself in some iffy situations but managed to get through them OK. I made sure my family didn’t fully realize what I was up to. I will admit to telling my daughters to never do what I did. If they do, I hope they don’t tell me until well afterwards.

  22. Welcome, Patricia! Thank you for your time in the Peace Corps. When I was younger that was one of my ambitions. However, during college in Boston, I met my husband, and my life took a different path. An unaccompanied woman traveling in the 1870s as well as those traveling today still need to be careful. You were wise to be cautious. Glad you made it home safely. Thanks for stopping by the P&P blog to read and comment. Have a lovely evening.

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