[2] At the time, Roosevelt manufactured copper and steam engines at the Soho Works on the Passaic River at Belleville, New Jersey, one of the best foundries in the nation.

[3] In addition, Roosevelt had to locate supplies and coal deposits that could be mined and brought at a later time to the western rivers to fuel steam-powered boats.

Near the present-day town of Cannelton, Indiana, Roosevelt purchased property and arranged to have coal mined and moved to the banks of the Ohio River, where it would become a useful fuel source when the steamboat arrived later.

[3] The majority of the machinery for the boat was made in New York and hauled overland to Pittsburgh because the latter city did not have a local manufacturer with sufficient capacity to the work at the time.

[2][11] Historians have debated whether New Orleans had a stern-wheel paddle or two side-wheel paddles,[12] but evidence that The New Orleans was a side-wheeler rather than a stern-wheeler is supported by contemporary accounts, including the newspaper, "Louisiana Gazette and Advertiser" report on January 13, 1812, that noted it was detained by the breaking of "one'" of its wheels, and an account of the ship's sinking in 1814 that contained a reference to the "wheel on the larboard side".

[10] Similar to other Fulton-designed steamboats, New Orleans also carried a mast, spars, and two sails as back-up, in case the steam engine failed or fuel ran short.

The crew consisted of the engineer, Nicholas Baker; the pilot, Andrew Jack; six hands; two female servants for Mrs. Roosevelt; a waiter; a cook; and a Newfoundland dog named Tiger.

[14][15] During her first stop, at Wheeling, then on Virginia's northwestern point, Roosevelt welcomed crowds aboard the ship, charging them a twenty-five-cent fee for the opportunity and tour.

After midnight on October 28 the boat arrived in Louisville, with a "shrill blast" from the steam engine and sparks flying from her smokestack, reminiscent of the "Great Comet of 1811" that arched in the sky at the same time.

To prove them wrong, and to recruit investors for Fulton's steam company, Roosevelt invited prominent citizens to a gala dinner aboard the boat.

[17] After stopping at Shippingport for supplies and loading coal near present-day Cannelton, Indiana, which Roosevelt had arranged on his earlier trip to have mined and piled at the riverbank, the New Orleans continued her voyage downriver.

While fighting continued north of the Ohio River through the War of 1812, the Chickasaws remained peaceful allies of the Americans and declined to join forces with great warrior and chief, Tecumseh.

At some small river towns, villagers begged to be taken aboard to escape the earthquake's desolation, but New Orleans lacked the provisions to feed the refugees and would have no more available until the boat reached Natchez, Mississippi, in late December 1811.

To move upstream, one needed to either row laboriously at low speeds, push a boat with poles, or be pulled by men walking on shore with towlines.

[2] Otherwise, the return trip required a sea voyage from New Orleans to an eastern port and crossing the Appalachian Mountains to reach an inland departure point.

[26] In addition, the riverbed was dotted with dangerous snags, gravel, and sandbars, and the "Falls of the Ohio" at Louisville effectively cut navigation into two sections.

[3] Eventually, the riverbed was cleared, and later the Louisville and Portland Canal was built,[26] making it easier to travel the 981 miles (1,579 km) passage between Pittsburgh and the junction with the Mississippi River.

[25] New Orleans was the first attempt in the rapid development of technology,[31] which included more efficient steam engines, improvements in steamboat designed for western rivers, as well as lock and canal construction.