''P.A. Denny'' is a long three-deck paddle wheel boat that cruised the
Kanawha River
The Kanawha River ( ) is a tributary of the Ohio River, approximately 97 mi (156 km) long, in the U.S. state of West Virginia. The largest inland waterway in West Virginia, its valley has been a significant industrial region of the st ...
in the eastern United States for nearly three decades as a
tour boat
A tour boat is a boat used, and frequently purpose-built or adapted, for boat tours, a type of tourism frequently offered in much visited towns and cities of historic interest, that have canals or a river running through it, or that lie on a co ...
. It provided excursions and parties, before leaving for Ohio in August 2004.
''P.A. Denny'' is now based in
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wi ...
operated by the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission's educational foundation. It is renamed the P.A. Denny River Education Center and is used as a floating classroom, with periodic excursions. The facility is designed to introduce 4th through 12th graders to science and ecology concepts. ''P.A. Denny'' features labs and equipment for the students' use during their four- or five-hour voyage.
In October 2010 The Heckerts bought the PA Denny and took it to Parkersburg WV .
The Heckerts are putting a plan together to put the PA Denny back in service in the near future. Plans are being worked on as of 1/01/2016 to restore the Denny and get the recertification done in order to return the PA Denny to transporting people around the river.
History
The ship was built as the ''Scott'', in
Charleston, West Virginia, by
Charles Ward Engineering Works in 1930 and served the
in Louisville for 24 years.
Charleston river man Peter Anthony Denny bought the boat and led it to victory in the 1974 Stern-wheel Regatta Race in Charleston. After his death, a longtime friend, Captain Lawson Hamilton bought the boat and named it ''P.A. Denny''. ''P.A. Denny'' participated in the World's Fair in New Orleans in the early 1980s.
As of January 2009, the ORSANCO Educational Foundation has changed its name to the Foundation for Ohio River Education (FORE), which is primarily operated from the P.A.Denny River Education Center, currently docking in
Covington, Kentucky
Covington is a home rule-class city in Kenton County, Kentucky, United States, located at the confluence of the Ohio and Licking Rivers. Cincinnati, Ohio, lies to its immediate north across the Ohio and Newport, to its east across the Licking ...
. Classes offered on board include Land Use and Watersheds, Water Chemistry, Aquatic Biota, and Ecological Impacts for the high school and college cruises. For elementary and middle school students, Planktomania, Critter Counting (macroinvertebrate identification), Fish Ecology, and Rate Your River.
See also
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Paddle steamer
A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine that drives paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses we ...
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Riverboat
A riverboat is a watercraft designed for inland navigation on lakes, rivers, and artificial waterways. They are generally equipped and outfitted as work boats in one of the carrying trades, for freight or people transport, including luxury un ...
References
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*{{cite web, url=http://fore.orsanco.org/ , website=ORSANCO , title=Owners of the P.A. Denny , url-status=dead , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110609053903/http://fore.orsanco.org/ , archive-date=June 9, 2011
Paddle steamers of the United States
Education in Cincinnati
Ships built in Charleston, West Virginia
1930 ships