Permission to export was given the next year, however, and the
engine was shipped in 1805. It lay for some time in the New York
Customs House. Meanwhile Fulton had studied the Watt engine on
Symington's steamboat, the Charlotte Dundas, on the Forth and
Clyde Canal, and Livingston had been granted a renewal of his
monopoly of the waters of New York.
Fulton arrived at New York in 1806 and began the construction of
the Clermont, so named after Livingston's estate on the Hudson.
The building was done on the East River. The boat excited the
jeers of passersby, who called it "Fulton's Folly." On Monday,
August 17, 1807, the memorable first voyage was begun. Carrying a
party of invited guests, the Clermont steamed off at one o'clock.
Past the towns and villages along the Hudson, the boat moved
steadily, black smoke rolling from her stack. Pine wood was the
fuel. During the night, the sparks pouring from her funnel, the
clanking of her machinery, and the splashing of the paddles
frightened the animals in the woods and the occupants of the
scattered houses along the banks. At one o'clock Tuesday the boat
arrived at Clermont, 110 miles from New York. After spending the
night at Clermont, the voyage was resumed on Wednesday. Albany,
forty miles away, was reached in eight hours, making a record of
150 miles in thirty-two hours.
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