 Arthur Foss in her slip at the Historic Ships Wharf at Lake Union Park, March 2021. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name |
|
| Owner |
|
| Builder | Willamette Iron and Steel Works |
| Launched | Summer 1889 |
| In service | Fall 1889 |
| Out of service | Summer 1968 |
| Identification |
|
| Status | Museum Ship |
| Notes | Believed to be world's oldest wooden tug afloat |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Tugboat |
| Tonnage | |
| Displacement | 583 tons (unloaded) |
| Length | 120 ft (37 m) |
| Beam | 24.5 ft (7.5 m) |
| Height | 45 ft (14 m) |
| Draft | 16.0 ft (4.9 m) |
| Decks | 4 |
| Installed power | Washington Iron Works diesel, direct reversing 6 cylinder, 700 hp (520 kW), 18,382 lb⋅ft (24,923 N⋅m) |
| Propulsion | Direct-drive to 6 ft (1.8 m) diameter 3-blade propeller |
| Speed | 13 kn (24 km/h; 15 mph) |
| Crew | 7 (inshore tows) to 9 (coastal and oceanic tows) |
| Notes | Classic heavy wood construction with limited ice-breaking capacity |
Arthur Foss (tugboat) | |
| Location | Historic Ships Wharf, 860 Terry Avenue N., Seattle |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 47°37′41″N122°20′13″W / 47.62806°N 122.33694°W /47.62806; -122.33694 |
| Area | Lake Union Park, South Lake Union, Seattle |
| Built | 1889, Portland, Oregon |
| Architect | David Stephenson |
| Architectural style | Sawn old-growth Douglas fir, plank on frame |
| NRHP reference No. | 89001078 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | 11 April 1989[2] |
| Designated NHL | 11 April 1989[3] |
| Designated SEATL | 14 March 1977[1] |
Arthur Foss, built in 1889 asWallowa atPortland, Oregon, is likely the oldest woodentugboat afloat in the world. Its 79-year commercial service life began with towing sailing ships over theColumbia River bar, and ended with hauling bundled log rafts on theStrait of Juan de Fuca in 1968.Northwest Seaport now preserves the tug as amuseum ship inSeattle,Washington.[4]
The tug's long service in the Pacific Northwest, including a role in the Klondike Gold Rush, was interrupted by preparations for war in early 1941. After delivering a drydock gate to Pearl Harbor the tug was chartered by Contractors Pacific Naval Air Bases, a consortium formed to build air fields on remote Pacific islands as the United States prepared for war. In June 1941Arthur Foss was supporting construction onWake Island and was there in November along with the smallerJustine Foss transporting construction materials from barges in the lagoon to the island. When the work was completed the tug was scheduled to return to Hawaii with two barges in tow.
The captain, concerned about the warnings of war, left the island without refueling. The smaller tug had to refuel and remained to do so.Arthur Foss was about twelve hours into the voyage to Honolulu when word of the attack on Pearl Harbor was received. The tug's crew repainted the tug with what paint was available and kept radio silence. The tug, overdue and thought lost, was spotted by Navy patrol planes and made Pearl Harbor on 28 December with fuel for less than a day's operation left. The crew ofJustine Foss were captured when the island was taken by the Japanese with all but one eventually executed. The Navy putArthur Foss in service as a yard tug under the nameDohasan from early 1942 until February 1945. The tug was laid up until 1947 when it was returned to Foss and transported to its home area where it was rehabilitated for company service in 1948. It served the company for 20 more years until retirement in July 1968.
