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Seth Tane took this photo on the Columbia in 2000. This was my sense of tugboats back then. I had little sense of their age, power, crews, skills needed for operation, etc. Take a guess on those features of this boat, and I’ll provide you some answers at the end of this post. Note that this tug and barge are at a log dock, a trade unknown in the sixth boro or the NE US.
Here’s a shot I took in 2002 while hanging out on what I called back then the “waterfront” and saw this vessel. Again, I had no idea of those same features as they pertained to this vessel, nor of the logic of this design. Test yourself, and then some info can be found at the end.
I took this photo in 2004. My 15 years in coastal NE had given me an interest in schooners but I’d never sought an opportunity to crew on one, until my move to NYS, first on and then off the live-aboard.
Note the warehouses still standing where Brooklyn Bridge Park is now located. Volunteer crewing on Pioneer and the other boats at South Street Seaport Museum kept me on the Upper Bay for long hours, and I saw lots of new things,
some things whose uniqueness I didn’t even fully appreciate. Anyone know what’s become of that tugboat Rachel Marie? I don’t.
Some things intrigued me,
and other things like this derelict sugar mill and sunken lightship were soon to disappear.
I started to see interesting tugboats in unexpected places.
Little did I expect then the changes that would happen. Know the boat above and below?
All photos, WVD. Answers below.
Craig Foss, 1944, 116′ x 30′. Here are more particulars, but as good as the boat appeared the top photo, she was purchased by unqualified parties, detained, and eventually scrapped. You need to read the story here; some crew were lucky to have survived.
The second photo shows Coral Queen, a motor tanker that carried petroleum from 1920 (!!!) until 2011. That is a long working life. Here are the particulars from Birk’s data base. From Auke Visser’s site, here are more particulars. And finally, from my Barge Canal series last year, here are images of her generations of fleet mates; her design relates to her work as a tanker in the “inter-connected waterways,” the Great Lakes and salt water connected by the Barge Canal.
The 1885 Pioneer still seasonally sails with professional and volunteer crews, and the 1893 Lettie G. Howard does the same on Lake Erie mostly.
I’ve no idea what became of Rachel Marie.
Meow Man traces are still around.
The sugar mill area now has an Amazon facility, and the old shipyard is the Red Hook Ikea parking lot, and the sunken ship reefed, the piers scrapped.
Grouper, frozen in ice, is still waiting to be scrapped, but as of March 2, 2023 is still entirely intact. The orange livery has disappeared from the sixth boro; that boat June K is now Donjon blue.
Ultimately, the more I found answers to questions I had, the more I was drawn in to learn more, a fact that keeps me looking and asking. I really never expected to be in the boros and fascinated by the sixth boro as long as I have been. Recently, I had a conversation with a friend from another NYC life and she reported never to have heard of the sixth boro. I guess that’s as shocking as hearing that someone’s not heard of the legendary Meow Man, the saltwater equivalent of Kilroy, or the US version of Maqroll, whose exploits need to be written down. As of the date of these photos, tugster the blog had not yet been launched.
I’m not sure when I’ll post anything next, but it could be tomorrow.
It’s time for a February installment of “retro sixth boro,” a glance back at some of the boats working in New York harbor exactly a decade ago. Cheyenne was still here, pushing a scow out the east end of the KVK.
I’m not sure the 61′ x 22′ 1970 Salvage Master is still in the harbor. Even back a decade ago, I only saw it once or twice.
The 1962 Kristy Ann Reinauer was scrapped in 2015. The 2000 Tokyo Express is still around; in fact, I believe I saw it just recently.
The 1980 Independence was pushing 1982 tank barge OSG 243. Independence was scrapped in 2020, and the barge laid up.
The 1981 Huron Service is now Genesis Victory. The 1976 Atlantic Salvor has carried that name since 1998.
Na’hoku (Na Hoku) is a 1981 tugboat that spent a short time in the boro a decade ago; later in 2012, Na’hoku (meaning stars, as used for navigation in Hawaiian) was sold to a South Carolina company that kept the name. As of this writing, she’s in Fernandina Beach FL. As for DBL 85, a tank barge by that name was built in 2009 and is likely still in use.
The 1976 Barents Sea switched over to Kirby and then in 2016, re-emerged as Donjon’s Atlantic Enterprise. Along the left side of the photo, Casablanca is a 1987 barge.
All photos, WVD, from February 2012.
Tugboats move quite the variety of materials around the boro on barges. The brand spanking new J. Arnold Witte here moves Delaware Bay, a bucket dredge.
Doris Moran moves containers around the boro much quicker than trucks can.
I had to throw this in . . . a late 1950s Chevy pickup was moving a motorcycle southbound on the BQE.
Sea Fox transported a scow with its own clamshell (I think) in the upper bay.
Helen Laraway had some rich light on her as
she came west in the East River, passing Lower Manhattan, with
some cubed metal.
The seldom seen Liberty II was bringing maintenance equipment to the Statue island, when I noticed an interesting detail. See the blue Thrustmaster engine covers?
