Chicago Illinois-1972: Paddlewheel Steamboat Cruising Across Lake

$149 · CommercialDirect license: commercial and editorial use. $149 flat from Stockfilm. Royalty-free worldwide license for commercial and editorial use, delivered as the restored 4K master.

Year1972
Decade1970s
LocationChicago, Illinois, United States
Duration5s
Price$149 USD
Collection1972 Chicago Illinois

$149 · CommercialDirect license: commercial and editorial use

$149 USD flat · royalty-free worldwide · 4K restored master (MP4)

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Stockfilm licenses the rights identified in the applicable agreement. Additional use-specific review may be required. See the Licensing Guide and Archive Integrity.

Paddlewheel Steamboat Cruising Across Lake — Clip Details

Shot on 8mm film in 1972, this vintage home movie captures a classic paddlewheel steamboat cruising across a calm lake. The boat, adorned with American flags and featuring two prominent smokestacks, moves from left to right, its white structure contrasting against the deep blue water. Lush green trees line the distant shoreline under a partly cloudy sky, evoking a nostalgic summer day. The footage shows natural film grain and slight color shifts typical of Super 8 home movies, offering authentic archival footage for documentaries, historical content, or nostalgic storytelling.

Licensing & Technical Details

Original Format: 8mm / Super 8 Home Movie
Resolution: 4K restored master (MP4)
License: Direct license: commercial and editorial use
Delivery: Instant Digital Download
Duration: 5s
Price: $149 USD
Clip ID: 125873361

Rights & Clearance

$149 · Commercial Direct license: commercial and editorial use. $149 flat from Stockfilm. Royalty-free worldwide license for commercial and editorial use, delivered as the restored 4K master.

No recognizable people, logos, or music are flagged. Lower-risk for commercial use, subject to your own review.

People visible: No
Logos / trademarks: No
Audible music: No

Flags come from automated catalog metadata, not a legal opinion. The source is an original 8mm / Super 8 Home Movie reel. For high-stakes commercial use, request a full rights review.

Source & Documentation

Source reel: Reel 1405 · 8mm · 5″ reel
Original reel label: planes,lake geneva,colby,brookfield zoo,shrman,lincoln park
Reel-level year note: 1972
Reel-level location note: illinois
Date: 1972 Estimated (Catalog estimate from the footage and file metadata; not independently confirmed.)
Date evidence: Catalog estimate. A reel-level note shows the same year, but the clip-to-reel link is itself a catalog match, so this is not counted as independent confirmation.
Location: Chicago, Illinois, United States Estimated (Catalog estimate from the footage and file metadata; not independently confirmed.)
Location evidence: Catalog estimate. A reel-level location note is linked, but the clip-to-reel link is itself a catalog match, so this is not counted as independent confirmation.
Licensing route: Direct license available from Stockfilm

Confidence labels are defined on Archive Integrity. Fields without a recorded value are shown as not recorded rather than assumed.

View source reel context Open Clip Documentation Record Request source information

Topics & Keywords

1950s
boat
ferry
moving
left
steam
transportation
chicago illinois
1972
1972 vintage footage
8mm home movie
steamboat on lake
paddlewheel boat
American flag boat
vintage transportation
archival film
retro travel
summer lake cruise
classic ferry
old film footage
nostalgic Americana
vintage Super 8
moving boat
water travel
1970s home movie
historical footage
documentary clip
scenic lake view

Archive Intelligence

Archive brief fit: 1970s 8mm home-movie footage useful for documentary or educational edits needing a lake excursion boat, period leisure travel, or nostalgic inland-waterway transportation atmosphere.
Period detail: The white paddlewheel-style excursion boat, American flags, twin smokestacks, wooded shoreline, and saturated 8mm color support the stated 1972 home-movie context without identifying a specific vessel.
Home-movie behavior: The clip has a visitor-shot perspective from across the water, holding on the boat as it passes rather than staging action for the camera.
What appears in frame: Visible elements include a paddlewheel-style boat, American flags, twin smokestacks, deep blue lake water, wooded shoreline, partly cloudy sky, and dark film-frame borders.
Film character: The footage shows visible 8mm grain, blue-purple color shift, soft focus, gate edges, and mild handheld framing that read as authentic physical-film texture.
Edit role: An editor could use this as a short establishing insert, lake-travel cutaway, nostalgic transition, or quiet memory beat within a 1970s recreation or transportation sequence.
Historical context: The scene reflects leisure boating and sightseeing from a home-movie viewpoint, with the boat presented against open water and a tree-lined shore rather than an urban landmark.
Research note: No people, logos, or readable vessel names are visible in these frames, but users should still review copyright, vessel identification, and location claims separately from likeness or property issues.
Research search match: Likely matches searches for 1972 8mm lake steamboat footage, vintage paddlewheel excursion boat, Chicago Illinois home movie boat, and 1970s archival lake travel cutaway.
Archive pairing path: Pair first with adjacent shots from the same reel, then other 1972 Chicago or Illinois lake material, then broader vintage boat, ferry, recreation, and summer travel footage.

Still Frames From This Clip

1972 8mm home-movie frame showing a distant white paddlewheel-style boat crossing a lake near Chicago, with trees and clouds behind it. — A distant excursion boat moves across blue lake water below a wooded shoreline.

White paddlewheel-style excursion boat with American flags and twin smokestacks seen on lake water in 1972 Chicago home-movie footage. — The paddlewheel-style boat passes across the lake with flags visible above the deck.

Closer 1972 8mm view of a white paddlewheel-style boat moving across lake water, with flags, smokestacks, and wooded shore behind it. — A closer pass shows the boat's side, flags, smokestacks, and railings.

1972 Chicago-area lake scene with a white paddlewheel-style excursion boat near the frame edge, seen through dark 8mm film borders. — The boat remains in view against open water and a wooded horizon near the end of the shot.

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