There were many steamboats in the 19th century in the United States and other countries. However, the first steamboat was built by John Fitch in 1787. It had many paddles. Fitch tried to make money from the steamboat, but could not do so. He died in 1798, and did not live long enough to see Robert Fulton become the first person to build a steamboat that could make money. In 1807, Fulton built a steamboat that could travel from New York City to Albany in 32 hours. Steamboats became much faster later in the 19th century.