The Ben Franklin No.8 ran the Louisville and Cincinnati trade. Later she ran from Louisville to St. Louis (1853). In February 1849, the Ben Franklin No.8 took President Zachary Taylor from Carrollton, Kentucky, to Cincinnati, Ohio.
On May 1st, 1854 the Ben Franklin No.8 was involved in a collision with the Galena. The location of the accident was North Buena Vista, Iowa on the Mississippi River at mile marker 603.6.