Wallowa was built in 1889 in Portland, Oregon, for theOregon Railway & Navigation Company (OR & N). The hull was designed by noted shipbuilder David Stephenson, and constructed by the shipyard/machinery firm ofWillamette Iron and Steel Works. The twin inclined (or "bilge")steam engines for the new vessel came from an older tug,Donald, which was retired from service that year. As built,Wallowa was listed as 111.5 feet (34.0 m) long, with a beam of 23.75 feet (7.24 m) and a depth of hold of 11.5 feet (3.5 m). According to another report,Wallowa was roughly 120 feet (37 m) long; this is in fact the overall length. The hull was launched in summer 1889, and fitting out was completed by September. On the 3rd, CaptainGeorge A. Pease, one of the most experienced pilots on theColumbia River, tookWallowa downriver from Portland toAstoria, Oregon. Although it is unknown if all were present for the maiden voyage, A.F. Goodrich and John S. Kidd served as engineers on the tug in its early years, as did John Melville.[5][6]
The first master ofWallowa in service was Captain R.E. Howes. Howes was born in 1846 onCape Cod, Massachusetts, and had been captain ofWallowa's predecessorDonald.Donald had been used to tow sailing vessels across the dangerousbar at the mouth of the Columbia River, andWallowa was placed into the same service, operating out of Astoria. The new tug was taken on its first inspection trip across the bar on 23 September 1889, starting out from Astoria at 0300 hours. Present on board were a number of OR & N officials, including the chief of maritime and riverine operations, CaptainJames W. Troup.Wallowa returned to Astoria that afternoon, having been found to be fully satisfactory for bar service. The tug went on to successfully perform its intended duties in this dangerous service for the next nine years.[6][7]
In 1898, caught up in the shipping boom caused by theKlondike Gold Rush, the OR & N leasedWallowa to theWhite Star Line to tow that company's large sidewheelerYosemite north up theInside Passage toSt. Michael, Alaska. (That town was a major gateway to the gold fields via theYukon River.) An early return voyage to Seattle fromSkagway towing thebarkColumbia nearly resulted in the loss ofWallowa on 1 November 1898. A stronggale drove the tug ashore near Mary Island, north ofPortland Canal on the southeast Alaska coast.Wallowa was found to have suffered no damage and was successfully refloated on the next high tide, but three days laterColumbia was stranded at the mouth of Portland Canal and became a total loss.Wallowa was able to safely endure the rest of the stormy voyage to Seattle.[4][8]
Wallowa's strong construction continued to serve it in good stead. The tug made many subsequent voyages up the Inside Passage transporting supplybarges and construction materials for the mining camps. By 1900,Wallowa was listed as working for the Pacific Clipper Line under Captain E. Caine, carrying mail and supplies betweenJuneau,Haines, Skagway, and Seattle. In 1903, the tug returned toPuget Sound and was sold into the timber industry a year later. There is only one other Alaskan gold rush vessel still in existence: the privately owned 1890 wooden tugboatElmore.[4][9]
In 1904,Wallowa was purchased by lumber baron Mike Earles, owner of Puget Sound Mill & Timber Company (PSM & T Co.), based atPort Angeles. For the next 25 years, the tug towedlog rafts from the Port Crescent "booming grounds" on theOlympic Peninsula to sawmills inBellingham. At some point shortly after acquiringWallowa, Earles had the tug refitted and re-powered with a newboiler and a new verticaldouble-expansion steam engine to replace the worn and obsolete inclined "bilge engines" originally fitted to the oldDonald.Wallowa emerged from the refit with much more power and towing capability than before. It performed reliable work for the PSM & T Co. without any significant layups, except for a rebuild of the maindeckhouse following a fire in 1927. During this period the vessel was mostly under the command of Captain Frank Harrington.[9]
In early 1929, Earles soldWallowa to a neighboring timber concern: Merrill & Ring Logging Company, formed in 1886 by two families established in the lumber business back inMichigan andMinnesota. T.D. Merrill and Clark Ring had formed their joint venture after arriving in the Pacific Northwest to scout timberlands, acquiring large tracts around thePysht River. The company still owns these today.Wallowa undertook the same types of jobs for Merrill & Ring as it had for the PSM & T Co., but operating primarily between booming grounds atPysht and Port Angeles. However, after less than a year, Merrill & Ring decided to sell the tug.[9][10]
