Columbia 1835 by Glen McGuire - 1/400 - BOTTLE - Steam Packet

[Glen McGuire]

This project will be my first commissioned ship-in-bottle project.  A good friend of mine is a part owner of an upscale chop house in downtown Georgetown, Texas called City Post.  The name of the restaurant comes from the historical nature of its building.  The building was built in 1931 during the great depression and served as a US Post Office from 1932 to 1990, after which it became Georgetown’s city hall.  In 2021, the building was sold and the new owners converted it into a high-end steakhouse, naming it City Post as a tribute to the building's history as a post office and home for city government.  The building is a beautiful structure, constructed with the same majestic pink granite as the Texas state capital, which stands about 30 miles to the south.

 

The owners of the restaurant asked me to make a ship-in-bottle for display in the restaurant’s Mayor’s Room, which is a large banquet hall-type room reserved for special parties and events.  I was very honored to be asked to do something like that.  With the building having such a unique background and the restaurant’s name derived from that background, I wanted to create an SIB that would tie into all that history.  The challenge, however, would be finding a plausible connection between Texas maritime history and the Postal Service.

 

Texas Maritime History and the Postal Service

So I began my research and eventually ran across the steam packet Columbia.  The Columbia was a sidewheel paddler built in 1835 and put into commercial service by New York businessman Charles Morgan (not the Charles W Morgan of whaling ship notoriety).  In 1836, Texas had just defeated Mexico in its war for independence and established itself as the Republic of Texas.  Several years prior, Morgan had begun commercial steam packet service along the US eastern seaboard from New York to South Carolina, and from there to New Orleans.  With the new Republic of Texas, he saw an opportunity to expand his business empire by providing commercial steamship service for the fledgling republic between its main port of Galveston and the large US port in New Orleans.  So in 1837, Morgan sent his steam packet Columbia, under the command of captain John T Wright, to New Orleans, and then on to Galveston creating the first regular steamship service for the Republic of Texas.  

 

So how does all this have anything to do with the postal service?  Stay with me for just a little bit longer and I’ll somehow get this background story into the harbor.

 

As a brand new, independent nation, one of the things Texas needed was an official postal service.  Before winning independence in 1836, Texas was a Mexican state (part of Coahuila y Tejas) with no established postal service.  Mail was carried by slow-moving wagon train using oxen or mule power.  In December of 1836, a Post Office Department was formally established by the Republic of Texas congress.  However, the creation of a formal postal service did not change the fact that delivery of the mail still relied on beasts of burden.  So when the Columbia arrived in Galveston and began regular passenger and cargo runs to New Orleans, it became the preferred (and much faster) method for moving mail from the Republic of Texas to the United States and places beyond.

 

I said earlier that I knew it would be a challenge finding a link between Texas maritime history and the postal service, but there you go.  That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!

 

The Steam Packet Columbia

Now, for the ship itself.  As mentioned above, the Columbia was a sidewheel steam packet built in 1835.  Charles Morgan, who was a shipping and railroad magnate, bought the Columbia and put it into service initially carrying passengers and freight between New York and South Carolina and eventually Galveston and New Orleans.  She was equipped with two masts, one fore and one aft of a single, tall funnel.  The Columbia had a light draft which made her very maneuverable and particularly well suited for the shallow waters of Galveston Bay. 

 

The Columbia was said to be the first ship to bring luxury to Texas travel.  She had room for up to 60 passengers.  The main cabin was described as opulent, with fine linen, silver forks, ivory knives, dimity draperies, and stained-glass windows.  Many of the walls were decorated with arms recently used in the Texas war for independence.  Below deck there were cabins with more affordable and austere accommodations. 

I could not find any ship plans for the Columbia nor could I find any dimensions other than her having 423 tons of gross tonnage.  So I will pattern my Columbia after other steam packets of that era.  Here are the only 2 images I could find of the Columbia.  The first is a painting showing the 2 masts and tall funnel.  The second is a photograph showing only 1 mast, so maybe the ship is under repair in the photo.  Also, the funnel does not look quite so tall as in the painting, so maybe the artist exaggerated it for effect.

