When Captain W. H. Thorwegan became a pioneer in the excursion business on a large scale he built a second Grand Republic. This boat was originally a sternwheeler freighter J. B. M. Kehlor. In 1881 this sternwheeler was rebuilt into a side-wheeler and renamed the Helena. In 1886 this boat was again rebuilt and renamed the Grand Republic. She then had a length of 265 feet and a beam of 50 feet. This Grand Republic ran excursions out of St. Louis in 1896, 1897 and 1898. She burned at the mouth of the River Des peres, St. Louis, on March 13, 1898.