A closer up of that part of Liberty II shows she’s twin engine and her starboard engine is not in use.
Closing it out, Durham is moving a mini scow into the Kills.
All photos, WVD.
Enjoy this set of photos, taken on a random path across the harbor with the NY Media Boat. More Gene Chaser soon.
Ruby M above is the oldster of the set, launched in 1967. She’s 95′ loa and turns out just under 2000 hp. Below, Colonel dates from 1978, turns out 3000 hp and is the longest in the set . . . at just about 107′.
Sea Lion was launched in 1980, is 65′ loa and powered by 1400 horses. Below, Margaret Moran (I believe) has been in the sixth boro long before I called it that; she arrived in 1979 bringing 3000 hp and a loa of just a foot under 100′.
Julie Ann has arrived in the harbor the most recently of this set, just a couple months ago. She was launched in 2006 and brings 4200 hp packed into 75′.
And finally, Ava M. McAllister is likely the first boat to carry that name. She was christened in 2018. She’s a 100′ boat with 6770 hp.
Thanks for Bjoern at NY Media Boat for a tour of the boro. All photos, WVD.
Happy August 2021. And “Wow!” That is almost always my reaction when I jump back a decade into the archives. This riveted tug was 83 years old when I took this photo, and I looked at that deep rounded icebreaker hull and imagined it would go on working forever. Now it’s 93 years old, and mortality is nipping at the heels of this Canal tug and all the Canal tugs. It and they may not be around 10 years from now. Of course, neither might I. She was built by Buffalo Marine Shipbuilding in 1927-28, and originally equipped with a John W. Sullivan steam engine. Her stack was hinged so that it could be lowered for bridges. She’s 77′ by 19.5′. If I read the archives right, Governor Cleveland is three feet shorter; I’d always assumed they were twins.
The 1958 Blount-built green tug in the foreground has changed hands several times in the past decade; it may be Bay Star of Port Washington now, but I’ve not seen it in more than half a decade.
The 1998 container ship was last recorded as in Aliaga Turkey in 2017, which leads me to suppose this 3802 teu has been scrapped.
I’ve seen these East River based float planes several times recently, but I’ve not been back to their “field” in the East River in a while. It is pricey but no doubt memorable . . . fun to travel somewhere in one of these. Anyone report having done it? I don’t know which company then flew the red planes.
NYK Constellation, a 2007 4900 teu vessel, is currently at anchor off Vancouver, but has been renamed Tell T (Erase some of the letters of “constellation”). That “erasure renaming” suggests it’s bound for the scrappers.
Here’s Chandra B‘s predecessor, doing then what Chandra B does now. It even has the same crew.
I’ve heard that Ace was being converted into something . . . . what it a floating cocktail dispenser? Seriously . . . I have some such recollection due to a query I got a few years back. Well . . . there are orange juice tankers, so why not a floating frozen margarita or daiquiri truck boat? Can anyone provide an update on this project? What paint scheme/name would immediately scream out “slushy float”.
I’ve not seen Iron Wolf out in the harbor, although I might have seen it tied up over at Claremont.
Pegasus then had no upper wheelhouse, and here it was pushing the elusive Michael Cosgrove, a 1960 Blount vessel that Charon drives for some on a one-way trip to a Potter’s Field.
The 2000 4500 hp Vernon C has recently gotten new life as Mackenzie Rose.
And finally . . . 2011 saw this combo do quite the tour . . . the 1907 Pegasus with the 1914 Lehigh Valley 79 alongside. If you’ve never visited the 79, make an effort to get to it and be prepared for a treat. Pegasus met the scrapper this past spring.
All photos, first half of August 2011, WVD.
I hope you enjoy these monthly journeys to the past as much as I do. And to satisfy my own curiosity, I looked up the first post in the Retro Sixth Boro series. . . .
Sea Fox as a cold front moves across the Upper Bay.
Mary Turecamo off to the next job.
Dorothy J returns from an assist. I’ve lots more photos of the assist to post soon.
Joyce and James eastbound in the KVK to start the work day.
Dean Reinauer heads over to fuel up.
Kings Point going over to Gowanus Bay.
Brooklyn going to pick up her barge.
Fells Point returning from a job.
The very busy Patrice waiting for a ship as Dobrin heads over to her daily projects.
The always moving Brendan making money, as all these boats and crews are.
And finally Sea Lion outbound in the Lower Bay.
All photos, WVD.
If you follow this blog, you know I look for novelty: new vessels, new roles, new perspectives I don’t always even initially or ever understand. Here’s for me a new boat, Cape Fear, 2018, another Sassafras class tug.
Brendan Turecamo, 1975, has appeared here many times, but in the past week, I’ve seen her in two configurations, doing ship assist below and
slinging barge Connecticut below. Yes, it’s the same tug, house down or house up.
With the bronze monument, aka Teardrop Memorial, in the background, Marjorie B. McAllister delivers nearly a dozen rail cars on NYNJ100
to cross over the harbor from NJ to NY. The run is usually performed by Brown tugs.
Chemical Pioneer, a sixth boro icon, here is assisted into the anchorage by . . . Franklin Reinauer.
