## Facts

- Evansville & Bowling Green Packet Co. owned a floating wharfboat moored on the Ohio River at Evansville, Indiana, used as an office, warehouse, and wharf for freight handling.
- The structure was originally built in 1884 and, although it had been towed between river locations in earlier years, it had remained at the Evansville riverfront after 1915.
- The wharfboat was secured to the shore by several cables and stayed at essentially the same point, shifting only to conform to changes in the river’s stage.
- On May 14, 1922, the wharfboat sank and damaged merchandise stored aboard belonging to Chero Cola Bottling Co. and other merchants.
- The owners sought to limit liability under federal shipowner limitation statutes; the claimants opposed, arguing the wharfboat was not a “vessel.”

## Issues

1. Whether a stationary wharfboat used solely as an office, warehouse, and wharf, and not used or capable of being used as a means of transportation on water, is a “vessel” for purposes of the federal limitation of liability statutes.
2. If the wharfboat is not a “vessel,” whether the federal district court lacks admiralty jurisdiction to entertain a limitation-of-liability proceeding.

## Decision

- The Supreme Court affirmed the district court’s dismissal of the limitation proceeding.
- The Court held the wharfboat was not a “vessel” within the meaning of the limitation statutes because it was not used, and was not capable of being used, as a means of transportation on water.
- Because the limitation statutes did not apply absent a qualifying vessel, the district court lacked jurisdiction over the limitation petition.

## Legal Principles

- For federal limitation-of-liability purposes, a “vessel” is a watercraft or artificial contrivance that is used, or capable of being used, as a means of transportation on water.
- A floating structure functioning as a stationary office, warehouse, or wharf—without a transportation function or practical transportation capability—is not a “vessel,” even if it floats and may be repositioned to accommodate river conditions.
- When the structure at issue is not a statutory “vessel,” admiralty jurisdiction does not lie for a limitation-of-liability proceeding based on the shipowner limitation statutes.

## Conclusion

A wharfboat permanently employed as a fixed riverside facility for business and freight handling, rather than as a transportation instrument, is not a “vessel,” and its owner cannot invoke federal admiralty limitation-of-liability jurisdiction for losses arising from its sinking.


Evansville & Bowling Green Packet Co. v. Chero Cola Bottling Co., 271 U.S. 19 (1926)