Northwest Seaport facts for kids
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| Predecessor | Save Our Ships |
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| Formation | 1964 |
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Northwest Seaport is a special group in Seattle, Washington. It's a nonprofit organization that works to save and share the history of boats and the sea from the Puget Sound and Northwest Coast. They do this through fun learning programs and experiences you can have right on their old ships!
Northwest Seaport owns three big, old ships. These ships are docked at the Historic Ships' Wharf in Seattle's Lake Union Park. The ships are the tugboat Arthur Foss (built in 1889), Lightship 83 Swiftsure (built in 1904), and the halibut fishing schooner Tordenskjold (built in 1911). These vessels are used for many public activities. You can take tours, enjoy festivals, join restoration workshops, and even get job training on them.
Northwest Seaport is located next to the Center for Wooden Boats and the Museum of History and Industry. These groups often work together on events at Lake Union Park. However, they are not officially connected. Also, Northwest Seaport is not linked to the Northwest Seaport Alliance. That's a different group that manages the ports of Seattle and Tacoma.
How Northwest Seaport Started
Northwest Seaport began in the early 1960s. It was first called the "Save Our Ships" project. Their main goal was to save an old ship called the Wawona, built in 1897.
The "Save Our Ships" group bought the Wawona in 1964. Then, they bought Lightship 83 "Relief" in 1966. This ship was later renamed "Swiftsure." In 1970, they received the tugboat Arthur Foss as a gift from the Foss company.
During the 1970s, "Save Our Ships" was based in Kirkland, on Lake Washington. Later, the group changed its name to Northwest Seaport. In the early 1980s, they moved to their current spot on Lake Union, near downtown Seattle.
For many years, Northwest Seaport was mostly run by volunteers. But by the early 2000s, their main ship was getting old. So, the leaders decided to hire professional staff. This helped them better manage the ships and the organization.
Fun Programs and Activities
Northwest Seaport offers many different programs for people of all ages. You can take public tours of the ships. They also host festivals and story times for young children.
For older kids and adults, they offer special training. You can learn skills for working on boats. They also have fun sing-alongs with traditional sea music.
Meet the Historic Fleet
The Historic Ships Wharf at Lake Union Park is home to several amazing old vessels. Four of these ships are so important that they are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Two of these belong to Northwest Seaport. The other two are owned by different groups. Northwest Seaport's third ship is also being considered for this special historic status.
Tugboat Arthur Foss: A Ship with a Story
The tugboat Arthur Foss was built in 1889. It is the oldest wooden tugboat still floating in the United States! In 1898, during the Klondike Gold Rush, it carried miners and supplies to Alaska. No other ships from that gold rush are still working today.
The Arthur Foss even became a movie star! It was in the 1933 movie Tugboat Annie. During World War II, the Arthur Foss helped with the war effort. It was the very last ship to escape before the Battle of Wake Island began in December 1941. After the war, it worked in the timber industry until it retired in 1968.
This powerful tugboat has a six-cylinder diesel engine with 700 horsepower. It can go as fast as 13 knots (about 24 kilometers per hour). The vessel is 120 feet (36.6 meters) long. It is 24.5 feet (7.5 meters) wide and goes 16 feet (4.9 meters) deep in the water. The Foss company, who owned it, gave it to Northwest Seaport in 1970. The Arthur Foss was named a National Historic Landmark in 1989. It is also a city landmark.
Lightship 83 "Swiftsure: A Floating Lighthouse
Lightship #83, often called Swiftsure, is a special kind of ship called a lightvessel. It was built in Camden, New Jersey, in 1904. This ship worked for the United States Lighthouse Service from 1904 to 1939. Then, it served the United States Coast Guard from 1939 to 1960. Today, it is a museum ship docked in Seattle, Washington.
In 1904–1905, LV-83 sailed all the way around the tip of South America. Its first job was at Blunts Reef in California. There, it helped save 150 people when their ship got stuck in thick fog. In 1929, LV-83 moved to the San Francisco lightship station. During WWII, it was used as an armed patrol boat. After the war, it went back to being a lightship.
