Motor Vessel ''Kalakala'' (pronounced ) was a

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

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 1935 until her retirement in 1967. MV ''Kalakala'' was notable for her unique

streamline Streamline may refer to: Business * Streamline Air, American regional airline * Adobe Streamline, a discontinued line tracing program made by Adobe Systems * Streamline Cars, the company responsible for making the Burney car Engineering ...

d superstructure,

art deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

styling, and luxurious amenities. The vessel was a popular attraction for locals and tourists, and was voted second only to the

Space Needle The Space Needle is an observation tower in Seattle, Washington, United States. Considered to be an icon of the city, it has been designated a Seattle landmark. Located in the Lower Queen Anne neighborhood, it was built in the Seattle Center f ...

in popularity among visitors to

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

during the

1962 Seattle World's Fair The Century 21 Exposition (also known as the Seattle World's Fair) was a world's fair held April 21, 1962, to October 21, 1962, in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington, United States.streamlined vessel for her unique art deco styling. After retiring from passenger service in 1967, the ship was beached in

Kodiak, Alaska Kodiak (Alutiiq: , russian: Кадьяк), formerly Paul's Harbor, is the main city and one of seven communities on Kodiak Island in Kodiak Island Borough, Alaska. All commercial transportation between the island's communities and the outside wo ...

, and converted to a shrimp cannery. In 1998, the ship was refloated and towed to Puget Sound with the owner hoping to restore the ship. During this time, the ship continued to deteriorate, with the Coast Guard declaring the ship a hazard to navigation in 2011. Unable to raise the funds required for restoration, the ship was scrapped in 2015.

Service

Peralta

She was constructed for the

Key System The Key System (or Key Route) was a privately owned company that provided mass transit in the cities of Oakland, Berkeley, Alameda, Emeryville, Piedmont, San Leandro, Richmond, Albany, and El Cerrito in the eastern San Francisco Bay Area fr ...

's ferry service on

San Francisco Bay San Francisco Bay is a large tidal estuary in the U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the big cities of San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland. San Francisco Bay drains water from a ...

between Oakland and San Francisco and named ''Peralta'' in honor of one of the area's early Spanish founding families. Launched in April 1926 she was of double ended design and was powered by a steam-turbo-electric power plant. On February 17, 1928, while docking in Oakland, Peralta's bow sank into the water, sending waves sweeping over the deck. Five passengers were killed. The main cause of the accident was found to be the failure in properly filling ballast tanks at the rear of the ship with water to counterbalance the weight of the passengers moving en masse to the bow to disembark. On the evening of May 6, 1933, while moored at the Oakland ferry terminal an arson fire started in the adjacent train sheds at 11 pm and spread to the ''Peralta'' whose superstructure collapsed due to the intense heat and she was written off by her insurance company.

Rebuilding

The still intact hull of the ''Peralta'' caught the eye of Alexander Peabody, president of the

Puget Sound Navigation Company The Puget Sound Navigation Company (PSNC) was founded by Charles E. Peabody in 1898. Today the company operates an international passenger and vehicle ferry service between Port Angeles, WA and Victoria, BC on the Coho. History In the past, th ...

(PSNC), also known by its marketing name, the "Black Ball Line". He made an offer and on October 12, 1933, the vessel was sold to the PSNC, who had the hull towed by the tug Creole to Lake Washington Shipyards in

Houghton, Washington Houghton is one of the lakeside neighborhoods of the city of Kirkland, Washington. Consisting mostly of upscale, single-family homes, Houghton overlooks Lake Washington and is one of the wealthier districts of the Eastside suburbs of Seattle. ...

(since annexed to Kirkland) to restore the vessel as a ferry. Over the next two years she was rebuilt. The remains of the superstructure and machinery were removed, while the beam was reduced from 68 ft to 55 ft 8 inches. Only a single diesel engine was installed as it was intended that she would operate as a single-ender operating between Seattle and Bremerton which was home to a major US navy base (docking by the bow at Bremerton and by the stern at Seattle). As the route was long, speed was considered to be important, as well has the ability to carry both passengers and motor vehicles. After his wife suggested that the new design should be distinctive and modernistic, Peabody decided to incorporate streamlining in the new superstructure. Louis Proctor, an engineer for the

Boeing The Boeing Company () is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, telecommunications equipment, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product ...

