The Dove was a popular packet that plied the Little Kanawha River between Parkersburg and Creston. The packets carried freight and passengers, making many stops along their way. (Photo Provided)

In the previous Look Back, myself and a friend, Howard Bailey, made a trip to Creston, located on the Little Kanawha River in Calhoun County. He reviving memories of when his father rode log rafts from there to the mill at Nicolette; me trying to record the history that Howard shared.

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Crossing the Little Kanawha River, we turn toward “downtown” Creston, the place from which Howard’s father began many an arduous trip down the river, riding log rafts. Taking a quick left turn, we parallel the West Fork River for a short distance and pass the very spot where the West Fork boom was located. This was the launching point, the spot from which logs began their clumsy journey, forty miles or so, to the several downstream mills, where they were transformed into usable lumber.

Soon our trip was half over. I met Edgar and his wife Helen, the friendly voice I had spoken with by phone, and who had invited me to visit them in Creston. I introduced them to Howard; it was quickly determined that he was their senior by about five years,

Conversation soon drifted to another era, a period to which I was a stranger. Asking questions, I tried to steer the conversations to the river. How could so many boats and the huge flotillas of log rafts co-exist in the narrow river? Did the packet boats operate on a strict schedule? How was the heavy oil field equipment handled? My questions came fast, answers more thoughtfully.

Edgar recalled that the packet boat “Dove” left Creston at 4 a.m. and arrived at Parkersburg at 11 a.m. The return trip left Parkersburg at 3 p.m. and reached Creston at 11:30. Meals were available on the top level of the boat for 25 cents; cooked and served by Etta Gear. He recalled that one night as he and his father were returning upriver from Sanoma, all the lights on the boat suddenly went out. The pilot never so much as slowed down! How could he travel in the dark? The exhaust from the engines exited from the side of the boat. The experienced pilot was guided by the echo of the exhaust from the near bank!

Edgar also remembered a showboat stopping at Creston. What was his favorite memory? When the old man began playing the calliope as the boat neared Creston harbor.

Helen remembered another boat that left more tangible memories. It was the “dish” boat. This boat was actually the second phase of a lucrative business. The owner of the dish boat also operated a junk boat that worked its way upstream from village to village, buying scrap iron and general junk. He then took it south to be sold. Using the proceeds, he would buy stock for the dish boat. His next move was to head back upstream, trying to retrieve the pennies that he had paid for the scrap just months before. Many of the wares sold from the dish boat were what is known today as “carnival glass.”

With my mind full of stories and contacts aplenty for future quests, we bid adieu to our newfound friends in Creston, and returned to Cedar Grove, “our place of beginning,” two and one-half hours, and $2.65 worth of gas later. It was a great morning!

Note: My friend Howard passed in 2005.

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Bob Enoch is president of the Wood County Historical and Preservation Society. If you have comments or questions about Look Back items, please contact him at: roberteenoch@gmail.com, or by mail at WCHPS, PO Box 565, Parkersburg, WV 26102.