Duwamish (fireboat)

Duwamish was one of the most powerful fireboats in the United States several times over her 75-year working life.[2] She is the second oldest vessel designed to fight fires in the US, after Edward M. Cotter, in Buffalo, New York.[3]

Duwamish fireboat at the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks, Seattle
History
United States
Name: Duwamish
Builder: Richmond Beach Shipbuilding Co.
Launched: 1909
Out of service: 1985
Status: Museum ship
General characteristics
Tonnage: 322 tons (gross)
Length: 120 ft (37 m)
Beam: 28 ft (8.5 m)
Depth: 9.6 ft (2.9 m)
Installed power: Compound marine steam engines
Speed: 10.5 knots (19.4 km/h; 12.1 mph)
Duwamish (fireboat)
Originally the Seattle fireboat Duwamish was built with a ram bow.
Coordinates47°37′41″N 122°20′11″W
Built1909
ArchitectRichmond Beach Shipbuilding Co.
NRHP reference No.89001448
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJune 30, 1989[1]
Designated NHLJune 30, 1989[2]

Career

Duwamish was built in 1909 for the Seattle Fire Department in Richmond Beach, Washington, just north of Seattle.[4] She was powered by "double vertical (compound) marine steam engines" capable of driving her at 10.5 knots (19.4 km/h; 12.1 mph).[3] She was equipped with three American LaFrance steam piston pumps rated at a capacity of 3,000 US gallons per minute (0.189 m3/s) each. She was originally designed to ram and sink burning wooden vessels, as a last resort, and was equipped with a ram bow for doing so.

On July 30, 1914, Duwamish was involved in fighting the fire on the Grand Trunk Pacific dock. In the 1930s, as a cost-saving measure, the Seattle City Council directed that Duwamish be used as a tug to push the city's garbage scow.[5]

After an upgrade in 1949, the pumps delivered a total of 22,800 US gallons per minute (1.438 m3/s).[6][7] This capacity was only exceeded in 2003 by the Los Angeles Fire Department's Warner Lawrence, which delivers 38,000 US gallons per minute (2.397 m3/s).

Duwamish is 120 feet (36.6 m) long with a 28-foot (8.5 m) beam and a 9.6-foot (2.9 m) draft.[4] Her registered gross tonnage is 322 short tons (292 t).

Current status

Retired in 1985, Duwamish was purchased by the Puget Sound Fireboat Foundation.[8][9] She is permanently moored at the Historic Ships Wharf near the Museum of History & Industry at South Lake Union Park in Seattle.[10] Visitors may board the vessel when volunteer staff is available.[9]

Duwamish was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1989.[2][11]

She is a city landmark.

See also

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
  2. "DUWAMISH (Fireboat)". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on 2012-09-26. Retrieved 2012-08-29.
  3. Delgado, James P. (1988). "Duwamish Fireboat: National Historic Landmark Study". National Park Service. Retrieved 2012-08-29.
  4. "National Park Service - Maritime Heritage Program: HISTORIC SHIPS TO VISIT". National Park Service. 2006-08-17. Retrieved 2012-08-29.
  5. Newell, Robert G. (1957). Pacific Tugboats. Seattle: Superior Publishing.
  6. "Fireboat Duwamish history". Archived from the original on 2012-03-01. Retrieved 2012-08-29.
  7. "Fireboat Duwamish the boat". Archived from the original on 2012-03-01. Retrieved 2012-08-29.
  8. "Puget Sound Fireboat Foundation". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
  9. Hsu, Charlotte (18 August 2006). "A new life for an old boat?". Seattle Times. Retrieved 2012-08-29.
  10. Broom, Jack (29 December 2012). "History afloat outside MOHAI". Seattle Times. Archived from the original on 17 November 2018. Retrieved 2013-01-29.
  11. Delgado, James P. (9 July 1988). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Duwamish / Fireboat Duwamish" (pdf). National Park Service. Retrieved 2009-06-22. and
    "Accompanying 10 photos, exterior and interior, from 1988 and 1929". Retrieved 2012-08-29.
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