[2] By 1899, a boatyard owned by Arthur Ellingson at Prosper, Oregon, began producing steamboats, starting with the small (26 tons) propeller steamer Reta, which operated on the Coquille and later on Coos Bay.

Other boats in the early years of the century on the Coquille River included Liberty, which also served in Coos Bay, and Dispatch.

In 1914, Carl Herman, who owned a boatyard at Prosper, Oregon, built the Telegraph for the Myrtle Point Transportation Company, which competed with the gasoline-powered propeller Charm on the Coquille River.

Early schools in the area were located at Bandon, Prosper, Randolph, Parkersburg, Lampa Creek, Riverton, Coquille, Arago, Myrtle Point, and Beaver Slough.

[2] In 1914, Telegraph (96 tons), the largest sternwheeler ever to serve on the Coquille, was built for the Myrtle Point Transportation Co., and launched at Prosper.

She was built to outcompete the gasoline-powered Charm, which in turn had been placed on the river to beat the old Myrtle, a considerably less powerful boat than Telegraph.

Competition was keen on the Coquille, as a few months after entering service, Telegraph somehow managed to run Charm up on the beach near a narrow spot in the river above Bandon.

[4] In 1924, the gasoline launch Charm was taken off the Coquille River route, and sold to Shaver Transportation Company, who re-equipped her with a 90 horsepower (67 kW) diesel engine and put her in service as a log boom boat.

[2] Links to photos of the steamboat graveyard at the Ward ranch, all taken on June 26, 1941, showing Myrtle, Telegraph, and Dora beached along the Coquille River near Bandon.

Note that while the Salem Public Library Images do not identify these steamers, Marshall does in his book and provides a photograph of the same place, at a slightly different time:[5] Myrtle was apparently abandoned further inshore than Telegraph.

[2] Vessel type codes are: Prop = propeller-driven; stern = sternwheel-driven; side = side-wheel driven; pddl = paddle-driven, sternwheel or sidewheel.