Donald B.

The Donald B. is a paddlewheel towboat at the Bellaire dock on the Ohio River, built to work as a working vessel moving cargo barges. The hull displays typical early maritime construction with steel plating and a design made for river navigation.

The boat was built in 1923 at Marietta Manufacturing and first worked for Standard Oil Company moving cargo. In 1940, Ray Brookbank purchased it and gave it its current name after his son.

The vessel shows how river workers moved barges and transported goods on the Ohio River, a crucial part of local commerce. You can sense how this work shaped life in the region and why the river mattered so much to the community.

The boat sits permanently at the dock and can be viewed from outside, allowing you to see its construction details up close. Visit during daytime to get the best views of the steel structure and paddle wheels.

The 1940 Fairbanks-Morse diesel engine still runs in its original condition, which is remarkable for a boat this old. This intact machinery shows how sturdy early ship engines were and how well it was maintained over the decades.