Steamboats of Coos Bay

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sidewheel steamboat Coos, sometime before 1895
sidewheel steamboat Coos, sometime before 1895

The Steamboats of Coos Bay operated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries on Coos Bay, a large and mostly shallow harbor on the southeast coast of the U.S. state of Oregon, to the north of the Coquille River valley. Coos Bay is the major harbor on the west coast of the United States between San Francisco and the mouth of the Columbia River.

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[edit] Establishment of inland water routes

Inland riverboats were used to navigate the bay and the several rivers flow that flow into it. Many of the passages were quite narrow, for example Beaver Slough was aptly named, as every night beavers built dams across the slough which had to be dismantled to allow the passage of Mud Hen.

Nat H. Lane and W.H. Troup, both steamboat captains from the Columbia River, began steamboat operations on Coos Bay in 1873. They built and operated Messenger, doing business as the Coos Bay and Coquille Transportation Company. One feature of Coos Bay was that one shallow southern arm reaches south almost to Beaver Slough, a shallow north-extending branch of the Coquille River. Starting in 1869, a mule-hauled portage was built to Beaver Slough, and in 1874, a steam portage railroad replaced it. This was a good shortcut between Marshfield, as Coos Bay was then called, and Coquille, and it also eliminated the need to cross the hazardous Coos and Coquille bars by the ocean.

Frank Lowe had a shipyard in Marshfield, and in the early part of the century he produced many vessels for the Mosquito Fleet, including the propeller Coquille, and the sternwheelers Millicoma and Rainbow.[1]

[edit] Rise of the Mosquito Fleet

In 1899, the 13 ton propeller steamer Alma (later Jauniata) was built for passenger service on Coos Bay.[2] Gasgo, 8 tons, powered by gasoline, was built in 1900 at Marshfield, and was placed in passenger service on Coos Bay and the Umpqua River. In 1903, Comet (9 tons), Curlew, Dixie (8 tons), Eagle (12 tons), and Fish were all built at Marshfield for the Coos bay service. Dixie also served on the Coquille River.

In 1907. Max Timmerman launched Bonita (14 tons) and City of Coos Bay (later Sunrise) (13 tons), both used on Coos Bay and the Umpqua River. W.W. Holland built the passenger vessels Beaver (later converted to a tug and renamed Atomic) (8 tons), Express, Queen (14 tons) and Koos (10 tons), all for the Coos Bay service. Other boats built for Coos Bay work 1907 included from Marshfield yards, by G.H. Elliott, Messenger (10 tons), and by Frank Lowe, Telephone (7 tons). At North Bend, Z.A. Kanick built Tioga (11 tons), and at Allegany, H.P. McCallon built Transfer. In 1908, Peter Olson built Coast (later renamed Enterprise and Arrow No. 5), Arthur Mattson, Marshfield and J.D. Ross, Traveler (8 tons) and, by Max Timmerman Victor (8 tons) and Wolverine (14 tons). W.W. Holland built Ranger (12 tons) and Shamrock (8 tons).

In 1909, Timmerman built the gas boats Hercules and Mae, both 12 tons, and Holland built Alice H. (11 tons). In 1912, various yards around Coos Bay built the small gasoline-powered vessels Albatross (13 tons), Freak (11 tons), and Union (7 tons). Turtle (16 tons) was built the same year, and a good photo of her survives, loading wood components, probably ship's knees for the construction of a steam schooner.

North Bend yards also produced a number of smaller vessels. In 1908, George Smith built the towboat Arrow, Peter Peterson, Vega, J.H. Cullon, Mawnell (8 tons), and, by C.A. Johnson, North Star.[3] Images of some of the smaller vessels, from the Victor West Collection of the Coos Art Museum include Hannah, Dora, Favorite, and Marshfield

1912 was a bad year for wrecks among the mosquito fleet. On March 6, 1912, Curlew, which had been hauling milk from Sumner to Marshfield, collided with the Simpson Lumber Company's tug Columbia at North Bend, and sank as a result. On December 30, 1912, Mayflower burned at Coos Bay. Worst of all, on January 20, 1912, the North Star No. 1, which had been operated by Joseph Yonkers between Marshfield and the South Inlet, drifted over the bar and capsized, drowning Yonkers and five passengers. Bad as this was, it could have been worse, as North Star No. 1 had dropped off 12 passengers at a landing just before the accident.[4]

[edit] Mission boat Life-Line

One of the more unusual vessels built in 1912 was Life-Line, a gasoline-powered 24 horsepower propeller vessel designed by George H. Hitchings and built for use as a mission boat by the Rev. G. L. Hall of the American Baptist Publications Society.[5] Marshall summed up Life-Line's career and end as follows:

This little ship, under zealot Captain Lund, ran up and down the coast for the Baptist Missionary Society saving the souls of erring seaman and longshoremen alike. After a long and healthy life of do-gooding, she ran ashore just south of Neahkanie. Long forgotten, the little vessel was uncovered by a bulldozer in 1949.[6]

[edit] List of vessels

Inland steam and river boats of Coos Bay[7]
Name Type Year Built Where Built Builders Owners Gross Tons Length Disposition
Messenger sternwheeler 1872 Empire City Capt. M. Lane 136 91' burned 1876 at Coos Bay, total loss[8]
Juno[9] propeller 1906 Marshfield 32 60.8' unknown
Millicoma sternwheeler 1909 Marshfield Frank Lowe[10] 14 55' later converted to gasoline engine, rebuilt 1917 as propeller, ult. dispo unk.
Pedler sternwheeler 1908 Marshfield S. Gilroy[11] 407 124' unknown, 1910
Fay No. 4 sternwheeler (gasoline) 1912 North Bend 179 136' Transferred to California, 1913
Lifeline propeller (gasoline) 1912 Marshfield 179 136' Foundered off coast June 5, 1923, just south of Neahkanie Mountain, while en route from Coos Bay to Kelso. Crew survived, hull washed ashore and buried by sand.[12]
Rainbow sternwheeler 1912 Marshfield Frank Lowe[13] Coos River Trans. Co.[14] 75 64' Abandoned 1923

[edit] See also

Coos Bay, Oregon


[edit] References

  1. ^ Timmen, at 201-203
  2. ^ McCurdy, at 48
  3. ^ McCurdy, at 149
  4. ^ McCurdy, at 7, 61, 92, 139, 149, 162, and 207
  5. ^ McCurdy, at 244
  6. ^ Marshall, at 97
  7. ^ Mills, Randall V., Sternwheelers up Columbia, pages 189-203, University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln, NE (1947; 2nd Printing 1977) ISBN 0-8032-5874-7
  8. ^ Marshall, at 45
  9. ^ All data for this vessel from McCurdy, at 119
  10. ^ McCurdy at 162
  11. ^ McCurdy, at 149
  12. ^ McCurdy, at 343-44; Marshall, at 97
  13. ^ McCurdy, at 207
  14. ^ McCurdy, at 344