The development of the steam-ships on the lakes was no less remarkable than on the sea-coasts. At the outset the boats were of wood, which was gradually superseded first by iron and then by steel, and with the introduction of the latter has come also their greatest development in carrying capacity. The first steamer placed in service on the Great Lakes, above Niagara Falls, was launched in 1818, and bore the picturesque Indian name _Walk in the Water_, after a noted Wyandotte chief. She was of 338 tons gross and built at a spot which is now a part of the City of Buffalo. The machinery was furnished by Robert McQueen of New York, one of her owners. By 1844 there were three large steamers of over 1000 tons each on the lakes, built wholly for the American passenger service from Buffalo. The first screw-propelled boat on the lakes was the _Vandalia_, built at Oswego in 1841. She was one of the earliest vessels to have her machinery placed right aft. By 1849 there were enrolled at Buffalo, which was the chief lake port, 29 side-wheelers, 18 of which were of from 500 to 1500 tons, and 10 screw-propelled boats of under 500 tons, but by 1862 the number of steamers had increased to 147 side-wheelers and 203 screw-propelled boats. The construction of the Welland Canal and the Sault Ste. Marie Canal with larger locks than hitherto had a most stimulating effect on lake shipping. American ingenuity devised freight-carrying steamers peculiarly adapted for work on the lakes. The largest boat on the Great Lakes is the _William M. Mills_, a “bulk-freighter.” She is virtually an immense box girder 607 feet in length, 585 feet length of keel, 60 feet beam, and 32 feet in depth, with triple-expansion engines. She is built on the hopper and girder system, and has a cargo hold 447 feet long without obstruction other than three screen bulkheads fitted for convenience in carrying grain; her cargo capacity is 514,505 bushels of wheat. She and her two sister ships can each carry 12,380 tons of ore. Her water-ballast tanks will take 7000 tons, and her pumps are so powerful that the whole of this quantity can be discharged overboard in three hours. The officers and crew are accommodated in a deck-house situated on the forecastle. Above this deck-house are the navigating bridge and steering-house. The engines are placed at the extreme end of the vessel, so that the whole space between the engine bulkhead and the forecastle is devoted to the cargo. The scantlings of the hull throughout are the heaviest on fresh water. [Illustration: THE “ROBERT FULTON” (HUDSON RIVER DAY LINE), 1909.] On the Mississippi River and its tributaries a type of large shallow steamers, propelled by immense side or stern paddle-wheels, was developed. These vessels were noted for their high superstructures and towering funnels. Racing was frequent among them.