Ste. Claire (passenger steamboat)
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| History | |
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| Name: | Ste. Claire |
| Operator: | Detroit & Windsor Ferry Company |
| Builder: | Toledo Shipbuilding Company |
| Yard number: | Hull 116 |
| Launched: | 7 May 1910 |
| General characteristics | |
| Tonnage: | 870 (gross), 507 (net) |
| Length: | 190 ft (58 m) |
| Beam: | 50 ft (15 m) |
| Draft: | 14.5 ft (4.4 m) |
| Depth: | 17.3 ft (5.3 m) |
| Installed power: | Triple expansion reciprocating steam engine |
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Ste. Claire (steamer)
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| Location | 125 S. Dix St., Detroit |
| Coordinates | 42°17′45″N 83°9′2″W / 42.29583°N 83.15056°WCoordinates: 42°17′45″N 83°9′2″W / 42.29583°N 83.15056°W |
| Built | 1910 |
| Architect | Kirby, Frank E.; Toledo Shipbuilding Co. |
| Architectural style | Other |
| NRHP reference # | 79001177 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | November 2, 1979 |
| Designated NHL | July 6, 1992 |
SS Ste. Claire is a steamship that was formerly located in Detroit, Michigan. Built in 1910, she is one of the last propeller-driven excursion steamships to be operated on the Great Lakes. She was declared a US National Historic Landmark in 1992.
The Detroit, Belle Isle, & Windsor Ferry Company was incorporated in 1881 to provide ferry service between Detroit, Windsor, Ontario, and Detroit's Belle Isle Park. In 1898, the company began leasing Bois Blanc Island (later known as "Boblo") and began offering ferry service to the island. Bois Blanc became a popular day trip destination, with picnic grounds, a small amusement area, dancing and other services. In 1901, the company purchase the island. Service to Boblo became so popular that in 1902, the company hired Frank E. Kirby to design a passenger ferry, the SS Columbia. However, passenger volume continued to increase, and soon the Detroit, Belle Isle, & Windsor Ferry Company commissioned another, slightly smaller ferry. This ship was again designed by Frank E. Kirby, and constructed at the Toledo Shipbuilding Company.
The Ste. Claire was launched at Toledo Shipbuilding Company in 1910, and entered service later that year between Detroit and Boblo Island. In 1911, the Detroit, Belle Isle, & Windsor Ferry Company was reorganized as the Detroit and Windsor Ferry Company. However, the construction in the 1920s of the Ambassador Bridge and the Detroit–Windsor Tunnel between Detroit and Windsor, and the MacArthur Bridge to Belle Isle drastically reduced the company's service, and by the late 1930s their only activity was the Detroit-Boblo Island line. In the early 1940s, the company was renamed simply the "Bob-Lo Excursion Company."
The ferry line and Boblo Island Amusement Park were sold in the 1940s, and again in 1979. However, the Ste. Claire continued operating between Detroit and Boblo Island until 1991, a run of 81 years. After the island park closed, she was sold to a commercial firm and fell into disrepair. In 2003 she was towed to Toledo, Ohio for restoration. In 2015, the vessel was towed to the former Detroit Lime Dock on the Rouge River, while her restoration remains in limbo.
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Wikipedia