Foss Launch & Tug Company (Foss) purchasedWallowa in late 1929, and the vessel became among the first of that company's large, seagoing acquisitions. To help pay off the large purchase, Foss donated a previously agreed-upon amount of towing services to Merrill & Ring, then in 1931 leasedWallowa toMGM Studios for filming the 1933 blockbuster hitTugboat Annie. That film, the first majormotion picture filmed inWashington state, became a huge success and madeWallowa (unofficially renamed "Narcissus" during filming) a movie star.[11][12][13]
Afterward,Wallowa was returned to Foss, which rebuilt and modernized the tug from its main deck up at company headquarters inTacoma in 1934. The primary component of the rebuild was installation of a state-of-the-art, six cylinder,four-stroke, 700 horsepower (520 kW)Washington Iron Works direct-drivediesel engine, which made the tug the most powerful on theWest Coast. At re-launch, Foss renamed the tugArthur Foss in honor of the company president and eldest son of company founderThea Foss. Following successful trials,Arthur Foss went into commercial service as the Foss companyflagship. However, steering troubles were presumably encountered, for apneumatic power-steering assist system was installed in 1937. This was likely needed because increased right-handtorque from the propeller due to the more powerful engine made manual steering difficult for a single person.[9]
For nearly three years following modernization,Arthur Foss was utilized primarily for coastal tows toCalifornia,Oregon, andAlaska, based mostly out of Tacoma. The tug set several speed and tonnage hauled records, most notably while towing large lumberschooners down the coast to California. The most famous of these voyages occurred in 1936 under the command of Captain W. B. Sporman when, battling bad weather the whole time,Arthur Foss towed the large four-masted schoonerCommodore, loaded with 1,500,000 board feet (3,500 m3) of lumber, from Oregon toLos Angeles in a record seven days. During this period the tug also frequently towed log rafts, ships, and barges along the Inside Passage as it had during the gold rush. Disaster struck on 18 February 1937, when a severe fire broke out in the forward crew quarters. In order to saveArthur Foss, Captain J.M. Bowers deliberately steered the tug into shallow water nearDiscovery Bay and sank it, extinguishing the fire. Several other vessels came to assistance, andArthur Foss was refloated and taken to Tacoma for repairs.[9][14]
By late 1937,Arthur Foss was back in service with a new power steering system and a new, extremely skillful captain. In November both tug and captain, Martin Guchee, were commended for towing the disabled motorshipEastern Prince fromYakutat, Alaska, to Seattle in just six days. Captain Guchee was also at the helm whenArthur Foss became in involved in the construction of two of the Northwest's most famous landmarks. In 1938, the tug made a long tow fromSan Francisco with the giant bargeFoss No. 64, which had been used in the construction of theGolden Gate Bridge.Foss No. 64 was needed up north for the construction of theTacoma Narrows Bridge which began in September 1938. The bridge was completed in 1940 and, after just a few months in service, collapsed in high winds due toaeroelastic flutter. Students of physics and structural engineering have been studying the infamous event ever since. In January 1939, construction of another famous bridge began onLake Washington, theLacey V. Murrow Memorial Bridge connecting Seattle toMercer Island. Prior to construction, extensive testing of thepontoons' strength and stability occurred over a nine-month period in 1938. An experimental barge approximating the proposed bridge's configuration was anchored in the lake, and the most powerful tug on the West Coast was hired to put it to the test. Captain Guchee tookArthur Foss at full speed around and around the test barge, generating four-foot waves and simulating lake conditions in an 85 knots (157 km/h) wind. Engineers and technicians were on hand to take readings. The test barge held, but not satisfied with the amount of stress he was putting it under, Captain Guchee putArthur Foss's bow against the barge and "gave her full power". The anchoring system still held. Utilizing the data gathered during this unorthodox experiment and others, the world's firstfloating highway bridge was completed in 1940. To this day, there are only five similar floating spans in the world, and three are located in Washington State.[14][15]
