John H. Couch (side-wheeler)

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|Ship image=John W Couch (sidewheeler).jpg

|Ship caption= Steamer John H. Couch sometime between 1863 and 1870.

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{{Infobox ship career

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|Ship route= Willamette and Columbia rivers

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|Ship builder= John Bruce

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|Ship identification= U.S. # 13622

|Ship fate=Dismantled

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{{Infobox ship characteristics

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|Ship class= riverine all-purpose

|Ship tonnage= 255.24 gross register tons

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|Ship length= {{convert|122|ft|m|1|abbr=on}}

|Ship beam= {{convert|21|ft|m|1|abbr=on}} over hull (exclusive of guards).

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|Ship power= steam engines, with bore of {{convert|14.375|in|mm|1|abbr=on}} and stroke of {{convert|54|ft|m|2|abbr=on}}.

|Ship propulsion=side-wheels

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John H. Couch was a side-wheel driven steamboat that operated on the Columbia and lower Willamette rivers from 1863 to 1873. Informally the vessel was known as the Couch.

Construction

John H. Couch was built at Westport, Oregon in 1863.{{cite book

| editor1-last = Wright

| editor1-first = E.W.

| title = Lewis & Dryden's Marine History of the Pacific Northwest

| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=seRDAAAAYAAJ

| chapter = Chapter VI: The Oregon Steam Navigation Company’s Best Days, Many New Steamers in Puget Sound Waters

| chapter-url = https://books.google.com/books?id=seRDAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA106

| lccn = 28001147

| location = Portland, OR

| publisher = Lewis and Dryden Printing Co.

| date = 1895

| pages = 117–118, 123

}} The boat was named after a prominent seaman, John H. Couch, who was also Oregon’s first inspector of hulls. The boat was built by Capt. Charles Holman, D. Huntington, and Capt. Oliff Olsen. Holman owned one-half of the boat, with the others holding a one-third and a one-sixth share, respectively.

The shipbuilder was John Bruce, of Astoria.{{Cite news

| title = Ship Building

| url = http://oregonnews.uoregon.edu/lccn/sn84022660/1867-07-13/ed-1/seq-2/

| newspaper = Oregon City Enterprise

| location = Oregon City, OR

| volume = 1

| issue = 38

| date = July 13, 1867

| at = p.2, col.1

| publisher = D.C. Ireland

}}

Design, dimensions, and engineering

John H. Couch was a side-wheel driven vessel. It was built to run from Portland to Astoria, Oregon. The official merchant vessel registry number was 13622.{{cite book

| last1 = U.S. Treasury Dept, Statistics Bureau

| title = Annual List of Merchant Vessels

| type = FY end Jun 30, 1869

| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=RLoYAAAAYAAJ

| location = Wash. DC

| publisher = GPO

| date = 1870

| volume = 2

| page = 118

}}

John H. Couch was {{convert|122|ft|m|1|abbr=on}} long, with a beam of {{convert|21|ft|m|1|abbr=on}}, exclusive of the guards and the paddle-wheel housings. Gross tonnage was 255.24 tons.

The engines had cylinders with an inside bore of 14 and three-eighths inches with a stroke of 54 inches.

Operations

File:John H Couch (steamboat ad).jpg

John H. Couch operated for a time in opposition to the dominant steamboat concern on the river, the Oregon Steam Navigation Company. O.S.N was running the steamer Julia against the Couch on the Astoria route.

In January 1865, O.S.N. bought the Couch, as well as the steamers Cowlitz (ex Swan) and Belle, which were also owned by Holman, Huntington, and Olsen. Once O.S.N. had the Couch, it withdrew Julia from the Astoria route.

O.S.N. kept the Couch on the Astoria run under Capt. J.O. Van Bergen, as master, with Richard Hoyt, Jr. as purser. During summer, the boat was sometimes engaged in excursion business.

Van Bergen was succeed in command by Capt. Henry A. Snow, who remained in charge until 1870.

In November 1866, the Couch had a contract to carry the U.S. mail from Portland to Astoria.{{Cite news

| author1-last = Ainsworth

| author1-first = John C.

| author-link1 = John C. Ainsworth

| author2 = Oregon Steam Navigation Co.

| title = Astoria Route — The U.S. Mail Steamer John H. Couch

| type = advertisement

| url = http://oregonnews.uoregon.edu/lccn/sn84022660/1866-11-10/ed-1/seq-3/

| newspaper = Oregon City Enterprise

| location = Oregon City, OR

| date = November 10, 1866

| at = p.3, col.4

}} Captain Snow was then in command. Couch left Portland for Astoria and way landings at 6:00 a.m. on Mondays and Fridays of each week. Returning, Couch departed Astoria on Tuesdays and Saturdays at 6:00 a.m.

Captain Grenville Reed was also reported to have been in command of the John H. Couch for five years.{{Cite news

| title = Veteran Pilot is Dead — Captain Grenville Reed Passes Away at Astoria, Aged 73

| url = http://infoweb.newsbank.com/resources/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004&rft_dat=document_id%3Aimage%252Fv2%253A11A73E5827618330%2540EANX-NB-11C1AE43361B7C78%25402419791-11C1AE43569ED908%25403-11C1AE442E098D90%2540&rft_id=info%3Asid%2Finfoweb.newsbank.com&rft_val_format=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Actx&svc_dat=AMNEWS&req_dat=0D10F2CADB4B24C0

| newspaper = Morning Oregonian

| location = Portland, OR

| volume = 52

| issue = 16,276

| date = January 23, 1913

| at = p.4, col.5

}}

Disposition

By 1870, Couch was no longer fit to carry passengers and was retired from service. In January 1873, Couch was dismantled, with the boat’s engines being salvaged and sent to the upper Columbia, to be installed on another steamer.