Thomas Powell was a fast and popular steamboat built in Manhattan, New York City in 1846 for service on the Hudson River. She ran between New York City and various Hudson River destinations during her career, including Newburgh, Piermont, Poughkeepsie, Rondout, Catskill, and finally as a nightboat to Troy. She also ran on the Delaware River for some years in the 1850s, and during the American Civil War served as a Union Army dispatch boat. Thomas Powell was considered one of the fastest, if not the fastest, of the Hudson River steamers of her time, capable of speeds in excess of . Her speed, excellent accommodations and good management made her a favorite with the traveling public, and consequently, she retained her original name to the end of her career. Her last known trip was made in 1879 and she was scrapped in 1881. Construction and design In 1846, Thomas Powell, a prominent businessman of Newburgh, New York, and his son-in-law Homer Ramsdell, ordered a new steamboat to replace Powell's Highlander, which had been running on the New York–to–Newburgh route since 1836. The new steamboat was named Thomas Powell after her part-owner. Thomas Powell, a wooden-hulled sidewheel steamer, was built by Lawrence & Sneden of Manhattan, New York, under the supervision of her future captain, Samuel Johnson. She was long, with a beam of , draft of and hold depth of Her registered tonnage was 585. A bust of her namesake was mounted on the pilot house roof. Thomas Powell was powered by a single-cylinder vertical beam engine with bore of , stroke of , and steam cut-off set at . Steam was supplied by two boilers, one on each guard in accordance with the prevailing fashion, at a working pressure of , and fuel consumption was two tons of anthracite coal per hour. Both the engine and boilers were built by T. F. Secor & Co. of New York. The water wheels had a diameter of and a paddle length of . Service history Newburgh service 1846–1848 thumb | 1846 oil painting of Thomas Powell by James Bard. Compare the solid es in this image with the latticed design (see photo above) later adopted. Thomas Powell made her maiden voyage from New York to Newburgh on 30 April 1846. She thereafter maintained a regular schedule, departing from Warren Street, New York, for Newburgh at 4 pm Monday through Saturday,