After its involvement with the two soon-to-be-famous bridges,Arthur Foss returned to its normal towing duties up and down the coast. Captain Vince Miller was in command at this time. After a record barge tow of 1,800,000 board feet (4,200 m3) of lumber to Los Angeles in late 1940, on 8 February 1941 the tug departed Tacoma forOakland, California, to pick up a barge carrying a huge gate for one of theUnited States Navy'sdry docks atPearl Harbor.Arthur Foss and tow departed forHawaii on 15 February 1941 and arrived without mishap two weeks later. The crew thought they were on just another routine job and would soon be returning home.[9][14]
Arthur Foss successfully delivered the drydock gate to thenavy yard at Pearl Harbor in early March 1941. Instead of returning to the West Coast, the vessel was chartered by Foss to aconsortium of civilian engineering firms: Contractors Pacific Naval Air Bases (CPNAB), which had been formed in January 1941 to begin construction of military bases on strategic Pacificatolls, includingWake Island.Arthur Foss's first assignment with CPNAB was towing gravel barges fromKaneohe toHonolulu for construction of airportrunways. This work lasted until June, when the tug was assigned to a regular run between Hawaii and Wake towing barges of construction materials and military supplies for theairfield and barracks there. Meanwhile, the United States quietly prepared for the coming ofwar. In November, amid increasing U.S.-Japanese tensions, the tug was again dispatched from Honolulu under the command of Captain Oscar Rolstad to Wake towing two fully loaded barges. Upon arrival,Arthur Foss was joined by the smallerJustine Foss in the atoll harbor. Offloading the barges andlightering the equipment ashore occupied the two tug crews for the next few weeks. Upon completion of the work,Arthur Foss was scheduled to return to Honolulu towing two 1,000-ton fuel barges (empty). Departure from Wake was expected in the first week of December.[9][16][17]
Work was completed on schedule.Arthur Foss needed to refuel before undertaking the 2,300 miles (3,700 km) voyage back to Hawaii. Captain Rolstad and the crew were extremely anxious to leave as soon as possible. By the early morning of 8 December 1941 (7 December on the other side of theInternational Date Line), three war warnings had been issued over the radio, and Captain Rolstad decided to forego refueling. He tookArthur Foss and tow to sea. Twelve hours out of Wake, news of theattack on Pearl Harbor was received. Japanesenaval air forces simultaneouslyattacked Wake. Painted a highly visible white and green,Arthur Foss was a ripe target standing "out like a chain of coral islands on the empty sea", and Captain Rolstad was acutely aware of the likelihood of being bombed ortorpedoed. While underway, the crew hastily mixed all white paint on board with engine grease to repaint the tug dark gray to help blend in with the ocean. All lights were blacked out andArthur Foss proceeded underradio silence. Still towing the two barges at barely more than walking speed, the crew debated whether they should head for Alaska or Hawaii. No one was certain if they had enough fuel to reach either place, or whether when/if they arrived they would find the enemy in control. The decision was made to follow original orders and head to Honolulu at reduced speed to conserve as much fuel as possible.[14]
Arthur Foss and tow were spotted by U.S.naval scout planes and escorted into Pearl Harbor on 28 December 1941, whereAdmiral Claude Bloch cited the crew for action beyond the call of duty. Due to the reduced speed of the voyage, they were a week overdue and had been presumed missing in action. According to Captain Rolstad's log, less than 500U.S. gallons of fuel remained when they docked (this was the equivalent of running on fumes, as the main engine uses about 42 U.S. gallons per hour).[14][16]
Arthur Foss was ultimately the last vessel to escape Wake before Japanese forces captured the island on 23 December 1941, after a prolonged and bloodysiege. AfterArthur Foss's departure, only a few flights ofPan Amflying boats carrying employees and some civilian contractors were able to escape. The crew ofJustine Foss, which unlikeArthur Foss had remained to refuel, was captured and used asforced labor.Justine Foss itself wasscuttled by the Japanese. All members of the crew except Thea Foss's grandson Drew (who had been removed to aprisoner of war camp inBurma) were executed along with all the remaining captives in 1943.[4][16][18]
