Steamboat-Bertrand-Wrecks-on-the-Missouri-River-April-1-1865 On April Fools’ Day 1865 the 161-foot paddle wheeler Bertrand was steaming up the Missouri River some 25 miles above Omaha, Neb., when it hit a snag. The boat took 10 minutes to sink in mild weather, and no one died. (Courtesy of Jim Trott Family) Courtesy of Jim Trott Family