Governor Newell was a sternwheel-driven steamboat that operated from 1883 to 1902 in the Pacific Northwest. Gov. Newell was owned by Capt. Charles Oliver Hill (1853–1944), whose wife, Minnie Hill was the first woman west of the Mississippi river to hold a steamboat captain's license. Gov. Newell was named after William A. Newell, governor of the Washington Territory from 1880 to 1884. Construction Gov. Newell was built at Portland, Oregon for the Shoalwater Transportation Company, making its trial trip on August 26, 1883 under the command of Capt.James P. Whitcomb (1824-1901). Gov. Newell was fitted out by the Shoalwater Bay Transportation Company. Louis Alfred Loomis, later the founder of the Ilwaco Railway and Navigation Company, was president of the company in April 1883. Capt. William H. Clough was also a member of Shoalwater Bay Transportation Co. Perry Scott, brother of famous steamboat captain Uriah Bonser Scott, assisted in the fitting out of Gov. Newell. Dimensions Gov. Newell was long exclusive of the extension of the main deck, called the "fantail" on which the sternwheel was mounted. The boat had a beam of , exclusive of the protective timbers running outside of the top of the sides of the hull called guards. Gov. Newell had a depth of hold of . The overall size of the vessel was 203.87 gross tons (a unit of volume, not weight) and 134.41 registered tons. The official merchant vessel registry number was 85806. Engineering Steam for the engines of Gov. Newell was generated by a wood-fired boiler. When engaged in towing work, Gov. Newell could be handled with the captain, a mate, the engineer, and two firemen. Power was generated by twin steam engines, horizontally mounted, cylinder bore and stroke of . Early career Gov. Newell was sent down to Astoria, Oregon, where on September 7, 1883, the steamer made a trial trip from Astoria to Knappa, Oregon, starting at about 11:00 a.m. On board were Capt. John Henry Dix ("J.H.D") Gray, lumber mill owner John Corse Trullinger, and other local dignitaries. According to a report in the Daily Astorian, the Gov. Newell "goes to Gray’s harbor on the first favorable opportunity, where a profitable trade awaits her." Gov. Newell did not serve long on Willapa Bay, then known as Shoalwater Bay. The Shoalwater Bay Transportation Company decided to transfer Gov. Newell to Grays Harbor. In May 1885, Gov. Newell had a contract to carry