The Dixie's history begins with a young packet steamboat pilot named Joseph Breeck. When Breeck was 21, he was diagnosed with a heart condition and was told to "take it easy". The Breeck's lived near the Ohio River in Lamb, Indiana (a small village near Madison). From about 1905 through the early 1920's, the Breeck family would spend their summers at Webster Lake. By the mid-1920's they had established a permanent residence at the lake. During those years Joseph Breeck built three sternwheel boats.

Breeck's first boat was called the City of Webster. It operated from around 1906 to 1913. Breeck built the first Dixie in 1914. It was replaced by the present Dixie in 1929. Now +80 years old, the present Dixie still takes scheduled trips around Webster lake.

I worked as 1st mate on the Dixie from 1977 to 1982, and then as Captain from 1983 to 1986. During those years I collected old photos, postcards and stories about the Dixie. The facts and stories had been handed down by each Dixie owner. I was fortunate to learn nearly all of these stories from my uncle, Tag Huffman, who owned and operated the Dixie from 1959 through 1980.

During the early 1980's there seemed to be a lack of interest in the Dixie's heritage. However, now that the Dixie is +80 years old, there has been renewed interest in its history. The purpose of this web site is to make this historical information available to everyone that is interested.

A special thanks to Tag Huffman, Bernie Breeck, Betty Stewart (Breeck), Harold Gaskill, Steve Prange and Tom Plew for their input of information and photographs.

If you have any questions, suggestions, comments, information, stories, or old pictures of the Dixie, please contact me.

-Steve Huffman