SS Ste. Claire on fire, 6 July 2018 architect Louis Keil. The boat ride itself was part of the attraction of a trip to the amusement park; both boats featured spacious ballrooms, live music, and a gallery view of the triple-expansion reciprocating steam engines for the more technically inclined; sometimes passengers would ride the ferry back and forth of an evening and forego the amusement park entirely. The beloved “Boblo Boats” plied the route up and down the Detroit River until September of 1991, just two years before the amusement park closed for good. Columbia was purchased by SS Columbia Project, led by the late Richard Anderson, and after Anderson’s passing in 2013, the SS Columbia Project continued his work, successfully bringing Columbia to Buffalo, New York, where she is undergoing work in preparation for an eventual journey to Kingston, New York, and then a new career hosting educational programs as an excursion steamer on the Hudson River. (SS Columbia Project, www.sscolumbia.org) …
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Ken Stewart, founder of Diving With a Purpose, has been recognized by Scuba Diving magazine as a 2018 Sea Hero. The magazine has teamed with Seiko Watches to bestow this award on one person for each issue from May through October, who is working tirelessly to protect our oceans through education, conservation, and action. “DWP has dedicated countless volunteer hours to projects for NOAA, the National Park Service and the Smithsonian, and has made inclusion of teenage and young adult divers a special focus, fostering understanding of our
courtesy kenneth stewart, dwp
joseph cartledge, detroit fire dept.
Generations of nostalgic Michiganders and the historic ship community were dealt a blow on 6 July when fire struck SS Ste. Claire. The 190-foot excursion steamer, which had passed hands and changed locations numerous times since her retirement in 1991, had been moored since 2017 at Detroit’s Riverside Marina on the Detroit River. As of press time, authorities believed the fire might have been caused by welders working on the ship. Ste. Claire has a steel hull, but a wooden superstructure strengthened with steel supports. Ste. Claire’s owners, Ron Kattoo and Saqib Nakadar, had planned to open the ship for tours and as a haunted attraction in 2019, and to eventually fully restore her as a steam engine museum and event venue. At present they have launched a GoFundMe page to try and raise funds for restoration, reminding visitors to their website that the steel superstructure appears to be intact and the hull is still floating on the water. Launched on 7 May 1910 at Toledo Shipbuilding Company, Ste. Claire joined her “big sister” ship, Columbia (launched in 1902), carrying passengers in style between Detroit and Bois Blanc (adapted by the locals to either “Boblo” or “Bob-Lo”) Island, a location that evolved from a pastoral park area to a full-fledged amusement park over the years. Both steamboats were designed by noted naval architect Frank Kirby, with interiors designed by artist and
Ken Stewart (2nd from left, bottom row) with his team from YDWP shared national heritage and what its underwater remains can teach us.” A recipient of the 11th Maritime Heritage Conference Award of Distinction from the National Maritime Alliance in New Orleans last winter, Stewart and his team with DWP and Youth Diving with a Purpose have trained hundreds of youth and adult divers to assist in maritime archaeology projects. He serves as program director, scheduler, mentor, and spokesperson for both organizations and is responsible for planting the seeds for the National Association of Black Scuba Divers Youth Educational Summit (YES). YES encourages young people to achieve their potential through programs organized by the National Association of Black Scuba Divers. Stewart’s work has also been recognized by awards from the US Dept. of the Interior and the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation. Congratulations Ken! (DWP, www.divingwithapurpose.org; Scuba Diving magazine, www.scubadiving.com) … (continued on page 52)
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SEA HISTORY 164, AUTUMN 2018