AMERICAN DUCHESS

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American Duchess River Cruise Ship Christened in New Orleans

The smash of a bottle of Maker's Mark bourbon signified the christening of American Duchess, the newest river boat for the ever-growing American Queen Steamboat Company. The 166-passenger vessel marks the third for the line, which specializes in American river cruises. It joins American Queen -- the world's largest steamboat -- on the Mississippi River, and American Empress, which sails in the Pacific Northwest on the Snake and Columbia rivers. The company also has a fourth ship waiting in the wings for refurbishment. Marissa Applegate, daughter of the cruise line's company chairman John Waggoner, served as the ship's godmother. After the christening, the first passengers boarded for a sailing that will traverse the Mississippi, from New Orleans to Red Wing, Minnesota. "We have all anxiously awaited this day, and it's well worth the wait," Waggoner said, noting the work that went into the ship's complete overhaul, much of it in the Louisiana heat. "We've had a little bit of blood, a little bit of tears and lots and lots of sweat." American Duchess -- which will sail the Ohio, Tennessee and Illinois rivers in addition to a variety of itineraries on the Mississippi -- is an aesthetic departure for the line. While the company's other vessels invoke an old-fashioned Americana look, American Duchess is light and airy, with furnishings akin to a modern luxury hotel. https://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=7999