Company, provided an early concept design. The setback of the wheelhouse mimicked the setback of a cockpit behind the nose of an airplane. The flying bridge had no functional purpose but was evocative of wings, fitting with the aircraft-themed design. She was also given a modernistic art-deco interior with a full-service galley, a ladies' lounge, and a men's bar on the lower deck and showers for dockyard workers travelling home from the naval shipyard at Bremerton. The new electro-welding, or arc-welding, process was used instead of rivet construction, lending a seamless appearance to fit with the streamlined design. Kalakala was the first vessel on which the new technique was used. The new bridge and wheelhouse were built entirely out of copper, from fear that the steel used in the rest of the vessel would interfere with the ship's compass. In November 1934, William O. Thorniley, publicist for PSNC and president of the Olympic Peninsula Travel Association, named the new ferry ''Kalakala'', which means "bird" in the Pacific Northwest Native American trade language Chinook Jargon. Thorniley launched a national promotional campaign beginning with large billboard signs that simply said "KALAKALA!" Later, they said "KALAKALA, Seattle, WA" and featured a picture of the vessel as well. The name established a tradition of all vessels in the ferry fleet of the Washington State Department of Transportation (which acquired ownership of the ''Kalakala'' in 1951) bearing indigenous names.

Service

After festivities, ''Kalakala'' entered service on July 4, 1935, becoming an icon. In addition to ferry service, she was used for "moonlight cruises" with a live dance orchestra. ''Kalakala'' saw heavy service during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

transporting shipyard workers and Navy personnel between Seattle and Bremerton on an extended schedule. Vandalism and rowdiness brought deployment of the

Shore Patrol Shore patrol are service members who are provided to aid in security for the United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, United States Marine Corps, and the British Royal Navy while on shore.Cutler And Cutler, p 202 They are often temporari ...

and closure of the bar. That service led to the moniker, "The Workhorse of Puget Sound." The aircraft-inspired design of ''Kalakala'' sacrificed functionality. The setback of the wheelhouse made it impossible to see the bow of the vessel, leading to difficulties when docking. The streamlined wheelhouse's small size and round windows also made all round visibility difficult. The car deck was narrowed for the sake of form, sacrificing lane width. That led to a 40% drop in the number of vehicles that could be carried as American cars became wider in the postwar years, with a corresponding drop in economic efficiency, while making it difficult for passengers to squeeze between cars on their way to embarking and disembarking from the ferry. With the coming of the more efficient Evergreen State class boats in the mid-1950s, ''Kalakala'' became obsolete. The enclosed bow design did, however, make her suitable for open water routes such as the Port Angeles - Victoria run, where she served from 1955 to 1959. ''Kalakala'' had a heavy shaking vibration that ran throughout the vessel when in operation. This was probably due to poor alignment of the engine during the 1930s rebuild. When the propeller was replaced with a new 5-bladed version in 1956, the vibration was reduced by 40%. Although the PSNC wished ''Kalakala'' to be known as the ''Silver Swan'', she soon attracted other, less complimentary nicknames, including ''Silver Slug'', ''Silver Beetle'', ''Galloping Ghost of the Pacific Coast'', and, among Seattle's Scandinavian community, ''Kackerlacka'', which means "cockroach". In February 1946, ''Kalakala'' was issued

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...

(FCC) license #001 when she was fitted with the first commercial

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, w ...

system.

''Kalakala'' was featured transportation for tours of the Bremerton shipyards during the Seattle World's Fair in 1962.

Retirement

In 1967, ''Kalakala'' retired from service and moved to the Washington State Ferries repair facility at Eagle Harbor. A year later she was sold to a seafood processing company and towed to Alaska to work as a crab cannery at Ouzinkie, Alaska. Later the ''Kalakala'' was beached in

Kodiak Kodiak may refer to: Places *Kodiak, Alaska, a city located on Kodiak island * Kodiak, Missouri, an unincorporated community *Kodiak Archipelago, in southern Alaska *Kodiak Island, the largest island of the Kodiak archipelago ** Kodiak Launch Com ...

in 1970 and used to process shrimp. Peter Bevis discovered the rusting hulk on a fishing trip in 1984. ''Kalakala'' was still operating as a cannery, with her internal structure having been reworked to create a building with cement floors, drywall, and ceiling tiles. After complicated financial negotiations, the ship was refloated and towed back to Seattle in 1998. The vessel became a source of controversy for the remainder of her existence as her owners were unable to raise sufficient funds to refurbish the vessel or even to keep her moored in Seattle's Union Bay. The vessel was sold in 2004 to a private investor, who moved her to an anchorage in

Neah Bay Neah Bay is a census-designated place (CDP) on the Makah Reservation in Clallam County, Washington, United States. The population was 865 at the 2010 census. It is across the Canada–US border from British Columbia. Originally called "Scarborou ...

provided by the

Makah people The Makah (; Klallam: ''màq̓áʔa'')Renker, Ann M., and Gunther, Erna (1990). "Makah". In "Northwest Coast", ed. Wayne Suttles. Vol. 7 of '' Handbook of North American Indians'', ed. William C. Sturtevant. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Instit ...

