Atlanta (steamboat 1908)
Encyclopedia
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Atlanta was a steamboat built in 1908 at Houghton, Washington which served on Lake Washington
Lake Washington
Lake Washington is a large freshwater lake adjacent to the city of Seattle. It is the largest lake in King County and the second largest in the state of Washington, after Lake Chelan. It is bordered by the cities of Seattle on the west, Bellevue and Kirkland on the east, Renton on the south and...

 and Puget Sound
Puget Sound
Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...

 until 1938, when it was converted into a diesel-powered houseboat.

Construction

Atlanta, launched May 28, 1908, was the first vessel built at the Houghton shipyard after it had been taken over by Captain John L. Anderson from its former owners, Captains George Bartsch and Harry Tompkins, and renaming it the Anderson Shipyard. This process had began in 1906 at the suggest of Jacob Furth
Jacob Furth
Jacob Furth was an Austrian Empire-born American entrepreneur and prominent Seattle banker. He played a key role in consolidating Seattle's electric power and public transportation infrastructure, and was a member of Ohaveth Sholum Congregation, Seattle's first synagogue...

, a banker who had also financed the La Conner Trading and Transportation Company
La Conner Trading and Transportation Company
The La Conner Trading and Transportation Company was founded in the early 1900s by Joshua Green and others, to engage in the shipping business on Puget Sound.-Formation:...

.

Atlanta was built entirely of wood. The vessel and was 95 ft (28.96 m) long, 22 ft (6.71 m) beam, and and was 87 gross tons and 59 registered tons in overall size. Atlanta was equipped with a double expansion compound steam engine
Steam engine
A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid.Steam engines are external combustion engines, where the working fluid is separate from the combustion products. Non-combustion heat sources such as solar power, nuclear power or geothermal energy may be...

, with cylinder dimensions of 9.5 in (24.1 cm) and 22 in (55.9 cm) with stroke of 16 in (40.6 cm), generating 200 hp.

Atlanta was registered as steamship number 205232 and was reported to require only two crewmen, at least as of 1909. The vessel cost $30,000 to construct.

Career

Following completion, Atlanta was operated in passenger service on Lake Washington
Lake Washington
Lake Washington is a large freshwater lake adjacent to the city of Seattle. It is the largest lake in King County and the second largest in the state of Washington, after Lake Chelan. It is bordered by the cities of Seattle on the west, Bellevue and Kirkland on the east, Renton on the south and...

 and on the Lake Washington Ship Canal
Lake Washington Ship Canal
The Lake Washington Ship Canal, which runs through the City of Seattle, Washington, connects the fresh water body of Lake Washington with the salt water inland sea of Puget Sound. The Ship Canal includes a series of locks, modeled after the Panama Canal, to accommodate the different water levels...

 after it was completed in 1916. Anderson, and his firm, the Anderson Steamboat Company faced competition from government-owned and built ferries. Even so, he used his own vessels, the Fortuna
Fortuna (steamboat)
The steamboat Fortuna was a vessel that operated on Lake Washington in the first part of the 20th Century.-Construction:Fortuna was built in 1904 at a shipyard on the west side of Lake Washington two blocks south of Leschi Park. She was 106.9 feet in length overall, and rated at 81 tons...

 and the Atlanta to transport people to Rainier Beach on Lake Washington to witness the launching, on December 5, 1913, of the new King County ferry Leschi
Leschi (steam ferry)
Leschi was a steam ferry that operated on Lake Washington from 1913 to 1950, and afterwards on Puget Sound until 1967. From 1969 to 1986 the vessel was a floating cannery in Alaska.-Career:...

.

In 1917 Atlanta was still owned by Anderson Steamship Company.

In the summer of 1922, Atlanta was successfully used as a tourist vessel by Capt. John L. Anderson, making a popular two-hour cruise of Elliot Bay, the Ballard Locks, Lake Union
Lake Union
Lake Union is a freshwater lake entirely within the Seattle, Washington city limits.-Origins:A glacial lake, its basin was dug 12,000 years ago by the Vashon glacier, which also created Lake Washington and Seattle's Green, Bitter, and Haller Lakes.-Name:...

, the Lake Washington Ship Canal
Lake Washington Ship Canal
The Lake Washington Ship Canal, which runs through the City of Seattle, Washington, connects the fresh water body of Lake Washington with the salt water inland sea of Puget Sound. The Ship Canal includes a series of locks, modeled after the Panama Canal, to accommodate the different water levels...

, and Lake Washington
Lake Washington
Lake Washington is a large freshwater lake adjacent to the city of Seattle. It is the largest lake in King County and the second largest in the state of Washington, after Lake Chelan. It is bordered by the cities of Seattle on the west, Bellevue and Kirkland on the east, Renton on the south and...

. By this time, Anderson had sold his interests in his first business, the Anderson Steamboat Company, and was operating Atlanta under the business name of Anderson Water Tours.

Later years

Anderson later sold Atlanta to King County, but leased it back from the county as part of his agreement to operate the county's ferry fleet. In 1938, Anderson turned Atlanta back to the county, which, having no use for the vessel, sold it at a sheriff's auction for $510 to Russel T. Gibson. He then sold the vessel to Delta V. Smyth, an Olympia lumber mill owner who owned a number tug boats. Smyth removed Atlanta 's compound steam engine, and installed it in his tug Olympian. Walter House, who worked for Smyth's company, then installed a 155 hp diesel engine
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...

 in the Atlanta hull, and converted the vessel into a houseboat.

In 1943, the diesel engine that had been placed in Atlanta was removed and installed in the tug Margaret S, which belonged to the American Tug Company, an Everett, Washington
Everett, Washington
Everett is the county seat of and the largest city in Snohomish County, Washington, United States. Named for Everett Colby, son of founder Charles L. Colby, it lies north of Seattle. The city had a total population of 103,019 at the 2010 census, making it the 6th largest in the state and...

 concern. Atlanta then became a shoreside house on Lake Union
Lake Union
Lake Union is a freshwater lake entirely within the Seattle, Washington city limits.-Origins:A glacial lake, its basin was dug 12,000 years ago by the Vashon glacier, which also created Lake Washington and Seattle's Green, Bitter, and Haller Lakes.-Name:...

, where it was still in existence as of 1966.

External links

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