''Lady of the Lake'' was a wooden steamboat that operated on

Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ) is a sound of the Pacific Northwest, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean, and part of the Salish Sea. It is located along the northwestern coast of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected ma ...

from 1897 to 1903. Following a fire in 1903, the vessel was rebuilt as the tug ''Ruth''.

Career

In January 1897, Captain J. L. Anderson let a contract to N. C. Peterson to build a replacement for ''Quickstep'', which burned at her dock earlier that month. The new ship incorporated the engine from ''Quickstep'', which was salvaged after the fire. The new ship was christened ''Lady of the Lake''. By June, 1897, Captain Anderson was sailing his old route from Leschi Park to Newcastle to East Seattle on

Mercer Island Mercer Island is a city in King County, Washington, United States, located on an island of the same name in the southern portion of Lake Washington. Mercer Island is in the Seattle metropolitan area, with Seattle to its west and Bellevue to it ...

with his new ship. By August 1897, however, he had sold ''Lady of the Lake'' to C. E. Curtis of Whatcom for $4,700, and bought Curtis' old ship, the steamer ''Effort'', for $17. Curtis took the vessel to run on Puget Sound.''McCurdy Marine History'', at 20, 24, 96, 113, and 270. In 1903 the steamboat was running on the short commuter route across

Elliott Bay Elliott Bay is a part of the Central Basin region of Puget Sound. It is in the U.S. state of Washington, extending southeastward between West Point in the north and Alki Point in the south. Seattle was founded on this body of water in the 1850s an ...

between Seattle and

West Seattle West Seattle is a conglomeration of neighborhoods in Seattle, Washington, United States. It comprises two of the thirteen districts, Delridge and Southwest, and encompasses all of Seattle west of the Duwamish River. It was incorporated as an i ...

, and was operated by the vessel's owners, Captains Charles H. Gaffner and J. Holbrook, Chief Engineer Parks, and Purser Greenwood. engaged in a rate war first with the small passenger-only steamer ''Garden City'' then more seriously with the steam ferry ''City of Seattle''.Newell, ''Inland Sea'', at 146. There were two collisions between the vessels during the rate war. The owners of ''Lady of the Lake'' reduced their fares to five cents, which prompted the ferry operators to allow 40 rides for one dollar.Klein, ''Ferryboats'', at 5 and 146.

1903 fire

June 18, 1903, ''Lady of the Lake'' was hauled out of the water in a shipyard in West Seattle when a fire broke out overnight.U.S. Steamboat Inspection Service, ''1903 Annual Report'', at 23. The origin of the fire was reported to be "not ascertained", with the vessel suffering approximately $3000 in damage. The rate war and the circumstances of the fire caused a rumor that arson was the cause. In any case, the vessel was a total loss. The hull and engines were salvageable however.

Rebuild and final loss

In 1905, King and Winge rebuilt ''Lady of the Lake'' into the tug ''Ruth''. In 1916, ''Ruth'' was being operated by

Pacific Tow Boat Company The Pacific Tow Boat Company (also seen as the Pacific Towboat Company) was a tugboat and towing firm based in the Puget Sound area of Washington (state), Washington state active in the first part of the 1900s. Course of business The Pacific Tow Boa ...

, when the vessel was destroyed by fire at Ladysmith, BC.

Notes

References

* Kline, M.S., and Bayless, G.A., ''Ferryboats -- A legend on Puget Sound'', Bayless Books, Seattle, WA 1983 * Newell, Gordon R., ed., ''H.W. McCurdy Marine History of the Pacific Northwest'', Superior Publishing Co., Seattle, WA (1966) * Newell, Gordon R., ''Ships of the Inland Sea'', Superior Publishing Co., Seattle, WA (2nd Ed. 1960) * * {{Puget Sound steam tugs 1897 ships Steamboats of Washington (state) Propeller-driven steamboats of Washington (state) Steam tugs Steam tugs of Washington (state) Ships built at Lake Washington Shipyard