The Line to the Past

[HostDave]

By Timothy Rubacky, Senior Vice President of Sales, Marketing and Product Development

American river cruising is not a new phenomenon, obviously. It goes back well over a century. Right now, river voyages throughout the world in Europe, China and Russia are one of the hottest, trendiest vacations. They’re splashed across the pages of travel magazines, featured on websites, shown on television and are generally the talk of the town. There are plenty of riverboats sailing in the rest of the world but none in America until the return of the American Queen. To be honest, that’s not why we launched our company and dedicated ourselves to putting the American Queen back in service. One might say our timing was perfect but, at the heart of it, our motivation was to continue a tradition that was being forgotten in today’s world of text messages and tweets. It was our goal to create a contemporary, enjoyable vacation experience that never lets our guests forget our country’s glorious past and the nuances, friendships, kindness, warmth and cuisine that defined a nation.

The true pioneers in offering overnight river voyages for pleasure was Cincinnati’s Greene Line Steamers. Founded in 1890, it became dedicated to vacation cruises after World War II. The company was founded by Gordon C. Greene and his wife Mary and we were suitably honored to have his namesake, Gordon C. Greene, son of Tom Greene who bought the Delta Queen in the 1940s and launched a legend, with us aboard the American Queen for a voyage out of Memphis recently. He gave a couple lectures on the old days to a standing room only crowd in the Grand Saloon and was kind enough to hand out wonderful blueprints of earlier Greene Line steamers to the audience.

He was also kind enough to join us at the christening ceremony in Memphis on April 27 where we were thrilled to make him the honorary Commodore of the American Queen. Gordon and his wife Brenda are two of the most genuine, friendly and interesting people I have ever met. Gordon’s first job was serving aboard the old Delta Queen. To have him give his blessing to our new venture continues a line to the past that encompasses legendary men and women as well as legendary steamboats. We have done our best to honor his family’s legacy and the fact that he has been generous enough in spirit to embrace our venture means the world to us.

It’s a big deal. A very big deal. How big? Having Gordon C. Greene aboard the American Queen would be like having Charles Lindbergh show up for the first flight of a new airline. Or having Elvis Presley show up to watch your band play its first gig. Or having Muhammad Ali give you a few tips before your first title fight. The Greene family has a legacy that is hard to match.

Why am I rambling on about the past? For a very good reason: the past defines who we are today. We are in the business of operating river cruises, a vacation that has fortuitously turned out to be one of the hottest, trendiest tickets in the world of travel these days. And while we can be painted with the same brush as other river cruise companies both here in America and abroad, we are unique. We are heirs to a history of steamboating that is unrivalled. Not all river cruises are created the same and our attention to the details that provide the links to Mark Twain, the golden era of river travel and the Greene family dynasty is our passion. It is what we feel we were all born to do and we’re now living a dream.

River cruises are wildly popular these days. But from our perspective of celebrating what the Greene family created in 1890, that’s no surprise at all. The American Queen is the closest boat to the real thing that still sails the rivers and we’re proud to draw a direct line from the past into the bright future of river cruising. We hope you’ll come along for the ride.