_{In the “most unlovely ferry of Puget Sound” it’s a toss up between the Malahat and Kulshan. Colorized photo, author’s collection.}

BUILT: 1910, San Francisco, CA.

PREVIOUS/LATER NAMES:  a. Napa Valley, b. Malahat

OFFICIAL NUMBER: 207420 SIGNAL LETTERS: KERW

L/B/D: 231 x 49 x 15 GROSS/NET TONS:  991/673 PASSENGERS/AUTOS: 1528/75

PROPULSION: Triple expansion Steam engine, 2600 HP

NAME TRANSLATION: name of a Coast Salish group on southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada

FINAL DISPOSITION: Destroyed by fire, Portland, Oregon, 1956

HISTORY

Monticello Steamship Company was in dire need of new vessels in the early years of the 20th century.  In 1909 they secured the financing to build what would become their flagship vessel: the SS Napa Valley.

Construction began in late summer of 1909.  Built of steel to the main deck, the modern vessel would carry ten autos and 1,500 passengers.  She was powered by a single triple-expansion steam engine and measured 231.2 x 48.7 x 15.3 feet.  A single bronze propeller measuring some eleven feet in diameter pushed her through the water at a speedy 20 knots.

A comfortable vessel, the Napa Valley was fitted out with upholstered bench seats, a smoking room, galley, and dining saloon.  Her saloon deck was open fore and aft, allowing passengers to enjoy the crossing outdoors on warm days.

1922 saw the first rebuild of the vessel. The superstructure and deck house were altered to allow the ferry to carry more cars.  Carrying capacity went up to sixty autos.  Part of her texas deck was enclosed to accommodate the relocated smoking room, which was now around the boiler and engine room casings. Further changes occurred in 1926.  The bow and stern were both widened to handle autos more quickly.  Her car deck was widened, and she could now carry 75 autos and 1,623 passengers.   Sadly, the changes came at the expense of her looks.  No longer a trim-looking steamer, the Napa Valley had a squared, shorn look to her.

1929 saw the Napa Valley included in the merger that formed Southern Pacific-Golden Gate Ferries.  She continued in service until September of 1937.  At that time, she was offered for sale along with her other steam running mates, City of Sacramento and Calistoga.

The Puget Sound Navigation Company purchased the vessel, and the second stage of her career was about to begin.

Arriving on Puget Sound on 24 April 1942, the ferry was the only steamer brought up from California to receive a name change.  Black Ball made no changes to the vessel at this time, save for turning the large windows on the car deck into portholes.

Originally intended to replace the aging Olympic on the Port Angeles-Victoria run, the traffic on the Bremerton route called for another ferry and the Malahat, now painted in the trademark Black Ball livery, was placed into service on that route.  Her running mates were the Kalakala, Chippewa, Enetai and Willapa.

A little over a year later, on 18 March 1943, an errant cigarette set the passenger cabin on fire.  The Bremerton fire department responded with five fire trucks to combat the blaze.  In addition, the Navy sent out two firefighting tugs to assist.  The weight of the water being pumped into the cabin caused the Malahat to list dangerously. Fearing that she would roll over, the ferry was towed to Manette and beached.

Towed to Todd Shipyard the next day, a full assessment was made of the vessel.  While the passenger cabin had been totally gutted, the machinery below decks was untouched and still in good condition.  Still very much needed, the decision was made to rebuild the vessel.  The ferry was towed to the Winslow Marine Railway & Construction Company at Winslow, Bainbridge Island (now the Washington State Ferries repair yard) and rebuilt.

Not a particularly attractive vessel after her 1926 rebuild, the new house on the Malahat was hardly an improvement. It actually made the old steamer even more ungainly.  Now built flush-sided as the Chippewa had been, a boxy superstructure was grafted onto the curved hull.  A modern-looking wheelhouse and crew’s quarters did little to alter the overall clunky appearance of the ferry.  Finished in record time and back in service by August of the same year, the Malahat could now carry 1,700 passengers and still handle about 75 autos.

1946 saw the ferry idled at Harbor Island. Not included with the fleet sold to Washington State in 1951, the Malahat went in for an overhaul in May and June of that year at the Winslow Shipyard.  At this time, she was fitted with bow doors.  In July she went to work on the Port Angeles-Victoria run.

She only lasted on the route until 13 September 1951.  Not particularly well suited to the route, she lurched and rolled across the Strait of Juan de Fuca in rough seas, terrifying her passengers.  She only made the run two more times, on 1 and 2 October of 1951, filling in for a drydocked Chinook.

Her last service took place in 1952 where she did the night freight runs between Seattle and Port Townsend, the Chinook having dropped that port from her schedule.  Later moored on Lake Union for a time, Black Ball sold the vessel for $25,000.00 in May of 1956.

Sold again, the old steamer was towed to Portland, where it was rumored she would be turned into a floating restaurant. Before any work could start on her, the ferry became a victim of the fire at the Zidell Machinery and Supply Company on 5 September 1956, where she was completely gutted. Her remains were later scrapped.

Largely forgotten today, and perhaps one of the goofiest-looking vessels to ever sail on Puget Sound (particularly with bow doors fitted on) the Malahat was, however, a dependable vessel. While certainly not the most popular vessel ever to sail the route, she did provide invaluable service to the Seattle-Bremerton route during WWII.