<BGSOUND SRC="http://www.evergreenfleet.com/TillikumJackHurley.wav">

EVERGREEN STATE Official Number: D268732 Call Sign: WTQ6960 Length: 310'  Beam: 73'  Horsepower: 2,500 Draft: 15' 10'' Auto Deck Clearance: 13' 3''  Speed in Knots: 13 Max Passengers: 875 Max Vehicles: 87  City Built: Seattle Year Built/Re-built: 1954 / 1988 Name Translation: Washington State nickname. The Evergreen State, arriving at Friday Harbor in May of 2011.  Note the life raft canisters for her SOLAS certification have all been removed.  Author's photo.
The Evergreen State was extensively rebuilt in 1988.  The decision to plate over the much-vexing texas deck turned out to be a problematic solution.  Most alarmingly, it made the Evergreen State top-heavy.  To rectify the problem, WSF was forced to remove all "non-essential" weight--which meant the false ceiling in the passenger cabin.  What remains are the bare wires, cords and plumbing.      A few years later, in order to comply with SOLAS (Safety Of Life At Sea) regulations to travel the international route  between Anacortes, Washington, and Sidney, British Columbia, she had   additional fire doors, storage lockers, life rafts and a very visible sprinkler system grafted in.      The Evergreen State served the Anacortes-Sidney less and less in later years, reliving the Elwha.  Nearing retirement age, WSF looked in the fleet to SOLAS another boat. The Evergreen State made her last trip to  Sidney, B.C. in May of 2003.  Her replacement on the route, the Chelan, went into service in the spring of 2006.      Unfortunately, the ferry, having celebrated her 50th birthday , had been pulled out of service.  She had no crew assigned to her and had been officially mothballed.  That status didn't last very long, as problems with the Steel Electrics arose, the Evergreen State was pressed into service more and more often.     The  Steel Electric class were suddenly withdrawn from  service on 13 December 2007, and the Evergreen State's status as "mothballed" came to a sudden end.  With the Illahee no longer in service, the Evergreen took her place as the inter-island vessel in the San Juan Islands.      With retirement age now mandated at 60 years, the Evergreen State  is nearing the end of her service life--but as of 2011 there are no vessels to replace her.  The ferry continues to be assigned inter-island route in the San Juan Islands nearly year-round.
The interior of the Evergreen today.  Note the lack of a false ceiling.  All interior photos courtesy of Zack Heistand. Mouse over to see what the original interior looked like. Original interior photos courtesy of MOHAI.
Courtesy of Matt Masuoka
On to the Klahowya The Evergreen State Class Home