Captain Fred Way, Jr., spent his life on the river gathering history and steamboat photographs, presiding over the Sons and Daughters of Pioneer Rivermen, piloting steamboats including the Delta Queen and the Betsy Ann, and writing numerous river books and steamboat directories.
In 1925, Captain Way bought his first packet, the Betsy Ann. By 1933, Way had put his experiences hauling people and produce into a book, The Log of the Betsy Ann.
In 1939, he began the Steamboat Photo Company, gathering the largest collection of steamboat photos then known. He formed the Sons and Daughters of Pioneer Rivermen, the beginning of the River Museum at Marietta. In 1942, he published the first of his steam towboat directories. He edited the Inland River Record, and the S & D Reflector, and in 1983 released Way’s Packet Directory, containing over 5,900 entries.
In 1947, Captain Way gained fame for supervising the 5,000-mile journey of the Delta Queen from San Francisco to Pittsburgh to begin inland river steaming.