I sure enjoyed the story of the ferry - I am old enough to remember riding it to Phila and back many times and then the long trek up Market St. to do some shopping at the many department stores. I am the great granddaughter of John Hoffman FOSTER who spent all of his life on the water, finally living until his death in 1948 in a houseboat that he had sunk on the shore of the Delaware at the foot of 25th St. in Cramer Hill. Some time during WWII, he was interviewed and a good piece was written up in the Courier Post. He had a wonderful memory of all the different boats working the river and his words were "the River and me ain't never rightfully parted company". When I read about the Columbia, I went back to refresh my memory regarding the CP article and sure enough found his comments about a vessel named Columbia. Whether it is the same one, I have not idea but this is what he said. "The Columbia (later named President) ran from Bristol, Pa., to Burlington, NJ. It was built in 1862 and was sunk south of Newton Creek." He mentions some 30 vessels and says his last boat he was aboard was the J. B. Carter which ran Phila/NY/New Brunswick on the Delaware/Raritan Canal. Coincidentally, his father also was on the water and owned a vessel with a Mr. Martin Dallman and it was believed ran under sail. Grandfather died in June 1948 at age 81 but he left many memories.