. Soon after arriving at Neah Bay ''Kalakala'' was evicted by the Makah, who also brought a lawsuit against the owners. The vessel was then relocated to

Tacoma, Washington Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, Washington, Olympia, and northwest of Mount ...

. In February 2008, ''Kalakala'' owner Steve Rodrigues announced his intention to acquire additional vintage ferry vessels and to restore them and the ''Kalakala'' as either ferries powered by wind and solar technologies or as museums. ''Kalakala'' was scheduled for work on her hull and superstructure in dry dock in 2010, but this never happened. After six years in Tacoma, ''Kalakala'' began listing, and officials became concerned that the ferry might pose an environmental risk. The vessel's owner was also pressured to take action after Washington State passed a law focusing on the removal of abandoned or neglected vessels. For these reasons, ''Kalakala''s owner put her up for sale for a nominal fee of one dollar, contingent on the purchaser committing to renovating ''Kalakala''. In December 2011, the Coast Guard declared the ship a hazard to navigation. Among other issues, the Coast Guard stated that her mooring arrangements were inadequate. The Coast Guard set a December 19 deadline for the owner to repair the hull of the ship and submit a plan to tow her away from her current mooring in Tacoma. This deadline was not met. The owner, Steve Rodrigues, appealed this order, claiming that an anonymous person had purchased the ship. The Coast Guard rejected the appeal as there was no evidence that any work had been done on the ship and no evidence of the supposed sale. The Coast Guard described the ship as being in such fragile condition that it may not withstand being moved to other moorage and might have to be scrapped. In July 2012 Steve Rodrigues sued the state of Washington claiming that the state had failed in its "duty" to help preserve the ferry. Rodrigues' suit asked that the state be prevented from forcing ''Kalakala'' to be moved, confiscated, or sunk and sought to force the state to pay approximately $50 million for restoration of the ferry under a proposal Rodrigues previously submitted, which was rejected. In November 2012, Karl Anderson, owner of the Hylebos Waterway uplands where the boat was moored, took possession of the vessel in exchange for the $4,000 he claimed Rodrigues owed him in back rent.

Dismantling

On January 4, 2015, owner Karl Anderson announced that the ''Kalakala'' would be dismantled for scrap metal. On January 22, the ''Kalakala'' was towed to a Tacoma dry dock and scrapping began immediately. By the first week of February scrapping was completed with only a few pieces such as windows, pilot house, and the rudder saved and sold as souvenirs.

Artistic projects

Several art projects arose from fascination with ''Kalakala'', including a full-length album of solo

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a Bow (music), bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), t ...

compositions recorded on board the vessel in November 2003, called ''Songs from a Parallel Universe''. There is an as-yet unreleased film about the "Ghost Dance" that was filmed on ''Kalakala''. There was also a live concert featuring the

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

ic band ''

múm Múm (stylized in lowercase) () is an Icelandic indietronica band whose music is characterized by soft vocals, electronic glitch beats and effects, and a variety of traditional and unconventional instruments. History The band was formed in 1 ...

'', Serena Tideman and

Eyvind Kang Eyvindur Y. Kang (born 23 June 1971) is an American composer and multi-instrumentalist. His primary instrument is viola, but has also performed on violin, tuba, keyboards and others. In addition to his solo work, Kang has worked extensively with ...

, on board the ''Kalakala''. The watercolorist Robert Tandecki painted her among her later days. Artist Cory Ench painted a large mural of ''Kalakala'' in downtown Port Angeles in 1995. In 2002, it was home to the Undergraduate Degree Shows for Cornish College of the Arts Design Department. A temporary

pirate radio Pirate radio or a pirate radio station is a radio station that broadcasts without a valid license. In some cases, radio stations are considered legal where the signal is transmitted, but illegal where the signals are received—especially w ...

station broadcasting from ''Kalakala'' is featured in the 2005 documentary film '' Pirate Radio USA''. The city of Kirkland bought some of the scrapped pieces of ''Kalakala'' and, , is considering using them in a

public art Public art is art in any Media (arts), media whose form, function and meaning are created for the general public through a public process. It is a specific art genre with its own professional and critical discourse. Public art is visually and phy ...

project. Several pieces of the vessel were placed in the parking lot of Salty's on Alki in

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 ...

, including a wheelhouse that faces Elliott Bay and the Seattle skyline.

Notes

References

* * * **

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kalakala, MV Washington State Ferries vessels Art Deco ships Streamliners National Register of Historic Places in Tacoma, Washington Ships on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington (state) Puget Sound Navigation Company 1926 ships Merchant ships of the United States Passenger ships of the United States

Service

Peralta

Rebuilding

Service

Retirement

Dismantling

Artistic projects

See also

Notes

References

External links