Duwamish (fireboat)
Duwamish was one of the most powerful fireboats in the United States several times over her 75-year working life.[2] She is the second oldest vessel designed to fight fires in the US, after Edward M. Cotter, in Buffalo, New York.[3]
Duwamish fireboat at the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks, Seattle | |
History | |
---|---|
United States | |
Name: | Duwamish |
Builder: | Richmond Beach Shipbuilding Co. |
Launched: | 1909 |
Out of service: | 1985 |
Status: | Museum ship |
General characteristics | |
Tonnage: | 322 tons (gross) |
Length: | 120 ft (37 m) |
Beam: | 28 ft (8.5 m) |
Depth: | 9.6 ft (2.9 m) |
Installed power: | Compound marine steam engines |
Speed: | 10.5 knots (19.4 km/h; 12.1 mph) |
Duwamish (fireboat) | |
Originally the Seattle fireboat Duwamish was built with a ram bow. | |
Coordinates | 47°37′41″N 122°20′11″W |
Built | 1909 |
Architect | Richmond Beach Shipbuilding Co. |
NRHP reference No. | 89001448 |
Significant dates | |
Added to NRHP | June 30, 1989[1] |
Designated NHL | June 30, 1989[2] |
Career
Duwamish was built in 1909 for the Seattle Fire Department in Richmond Beach, Washington, just north of Seattle.[4] She was powered by "double vertical (compound) marine steam engines" capable of driving her at 10.5 knots (19.4 km/h; 12.1 mph).[3] She was equipped with three American LaFrance steam piston pumps rated at a capacity of 3,000 US gallons per minute (0.189 m3/s) each. She was originally designed to ram and sink burning wooden vessels, as a last resort, and was equipped with a ram bow for doing so.
On July 30, 1914, Duwamish was involved in fighting the fire on the Grand Trunk Pacific dock. In the 1930s, as a cost-saving measure, the Seattle City Council directed that Duwamish be used as a tug to push the city's garbage scow.[5]
After an upgrade in 1949, the pumps delivered a total of 22,800 US gallons per minute (1.438 m3/s).[6][7] This capacity was only exceeded in 2003 by the Los Angeles Fire Department's Warner Lawrence, which delivers 38,000 US gallons per minute (2.397 m3/s).
Duwamish is 120 feet (36.6 m) long with a 28-foot (8.5 m) beam and a 9.6-foot (2.9 m) draft.[4] Her registered gross tonnage is 322 short tons (292 t).
Current status
Retired in 1985, Duwamish was purchased by the Puget Sound Fireboat Foundation.[8][9] She is permanently moored at the Historic Ships Wharf near the Museum of History & Industry at South Lake Union Park in Seattle.[10] Visitors may board the vessel when volunteer staff is available.[9]
Duwamish was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1989.[2][11]
She is a city landmark.
See also
- Historic preservation
- Duwamish Native American tribe
- Duwamish River
- Sea Scouting (Boy Scouts of America)
- Seattle tugboats
References
- "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
- "DUWAMISH (Fireboat)". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on 2012-09-26. Retrieved 2012-08-29.
- Delgado, James P. (1988). "Duwamish Fireboat: National Historic Landmark Study". National Park Service. Retrieved 2012-08-29.
- "National Park Service - Maritime Heritage Program: HISTORIC SHIPS TO VISIT". National Park Service. 2006-08-17. Retrieved 2012-08-29.
- Newell, Robert G. (1957). Pacific Tugboats. Seattle: Superior Publishing.
- "Fireboat Duwamish history". Archived from the original on 2012-03-01. Retrieved 2012-08-29.
- "Fireboat Duwamish the boat". Archived from the original on 2012-03-01. Retrieved 2012-08-29.
- "Puget Sound Fireboat Foundation". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
- Hsu, Charlotte (18 August 2006). "A new life for an old boat?". Seattle Times. Retrieved 2012-08-29.
- Broom, Jack (29 December 2012). "History afloat outside MOHAI". Seattle Times. Archived from the original on 17 November 2018. Retrieved 2013-01-29.
-
Delgado, James P. (9 July 1988). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Duwamish / Fireboat Duwamish" (pdf). National Park Service. Retrieved 2009-06-22. and
"Accompanying 10 photos, exterior and interior, from 1988 and 1929". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Duwamish (ship, 1909). |
- Biography of Eugene L. McAllaster, designer of Duwamish.