In 1951, it moved to Seattle. It was named Relief and served as a backup ship for other lightships. These included those at the Columbia River bar, Umatilla Reef, and Swiftsure stations. The name Swiftsure comes from the Swiftsure Bank. This is a place near the entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca, which separates Washington and Vancouver Island.
Swiftsure is one of the oldest lightships in the country. It's also the only one that still has its original steam engine! The ship is 129 feet (39.3 meters) long. It is 28 feet, six inches (8.7 meters) wide and goes 12 feet, six inches (3.8 meters) deep in the water. It weighs 668 tons. It has a very bright 1,000-watt light. It also has a loud 140-decibel Diaphone foghorn and a 1,000-pound fog bell. These were all used to warn other ships.
The ship stopped working in 1960. Northwest Seaport bought it in 1966. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was also named a National Historic Landmark in 1989. And it's on the Washington State Heritage Register. Today, it is docked on Lake Union in Seattle, Washington, and is being restored.
Halibut Schooner Tordenskjold: A Century of Fishing
The halibut schooner Tordenskjold was built in 1911. It joined the Northwest Seaport fleet in February 2017. This ship was built in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood by a famous boat builder named John Strand.
Tordenskjold fished in the North Pacific and Bering Sea for over 100 years! It never missed a fishing season. From 1911 to 1934, its crew of 14 used small boats called dories to catch halibut and cod. After dories were not allowed, they fished directly from the main boat.
In 1939, its second captain, Carl Serwold, changed the boat to be a trawler. Sometimes it fished for him, and sometimes it was rented out to groups like the International Pacific Halibut Commission. Tordenskjold caught shrimp, king crab, and shark. In 1979, Marvin Gjerde and Per Odegaard bought the boat. They changed Tordenskjold back to a longliner. For the next 35 years, Marvin Gjerde fished for halibut and black cod.
Tordenskjold stopped active fishing at the end of the 2012 summer season. Gjerde and Odegaard gave Tordenskjold to Northwest Seaport in 2017. The boat is kept in working condition. It travels to boat shows in the area as Northwest Seaport's special "mobile ambassador."
Fishing Troller Twilight: A Restoration Project
Twilight is a 36-foot (11-meter) fishing vessel. It was launched from Seattle's Fishermen's Terminal in 1933. This boat used to catch fish by trolling in the Pacific Ocean until the 1980s. It came to Northwest Seaport in 2000. Twilight is currently stored on land. Funds are being raised to restore it to its former glory.
Schooner Wawona: A Ship Remembered
The three-masted schooner Wawona sailed from 1897 to 1947. It carried lumber and later became a fishing vessel. It was based in Puget Sound. The schooner was built in Fairhaven, on California's Humboldt Bay. It was built by H.D. Bendixsen, a very important West Coast shipbuilder of that time. From 1897 to 1913, it carried lumber from Grays Harbor and Puget Sound ports to California. One of its captains, Ralph E. "Matt" Peasley, even inspired a series of popular novels!
The Wawona was 165 feet (50.3 meters) long on deck. It was 35 feet (10.7 meters) wide. Its masts stood 110 feet (33.5 meters) tall from the bottom of the ship.
It used to be docked at South Lake Union Park in Seattle. It was next to the Center for Wooden Boats. The Wawona was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was also on the Washington State Heritage Register and was an official city landmark.
However, the ship started to decay. After many tries, efforts to restore it failed. So, it was carefully taken apart in March 2009. Northwest Seaport talked with many experts about what to do. They created a plan to save important parts of the ship. Students from East Carolina University studied the Wawona in July 2008. In March 2009, the ship was taken apart at a local shipyard. Important pieces like wooden knees, beams, and paneling were saved. These pieces are now stored and will be shown in exhibits and memorials on land. Some parts of the Wawona were even given to be used on another historic ship, the C.A. Thayer, in San Francisco.
