Steam Calliope

The Tradition of Calling People to the River

The steam calliope, a 32-note steam pipe organ, is a uniquely American instrument. It has been identified with, and inseparable from, the steamboat since November of 1856. This marks when the Steamboat Amazon first pulled into New Orleans playing her calliope.
The dulcet tones of this “steam piano” graced the waterfront of the “Big Easy,” starting a tradition that would last for years to come.

The Steamboat NATCHEZ, the only authentic steamboat that remains on the Mississippi River System today, carries on the tradition of calling people to the River with her calliope. When the NATCHEZ was christened in 1975, she was built with a calliope that replicates the original steam calliopes built over a century ago by Thomas J. Nichol of Cincinnati, OH.

A steam calliope’s music comes across as “pure” Americana, upbeat, circus-excitement; it is a visual music! A plume of steam shoots upward from each whistle played. The NATCHEZ calliope has synchronized colored lights that illuminate each time any given note (whistle) is struck. The instrument actually puts on an audiovisual show. It is a testament to the musical skill required to play this extraordinary instrument. The steam calliope is not merely a gimmick to attract attention, although it certainly does that, but it is the continuation of a unique American tradition.

Our “Miss Calliope” since 1989, Debbie Fagnano