The history of our vessel is indirectly linked with that of the horseless carriage. As the automobile became more reliable in the very early 1900s, it quickly began replacing the traditional horse and buggy for everyday transportation. The distribution of gasoline to consumers became an extremely profitable market. At this time John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil Company, which had been established in 1868, had control over most of the nation's petroleum market. Competitors lobbied the government and succeeded in breaking up Standard Oil's monopoly in 1911. Standard Oil's territory was then divided up amongst the states, with Standard Oil of Ohio being the largest of the former industry giant.

The advent of Henry Ford's assembly line made automobiles affordable to the masses. By the early 1920s the proliferation of automobiles was creating new problems for getting gasoline to the market. It was at this time that Standard Oil of Ohio (SOHIO) began studying the feasibility of transporting large quantities of gasoline with river barges.

The Sternwheel Towboat STANDARD

In 1922 SOHIO placed an order with the Marietta Manufacturing Company to build a sternwheel towboat. The new towboat would be used to experiment with various methods of pushing gasoline barges to terminals along the Ohio River. SOHIO also commissioned Marietta Manufacturing to build two experimental gasoline barges, which would be pushed by the new vessel. The barges would be constructed of riveted steel. Gasoline barge #1 was 95' long by 18' wide and contained several cylindrical fuel tanks. Gasoline barge #2 was slightly larger and used the entire inside of the barge as a fuel tank.

In the spring of 1923 Marietta Manufacturing completed the new towboat at their Point Pleasant, West Virginia, shipyard. SOHIO would name the new vessel "STANDARD", taking delivery of it on June 25th, 1923. It is significant to note that the sternwheel towboat STANDARD inaugurated gasoline towing on the Ohio River.

By the early 1920s, the improved design of gasoline engines had greatly increased their horsepower. Although several steam sternwheel towboats were still being built at this time, a few of the new sternwheelers began using gasoline engines instead. These towboats became known as "gas boats". The STANDARD was built as a gas boat and therefore could use SOHIO's product as fuel. Its 60-horsepower gasoline engine powered long traction belts, which employed a large chain to turn the paddlewheel.

The combustibility of gasoline was a significant problem for gas boats, and several vessels were lost due to fire and explosions. Diesel fuel was far less volatile, and when the diesel engine became more reliable and powerful, it quickly became the engine of choice for new towboats. The HARVEY, the first sternwheel towboat to be fitted with a diesel engine, came out in 1923 - the same year that the STANDARD was built. In 1925 the STANDARD's own gas engine was replaced with a safer diesel engine. The new engine was a Fairbanks-Morse 35B8½ diesel which developed 100 horsepower. The drivetrain was also changed from flat belts to a fixed driveshaft system.

During the 1937 flood, the STANDARD carried relief supplies and personnel under orders from the U.S. Engineers. She carried doctors, nurses, medicine and other supplies to isolated Ohio River towns from January 26th until released from duty on February 2nd, 1937.

Early diesel engines were not without problems, and in 1939 the STANDARD's diesel engine threw a rod which resulted in a small engine fire. The fire damaged a portion of the STANDARD's engine room wall on the port side. By this time the STANDARD had long since proven the viability of transporting gasoline by barge. SOHIO decided to order a larger towboat and put the STANDARD up for sale.

The DONALD B

In 1940 brothers Ray and Harry Brookbank bought the STANDARD from SOHIO. They ordered a new 160 horsepower Fairbanks-Morse 35E10 diesel engine, at a cost of $5,109. The new engine was built at the Fairbanks-Morse facility in Beloit, Wisconsin, between May 11th and June 27th, 1940. It passed inspection on the factory test floor on July 8th, and was shipped by rail to Higginsport, Ohio, on July 23rd, 1940. Well-known riverman Campbell "Cappy" Beatty was hired to install the 25,000-pound engine aboard the STANDARD in August 1940. This is the same engine which powers the vessel today.

In August 1940 Ray changed the boat's name from STANDARD to DONALD B, after his young boy. During World War II the DONALD B pushed coal barges as part of the war effort. Ray Brookbank continued to operate the DONALD B until his death in 1983, at which time his son Donald took over the operation of the boat. As recently as November 2000, the DONALD B pushed gravel barges for Brookbank River Services. After 77 years of pushing barges, the DONALD B surrendered its commercial towing certification on December 1st, 2000, making it the longest-running towboat to do so (this record was surpassed by the towboat J.S. LEWIS in 2009).

The vessel changed ownership in December 2000 and was renamed BARBARA H in April 2001. Aside from the name, the vessel remains unchanged and now operates as a floating museum, visting various rivertown festivals during the summer months under its own power.