Arthur Foss was placed in service by theUnited States Navy in early 1942, renamedDohasan and designated YT-335 (harbor tug) and later YTM-335 (district harbor tug, medium). The tug continued to tow supply barges between bases in the Hawaiianarchipelago and even ventured as far asFrench Frigate Shoals, 500 miles (800 km) northwest ofOahu.Dohasan towed a largegrab dredge to the Shoals on 8 August 1942 for construction of anemergency landing strip there, then remained as atender to the dredge as it removed material from thelagoon and deposited it ashore to build up and form a runway. The tug returned to Hawaii after three months of this work, but afterward apparently spent a lot of time idle as navy crews were unfamiliar with operation of the main engine. After the war ended in September 1945,Dohasan continued in naval service until being stricken from the Navy List on 7 February 1945 and lay up at Honolulu through 1946. The tug was finally returned to Foss Launch & Tug Company ownership in fall 1947, and renamedArthur Foss. To return the worn-out tug to the West Coast, CPNAB secured it in afloating drydock and had it towed to Los Angeles. During the stormy voyage, rough seas knockedArthur Foss off itskeel blocks, heavily damaging the hull. Upon arrival back in Tacoma, Foss began a comprehensive rehabilitation of the tug which occupied it until August 1948.[9][14][19][20]
Upon completion of repairs, the newly refurbishedArthur Foss was assigned to Foss's Port Angeles division with the task of towing log cribs and later bundled log rafts in theStrait of Juan de Fuca, mostly under contract toCrown Zellerbach,Rayonier, andWeyerhaeuser. Each raft averaged about 750,000 board feet (1,800 m3) of timber.Arthur Foss operated betweenNeah Bay,Sekiu,Clallam Bay, Pysht, Port Crescent, and Port Angeles; and continued this work for 20 years, setting the record for the longest uninterrupted towing service in the Straits. During this period the tug was almost exclusively under the command of captains Lynn Davis and Arnold Tweter. In 1964 during annual overhaul the tug was renamedTheodore Foss in honor of Thea Foss's eldest brother-in-law; a brand-new oceangoing tug took on the venerable nameArthur Foss that year. Upon retirement in July 1968,Theodore Foss was moved to Tacoma and sat idle for the next two years. In 1970, the vessel was donated to Northwest Seaport by Foss Launch & Tug Company and renamedArthur Foss once again (since no longer part of the commercial fleet).Henry Foss himself, youngest and last surviving son of Thea Foss, presided at the official transfer ceremony.[9][11][21]
Northwest Seaport volunteers cleaned and organized the tug's interior and refurbished the main engine piece by piece, with the first official startup as a museum ship occurring in 1980. AfterwardArthur Foss regularly cruised Puget Sound waters during the summer months with a volunteer crew, participating in tugboat races, boat shows, and other maritime heritage events until 2001. The tug's excursions ended that year due to rising fuel and insurance costs, and increased safety concerns, in the wake of the11 September attacks. Volunteer crew burnout, lack of organizational development, and the increasing need for major restoration work also played a part. Varying non-professional attempts at spot repairs over the years were superseded beginning in 2004 with larger but specifically focused restoration projects run by contracted professionals. However, a comprehensive restoration has not yet been attempted. Following extensive survey, documentation, and hull maintenance projects in 2017, planning and fundraising efforts are under way to restore the vessel to its 1940 appearance, in cruising condition.[22]
Arthur Foss was declared aNational Historic Landmark in 1989, is on theNational Register of Historic Places, and is aSeattle Landmark. The tug was also named a Washington State Centennial Heritage Flagship in 1989, when both tug and state celebrated their 100th "birthday".[3][4][23]
Arthur Foss is currently docked at the Historic Ships Wharf at Seattle'sLake Union Park, and is a featured attraction open for public tours most summer weekends, or by appointment. Visitors of all ages enjoy a glimpse of life aboard what is now one of the oldest and most historic vessels in the United States.[24]
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