First Steamboat Whistle
Cincinnati Enquirer, 11 Feb 1893, page 12 (St Louis Dispatch)
THE FIRST WHISTLE
When the Steamboat Screecher Was First Heard on the Mississippi
"I see they have finally settled the discussion as to who was the first man to use a steamboat whistle on the river," said Captain Jess Eastman, of Cairo, at the Baeded?? last night. "It was a mighty interesting discussion too, and the thing was in doubt for some time, but its all settled now and Captain J Stut? Neal was the man.
"As Captain Neal explains it himself the story is something to this effect; He was the engineer and part owner of the Revinue, spelt that way with an "i" mind you, and she was the first vessel to use a whistle. They got it from Anderson Fulton, in Pittsburg, where the boat was built. That was in 1843.
You see, they were making a trip with Government supplies to Fort Touson, on the Red River in 1844. They had had the whistle then, for while they were making the trip, Polk was inaugurated President, and old Cap't Neal, he wasn't old then, was the only Democrat on the boat, and I tell you he made the Injuns jump when he set that old whistle to tooting. In those days the whistle was placed atop of the boiler and the engineer could amuse himself to his heart's content if he wanted to.
Old Cap'n Neal was a steamboat man born. He was the first man on the river to use the life preserver, and sent Cap'n W H Fulton all the way to Philadelphia to get a supply of them for the Revinue. On the trip that I tell you about the Revinue towed a kneel boat all the way from Pittsburg via New Orleans to Ft Touson, on the Red River. That was before the annexation of Texas and at that time Ft. Touson was the boundary line between the United States and Texas, and I tell you that was a feat for steam boating in those days."