Maritime Madams: Mary Becker Greene

Mary Becker Greene (1867-1949) was a steamboat pilot and captain who began her career in the late 1800s. A pilot for over 50 years, she was the only licensed female steamboat captain on the Ohio River. Along with her husband Gordon C. Greene, she also co-owned Greene Line Steamers, one of the most important steamboat companies of its time. She passed away at age 80, onboard the Delta Queen, the Greene Line’s most famous passenger ship. 

For Further Reading: 

• Mary B. Greene: The Ohio River’s Leading Lady (Part 1) and (Part 2)
• Captain Mary Becker Greene
• Mary Greene took charge of steamer line
• Mary Greene, Female River Pilot

This month, we’re talking about Maritime Madams. Whether through scientific study, aquatic exploration, or legendary prowess, they harnessed the power of the bodies of waters that cover our earth. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
Hello from Wonder Media Network. I'm Jenny Kaplan and this
is Wamanica. This month, we're talking about maritime madams. Whether
through scientific study, aquatic exploration, or legendary prowess, these women
harness the power of the bodies of water that cover
our earth. Smoke billows from the stacks of a looming
steamboat as it meanders its way down the Ohio River.

(00:30):
Passengers hang about the deck, enjoying their journey from Cincinnati
to Pittsburgh and all that lies in between. At the
steamer's helm stands the captain. Just five feet tall, she
can barely see over the pilot wheel, but she leads
the rig with confidence. She's the only licensed female pilot
on the Ohio River. Mary Becker Green Mary was born

(00:57):
in eighteen sixty eight in a small town on the
Mosque Gingham River near Marietta, Ohio. From a young age,
she was interested in the river she lived on and
would study weather patterns and river conditions. Mary also spent
time on her father's boat, which he used to run
produced from his general store to Marietta. On these trips,
she learned basic navigation skills. By her early twenties, Mary

(01:21):
had met her husband, Gordon C. Green, nephew to a
close family friend and physician. Gordon and his family had
long been in the river boat business, owning steamboats dating
back to the early eighteen hundreds on the Ohio River.
Gordon himself was already a captain when he and Mary met.
Mary and Gordon were married in eighteen ninety and they

(01:43):
quickly settled on Gordon's boat, the h K Bedford. That
same year, the couple founded their steamboat company, green Line Steamers,
in Cincinnati. Mary helped set up the housekeeping on the
boat and spent most of her time living aboard the vessel.
Mary inevitably spent much of her time watching her husband
work as a captain, picking up the skills needed to

(02:05):
pilot a steamboat on her own. With these skills on
her interest in navigation, she officially earned her pilot's license
in eighteen ninety two, making her the only female captain
on the Ohio River. At first, Mary piloted at night
to avoid causing a spectacle, but soon being the only

(02:27):
woman at the helm, attracted media attention. Mary took it
in stride, explaining, I spend a good bit of time
in the pilot house with the captain my husband, you know,
and it is only natural that I should get to
know the river. For Mary, being a steamboat pilot was
simply a logical step. This logic also helped her convince
her husband to allow her to become the sole pilot

(02:48):
of their second passenger steamboat, the Argand, in eighteen ninety seven.
With Mary in charge, the Argand was known for comfort,
good food, and overall hospitality, a refinement that was at
off odds with the rough and rowdy nature of the
Ohio River and its travelers at the time. Mary's captaining
was also a financial success for the Greens. The boat

(03:09):
saw a twenty five hundred dollars profit within six months
of Mary taking over piloting. As the Greens expanded their business,
they also expanded their family. Mary had three sons who
primarily grew up on board the Green family boats, as
both Mary and Gordon were busy piloting. After the turn
of the century, Green Line Steamers began to acquire and

(03:32):
build more vessels. This included the illustrious Greenland, the company's
first luxury steamer. The steamboat was two hundred and fifteen
feet long, had fifty six state rooms, and cost forty
thousand dollars its. Shepherded passengers between Cincinnati, Pomeroy, and Charleston,
as well as housing the Green family on board. The

(03:53):
Greenland also made an impressive journey from Pittsburgh to Saint
Louis for the nineteen oh four World's Fair. The root
of more than twelve hundred miles required extremely skilled navigation,
but was managed smoothly and gracefully by Mary and the
Green family. At the time of the cruise, Mary's youngest
son was just three months old, and she split her

(04:14):
duties between piloting and child rearing. Mary said of the cruise, Unfortunately,
I found time to spend only three hours at the fair.
The duties in connection with the boat required my presence,
likewise feeding the baby, since he did not take his
meals from the bottle. The green spent the early decades
of the nineteen hundred successfully building their steamboat business, but

(04:37):
in nineteen twenty seven, Mary suffered the loss of her husband, Gordon,
when he was struck with a sudden heart attack. Mary
herself transported Gordon's body to their family plot in Newport,
Ohio on one of the Green Line steamboats. Gordon was
buried with one of their sons, who had died young.
In nineteen o seven, Mary and their two remaining sons,
Chris and Tom, took the reins of the Green Line.

(05:00):
Hardship continued for Mary with the market crash in nineteen
twenty nine, which presented challenges for her and the Green
Line business. Most steamboat lines on the Ohio River were
reduced or shuttered completely, and the Greens only maintained two
packets or routes. However, Mary refused to shutter the business completely,
never seeing an alternative life from the steamboats she'd now

(05:22):
lived on and run for decades. She said, once you
ride between two stacks, you're doomed to ride upon a
river craft until you're tombed. Beginning in nineteen thirty one,
Mary began a series of strategic purchases and restructurings of
existing Green Line routes that had helped save the company.
She bought up the oldest steamboat line in the world,

(05:43):
the Louisville and Cincinnati Packet Company, when it fell into
financial trouble. The Green Line Steamers took over their mail, passenger,
and freight services between Louisville and Cincinnati. This helped bolster
the company keeping them afloat and eventually successful. Though Mary's
determination successfully stabilized and grew the Green Line, she suffered

(06:05):
another great loss when her son, Chris, suddenly passed away
in nineteen forty four. This tragedy did not mark the
end for Mary or the Green Line Steamers. In nineteen
forty six, Tom, Mary's remaining son purchased the famous Delta
Queen steamboat. The steamboat originally served as a passenger line
in California and then as a US Navy floating barracks

(06:26):
and troop ferry. The Green Line carefully updated and remodeled
the boat, outfitting it with the latest modern technology, from
navigation to safety, and of course, passenger amenities. In nineteen
forty eight, it had its debut cruise from Cincinnati to Cairo, Illinois,
with Mary at the helm. The steamboat stayed with the
Green Line until nineteen fifty eight. The Delta Queen was

(06:51):
also Mary's final home. In nineteen forty nine, at the
age of eighty, she died in her cabin, having spent
more than fifty years navigating rivers. Her son took up
the pilot's seat in her stead until he two passed.
A year later. He was succeeded by his wife, Mary's
daughter in law, Letha Green, leaving another woman to navigate
the Ohio River. Mary was laid to rest alongside her

(07:16):
husband and sons in the family plot in Newport, Ohio.
The rumors abound of her ghost haunting the still operational
Delta Queen. While these hauntings are likely fabrication, Mary's spirit
does indeed live on and has helped lay the foundation
for American river navigation as we know it to day.

(07:36):
All months, we're talking about maritime Madams. For more information,
find us on Facebook and Instagram at Wamanica Podcast special
thanks to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co creator.
Talk to you on Monday,