 

 

The Bottle

The restaurant owners wanted to pick the bottle for the project.  They chose a beauty, but they also chose one that presents a real challenge for an SIB project.  One of the unique features of their restaurant is a hidden Speakeasy in the building’s basement that you can only access by an unmarked elevator.  It’s a crowded, dimly lit room where everything is in tight quarters with a spacious bar in the middle.  If you are not familiar with Speakeasy’s, they were hidden bars with secret entrances that sold alcohol during Prohibition (1920s).  They asked the folks in the bar to “speak easy” (quietly) so cops on the street would not hear them.  The bottle the restaurant owners chose is a bartender’s pouring bottle for bitters and such.  It’s a foot in length with a very long and narrow neck, and it’s only 2.75 inches wide. 

 

Fortunately, the Columbia’s masts were not particularly tall, so its profile actually is a nice fit for the bottle.  And I absolutely love the way the decorative parts of the bottle provide a perfect viewing frame for the ship.

   

But that looooong, narrow neck.  Oh boy.  

 

And with that, it’s time to get busy and git er done!

 

Edited Sunday at 06:49 PM by ccoyle
corrected log title

[gsdpic]

Congrats on the commission, Glen.  Looks like another interesting and challenging project to follow.  That bottle looks great but something tells me you would not have chosen it, if it was up to you.   And I learned something....I never knew the origin of the word "speakeasy".   I am not familiar with City Post.   I have been up to Georgetown plenty of times, though about the only time I've been downtown was when I was called for jury duty.  I live in Wilco even though I have an Austin address.

 

[tmj]

That's going to be a challenge indeed! Can't wait to see this project take shape! 

[Keith Black]

 I've been through Georgetown many times on my way to Austin but never stopped there. The City Post is a beautiful building and justly deserving of your SIB. As always I look forward to another of your SIB builds, Glen. Awesome background story and I can't wait for the journey to begin! 

[Paul Le Wol]

Glenn, I too congratulate you on this commission. The restaurant is indeed fortunate to be able to display one of your masterpieces. Good Luck!

[JacquesCousteau]

Very cool project, looking forward to following along!

[Javelin]

Great new project. 

However, I doubt the ship in the picture and the one in the painting are the same... I would rely on the painting more, since it clearly shows Columbia on the paddlewheel cover, while the picture doesn't really give a clue to the pictured ship's name....The superstructure with bridge on top etc, seems very different from the painting. Of course it could be an upgraded, later version of Columbia in the picture. 

 

The bottle is indeed not something an SIB builder would choose, since that long neck will restrict movement of any tweezer or tools you're about to use. 

Not very convinced on the ornamental top and bottom of that bottle. It looks like a good framing, but I'm somehow scared of those being a bit too empty and leaving the model appear too small for that bottle. You're "simulation" however looks good so far in that (or any other) regard. 

 

Looking forward to the way you'll handle the challenges posed by that neck.

[SaltyScot]

This one is going to be interesting. If anyone can pull it off, it is you sir.

[BANYAN]

I keep missing the starts of your wonderful builds Glen, may need to borrow one your long horns to provide a 'not so gentle' nudge  (assuming they are in tune with your build cadence  

 

Looking forward to see how you get around that long neck issue; looks like a challenging build for you.

 

cheers
 

Pat

[gjdale]

Looks like another interesting project Glen. I’m in for the ride! 

[Canute]

Congratulations on this commission build. Will very interested is how you handle this skinny bottle. I'm in.

[Glen McGuire]

Thank you @gsdpic, @tmj, @Keith Black, @Paul Le Wol, @JacquesCousteau, @Javelin, @SaltyScot, @BANYAN, @gjdale, @Canute, @Bryan Woods for hopping in the wagon on this one.  Might be a bumpy ride from time to time but should be fun!

 

 

 

23 hours ago, gsdpic said:

I have been up to Georgetown plenty of times, though about the only time I've been downtown was when I was called for jury duty.  I live in Wilco even though I have an Austin address.

Like you, Gary, I also live in Wilco with an Austin address and have been called to jury duty up there.  I would highly recommend visiting the restaurant on one of your trips to Georgetown.  It's well worth it.

