Established in March 1900, the barge company was intended to run shallow draft steel barges with a towboat in the grain trade between St. Louis, Missouri and New Orleans, Louisiana. Alexander McDougall implemented a design for the barges similar to what he would eventually use for the 1916 Duluth-built Robert L. Barnes. The barges, named A and B, appeared top heavy but proved sturdy and had a low draft. The towboat, the McDougall, was a twin propeller steel-hulled vessel of a relatively conventional design but described as very comfortably appointed for cabins and amenities. The towboat and barges were intended for relatively simple construction techniques and with shipyard workers contracted from Toledo, Ohio the vessels were built at Carondelet on the south side of St. Louis, Missouri during 1900. Running in the grain trade against the railroads proved very unprofitable and within a year of their launch they were converted to carry oil.
McDougall's Whaleback 
Was Henry S. Potter, by any chance, president of he Steel Barge Company?
I apologize for the late response. Yes, Henry S. Potter was indeed president of the St. Louis Steel Barge Company. I’ve been working on learning more about the company and Potter’s role. It’s something McDougall only talks about in passing in his “Autobiography.”