Kane County History: The Story of St. Charles’ Paddlewheel Riverboats

kanecountyconnects / May 13, 2022 / Comments Off / Communities, Consumers, Education, Events, Government, History, Parks and Recreation, Public Service, Quality of Life, Quirky and Fun, Tourism, Transportation, WK-Communities

Editor’s Note: This article is part of a weekly series on Kane County’s amazing history. Today’s article is a recap of an earlier column from the St. Charles History Museum. Images are courtesy of the St. Charles History Museum and www.stcriverboats.com/, A Facility of the St. Charles Park District.

Chester Anderson (far left) prepares to depart for a cruise with his first boat, the Honeymoon Queen in 1945. (PHOTO COURTESY OF ST. CHARLES HISTORY MUSEUM)

For more than 70 years, summertime on the Fox River in St. Charles has been defined by a pair of rose-adorned sternwheelers gently churning up and down the Fox River.

Today, the iconic St. Charles paddlewheel riverboats have set sail under new ownership, as the St. Charles Park District took over operations in March 2019, purchasing the Fox River Queen and St. Charles Belle II from their longtime owners and operators, the Anderson family.

The company began as Chester “Chet” Anderson purchased a $200 refurbished boat called the Honeymoon Queen in 1945 and began giving rides from his home located in Pottawatomie Park, which still stands next to the boat docks to this day.

Anderson and his wife, Barbara, together started the cruise operation that would eventually become known as the St. Charles Paddlewheel Riverboats. As the Andersons’ business grew in popularity, their boats were replaced several times, each time becoming bigger and more modern.

The original St. Charles Belle pictured sailing past the Pottawatmoie Golf Course in the 1970s.

The original St. Charles Belle, constructed in the early 1970s, was the first boat Anderson owned to sport the signature classic sternwheeler look, which mirrored vessels of the same type from the late 1800s. The new boat brought a distinct charm and a beautiful sense of style to cruising on the Fox River, and following the construction of this boat, his family business took off in popularity.

This particular vessel was replaced by the fully custom-built and modernized double deck St. Charles Belle II in 1981, closely followed by its sister boat, the Fox River Queen in 1987. At this point, Chet’s son Rich took over the operation, and he and his father regularly captained both boats together.

Rich served as the proud owner and operator of the paddleboats for nearly 30 years until his retirement last fall.

Rich Anderson

The boats have been the definition of a family-run affair, and have become a true St. Charles summer tradition for plenty of families all around the St. Charles area. The boats hold a special place in the hearts of many as a venue for weddings, family reunions, birthday and retirement parties, and so much more.

Generations of Andersons and their family friends (including myself) also worked aboard the vessels as their first paying summer job.

In fact, when recognizing Chet and Barbara with the prestigious Charlemagne Award for lifetime achievement and dedication to the St. Charles community in 1986, Mayor Fred Norris made sure to personally thank both of them for providing him with his first paying job as well.

These beautiful boats and their homegrown story are something that St. Charles can truly be proud of, and rest assured, the Andersons’ legacy and the generations of family memories these boats carry will be in good hands with the members of the St. Charles Park District at the helm.

Representatives of the St. Charles Park District, the Anderson family, and past and present employees pictured at the official dedication and ribbon cutting of the Fox River Queen on May 28, 2019. Photo: St. Charles Park District