 

 

 

18 hours ago, Javelin said:

I doubt the ship in the picture and the one in the painting are the same... I would rely on the painting more, since it clearly shows Columbia on the paddlewheel cover, while the picture doesn't really give a clue to the pictured ship's name....The superstructure with bridge on top etc, seems very different from the painting.

Roel, The picture came from the website of the Texas State Historical Association.  It's been around since 1897 so I'd tend to think they would be a reliable source.  However, I spent some hours yesterday doing further research and found that you are probably right.  Besides the paddlewheel cover, one of the obvious differences between the picture and painting is the small, odd-looking structure in the middle of each ship.  In the painting, it's an A-frame shape and in the photo, it looks like an elaborate teeter-totter.

  

 

What I learned is that both structures are actually the powerplant for the steam engine.  In the painting's ship, it's called a crosshead (or A-frame) engine.  It was a very common type of engine employed during the early period of steam ship construction.  There were 2 A-frames connected by a horizontal beam.  The piston rod connected to the beam and the beam moved within vertical guides.  Here's an example of one. 

 

 

In the picture's ship, the structure is called a walking beam engine.  The beam connected to the piston rod that ran parallel to the A-frames and was reinforced with 30 degree angle iron struts giving it a distinctive diamond shape.  Here's a closeup example.

 

 

The crosshead engine had a high center of gravity making it inherently unstable in rougher waters.  By 1840, shipbuilders had mostly abandoned it in favor of the walking beam engine.    

 

So Roel, circling back your comment, I believe you are correct.  The painting and picture are different ships.  And it is highly likely that the painting is the Columbia and the picture is another ship.  So I will use the painting as my guide on this project.  However, I really like that lone star on the funnel of the ship in the picture.  It just might find its way onto my version of the Columbia via artistic license or other means! 

 

 

[GrandpaPhil]

Glen,

  Looking forward to this one!  Those early steam ships make interesting projects!

Edited Monday at 03:16 PM by GrandpaPhil

[Glen McGuire]

@GrandpaPhil - Thanks for joining in, Phil.  Always appreciate you following along.

 

Time to get started building the ship.  With the very narrow profile of the bottle's midsection where the ship goes, I'm concerned about making the ship too big and not leaving room for any water or vice versa.  But I also want the ship to fill up as much of the viewing window as possible (to Roel's point about the ship perhaps looking too small for the bottle).  So I need to figure out exactly how much room I have to work with.  Measuring the horizontal window of the bottle is obviously easy.  To measure the bottle's inside diameter, I use crude tool with a dowel rod and pivoting arm on the end.

     

 

 

 

Here's how the measurements came out. 

 

 

Usually I will wait till I'm finished building the ship before I put the epoxy resin water in the bottle.  I'll measure the completed ship from waterline to top of the main mast, which tells me how much epoxy resin I can put in the bottle to have the mast's tip fit just below the inner ceiling of the bottle.  In this case, I decided to put the epoxy resin water in the bottle first, and then take my measurements for how tall to make the ship.  In addition to the height, I was also concerned about the water being wide enough to show some water on each side of the ship.  

 

I put 2 ounces of tinted epoxy resin water in the bottle.  After it cured, I inserted a dummy hull an inch wide to see if the water would be visible on each side on the hull.  There is less water on the sides of the hull than usual, but I thought it looked ok.    

 

 

 

Next, I used my crude measuring tool to indicate there was 2 1/16" of space from the waterline to the apex of the bottle.  

 

 

Now if I want to maintain the exact proportions of the ship in the painting, it would be 2 1/8" tall.  I'll take some additional artistic license and squeeze the height down just a hair to fit.  Fortunately, those early steam packet ships did not have the towering masts of the frigates, galleons, and clippers that were only powered by wind, so a long ship with not so tall masts is a pretty natural fit for the space I have to work with.  Overall, I'm happy with how the foundation of the build has been set.    

Edited 12 hours ago by Glen McGuire

[Knocklouder]

Hopping on board,  another fine build coming up  , always amazed by what you can do with a bottle,    

 

Knocklouder 😁 

 

Edited 12 hours ago by Knocklouder

[Keith Black]

 Battle with the bottle has begun!