The steamboat era finally ended in the 20th century, largely due to the railroad. Although steamboats ruled trade and travel in the 1800s and early 1900s, newer and cheaper forms of transportation eventually replaced them.
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Large naval vessels and submarines continue to be operated with steam turbines, using nuclear reactors to boil the water.
Over the years, experimentation of steam propulsion occurred but steam-powered ships were required to still have sails. The Navy officially transitioned from sails to steam in the 1890s with the first battleships, Maine and Texas.
By the 1890s, trains and railroads were the most popular method of travel in America, while the emergence of automobiles in the early 1900s provided travelers with greater options to reach their destinations. As a result, steamboats soon became a symbol of a bygone era.
The last meter-gauge and narrow-gauge steam locomotives in regular service were retired in 2000. After being withdrawn from service, most steam locomotives were scrapped, though some have been preserved in various railway museums. The only steam locomotives remaining in regular service are on India's heritage lines.