Matthew Tibbetts stands by as Dylan Cooper (correct me if I’m wrong) with RTC 108 lighters Gulf Coral.
Taking a break from the dredge project over by Sandy Hook, Neptune travels west in the KVK.
Sea Lion pushes a barge westbound on the East River, past the old banana pier and Vladick Houses of the Lower East Side in the background.
Ivory Coast stands by with an Express Marine (former owner?) barge over in the Wallabout section of the East River.
Christian Reinauer and barge RTC 145 stand by over in the anchorage below Fort Wadsworth.
And finally . . . over in Red Hook, Eastern Dawn hangs alongside Meaghan Marie. Stand by for a new paint job of Eastern Dawn.
All photos, any errors, solely mine, WVD.
I took this photo in Waterford eastern terminus of the Erie Canal on November 1, 2010, and the canal had not yet closed. I had just returned from part of a transit, and we had met lots of boats. Although we had been bound for the Great Lakes, most, like the intriguing Baidarka, was bound for sea. As of this writing, Baidarka is back on the Canadian Pacific coast.
A week later, in the sixth boro, docked in front of USNS Sisler, it’s the “love it or hate it” Sea Raven, now turned into new steel.
Sea Bear was engaged in the deepening of the sixth boro, and here a crew on the sheerleg was repositioning the anchor.
Lots of dredges including GLDD New York were involved. More later. Captain D, currently in the sixth boro on other duties, was dredge tender.
Then, as now Atlantic Salvor, was active. I particularly like this shot with the 0730 “golden hour” light. A very different set of buildings then largely defined the Manhattan skyline.
Wanderbird swooped through the harbor on their way south.
Padre Island and Terrapin Island were regulars recontouring the sixth boro bed.
Beaufort Sea, 1971, is no more.
The brilliant colored Little Bear, built 1952, became a DonJon vessel, but I’ve not seen her since the Disch auction.
Susan Witte . . . I can’t tell you anything about her either.
Back then I would spend my Thanksgivings in Philly, and the high point of that holiday was not the excellent food and drink and company, but rather seeing the big barge for the first time.
Pilot towed in La Princesa, here assisted up the Delaware by Grace and Valentine Moran. Pilot has been sold Panamanian, and La Princesa–577′ x 105′–I’ve neither seen nor heard from. I believe Valentine is still active, but I don’t know about Grace.
All photos, WVD, who looks at these and wonders how a decade has so quickly passed.
Like lots of things, the Great North River Tugboat Race is, as ws said in a comment yesterday, “alas . . . cancelled this year.” So here’s some consolation, ws. . . If you need a dose of racing, you can click here and get all the way back to tugster post 2006, or for a sampling from 2006 until 2011, follow along. In 2006, I followed from W. O. Decker and had this view. I’ll let you try to identify these; if the group-source gets stuck, I’ll help out.
In 2007 . . . of these, only Lucy Reinauer is still around here.
HMS Liberty is still around.
In 2008 . . . throttling up releases some smoke . . .
In 2009, two of these are still running around the sixth boro staying busy. The third was involved in a scandalous grouding and has been scrapped.
Meagan Ann has unique safety headgear, inspired by an ancient design.
In 2010 . . . this was a motley armada, ranging from Atlantic Salvor to The Bronx.
Catherine C. Miller and Mary H were hurrying to the starting line here.
That year saw lots of pushing match-ups.
Vulcan III could be matched up with Viking later.
In 2011, THIS could be called the heat . . . actually, it was a misting from one of the fire boats.
Pushing around happened all over the field for spectators on deck and photographers up high.
As always, getting a line on a bollard . . . just another event in the sixth boro games.
USMMA’s Growler is closing on the bollard as a crewman demonstrates a rodeo-influenced style.
More to come . . . all photos, WVD. And if the last four photos above suggest a muddy Hudson, remember that 2011 had just seen Hurricane Irene flood the valley creeks feeding into the Hudson.
But first, can you guess the date? Answer follows.
Mackenzie Rose is the newest name for this 2000-built boat, after Vernon C and then Mary Gellatly.
Ellen, ex-YTB-793 Piqua, here assists a box boat with a boat on top. Ex-YTBs can be found in some unusual places.
Capt. Brian A. approaches the pilot’s door of this ULCV.
Jay Michael is painted a flat red, or maybe that’s a faded bright red.
Mount St Elias heads east with a loaded DBL 82.
Robert IV is off to a job.
Anacostia goes out the Ambrose with Double Skin 509A on wire.
Sea Lion returns, as does
Lincoln Sea and DBL 140 arrive from the south.
And finally, James D and Miriam meet a box ship to escort her into port.
Did you guess the date of the McAllister Bros. photo? It comes thanks to Steve Munoz, who sent more along as well. The answer is 1973, and the photo is taken from the Hoboken side.
All photos, except Steve’s, by Will Van Dorp.
Unrelated but interesting: How one small town grocery store in Alaska keeps the shelves stocked here. More southern Alaska boat infrastructure here.
tugster: a waterblog 
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