William M. Black (dredge)

William M. Black is a steam-propelled, sidewheel dustpan dredge, named for William Murray Black, now serving as a museum ship in the harbor of Dubuque, Iowa. Built in 1934, she is one of a small number of surviving steam-powered dredges, and one of four surviving United States Army Corps of Engineers dredges. She was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1992. She is open for tours as part of the National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium.

Description and history
William M. Black is located at the head of the Dubuque Harbor, where Ice Harbor Drive meets East 3rd Street. She has a riveted steel hull 277 ft long, and 85 ft wide at its widest point, including the paddleboxes for its sidewheels. Her hold is 8.5 ft deep, and she has a scow-formed bow and no keel. Her superstructure has three decks, supported by a network of steel I-beams, so that heavy equipment could be supported anywhere within her structure. The dustpan dredge is mounted in front, with winched cables on either side to hold the ship in place during dredging operations. The paddleboxes are located about 2/3 of the way down the hull. The pump that operated the dredge was located in a forward position, with its steam power plant located just aft of its position. One of the ship's paddlewheels has been removed, and is on display on the museum grounds.

According to information provided on the tour, William M. Black, one of the last paddle steamers built in the US, was used primarily along the Missouri River. She had a crew of 49 and dredged 80000 cuyd of material per day. She was placed out of service in 1973 because she consumed 7000 gal of heavy oil each day, which became prohibitively expensive during the 1973 OPEC oil embargo.