S.S. Quilcene

A crowded day at Coman Dock.  The Chippewa is loading cars for Bremerton; in front of her the Kalakala appears tied up.  At the far left is the Quilcene, she too appearing to be tied up for the day. Drawing courtesy of Johan Iversen.

The history of hull # 214056  is these days all but forgotten, save by Mosquito Fleet enthusiasts.  The truth is hull 214056 is far more remembered today as the Mosquito Fleet  steamer Kitsap II than she as the ferry Quilcene, a name all but forgotten by all but die-hard ferryboat junkies.       Starting life in 1916 as the passenger steamer Kitsap II for the Kitsap County Transportation Company, or "White Collar Line" as it was known, the steamer sailed successfully for a number of years shuttling passengers across Puget Sound.   KCTC was very proud of their boat, a fast, comfortable vessel that was appreciated by all her patrons.      By the 20's though,the automobile was starting to take its place in the transportation landscape of Puget Sound.  Passenger steamers were becoming obsolete.  In order to survive, companies were building ferries or converting steamers.       Retaining her machinery, the Kitsap II was stripped down and rebuilt to carry cars, emerging in 1924 as the  steam powered ferry City of Bellingham.  Black Ball having aquired the vessel had her steam plant taken out, a diesel engine put in and expanded her accomodations, naming  Quilcene after the river and tiribe on the Olympic Peninsula.      With her elegant appointments and formal dining room, she was ideal for the longer routes between Bellingham and Victoria and Edmonds and Port Townsend.  Later she was assigned to the longer trips out to the San Juan Islands, becoming a frequent sight in Friday Harbor.      With the addition of the larger, more economical ferries arriving from San Francisco, the Quilcene's small size was making her a liability.  She simply couldn't carry enough cars.   Eventually she was assigned to the Bremerton-Point White route, hauling workers across Port Orchard Bay to the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard.         The Quilcene last saw service on Puget Sound as a ferry  around 1939.  The vessel was sold to the Navy  in 1942 who used her as a machine shop until 1946, when she was sold to a scrapping firm on Lake Union.  The litte Quilcene was finally broken up, slipping into the history books as a footnote to the life of the jaunty little steamer Kitsap II.

Steamer Kitsap II early in her career.  Courtesy of   MOHAI/PSMHS/Williamson.

Afer her first rebuilding, the Kitsap II emerged as the steam-driven City of Bellingham. Photo courtesy of Tom Sanislo.

The Quilcene spent much of her late career in the San Juan Islands and traveling to Sidney, British Columbia.  Here she is seen heading through Pole Pass at full speed.

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