The enclosed pictures were taken during August 1981 on the Beardstown Illinois waterfront showing typical river scenes with the usual amount of tugs and other equipment. The B&N RR bridge in its river mode. The stern-wheel river tug is a locally built boat, original builders and name still showing = LOGSDON = built sometime in the 1930s more details could be obtained. These pictures were taken
Mrs. Alphonso J. Cervantes lights a candle for the birthday boy. Mayor Cervantes celebrated Tuesday with his wife, a trayful of cabled messages from friends and a mini-cake, a gift of Globe-Democrat photographer Jack Fahland.
Second tow of four Army tugs being delivered to New Orleans. These Tugs are built at Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas for the Army. Tow is passing dredge (Mile 39.0).
The Fred Swain was built at Stillwater, Minnesota in 1900. She was a sidewheeler with no texas. Her dimensions were:- 142 x 28.3 x 4.5 feet; tonnage, gross and net, 124 tons. She operated mostly on the Illinois River around Peoria. On August 20, 1909, she burned to the water's edge at Peoria, Illinois; fifty-eight persons were aboard but no lives lost.