Launching the S.G. Simpson

This story is taken from the Aug. 23, 1907, edition of the Mason County Journal.

On Aug. 19, 1907, about 40 people from Shelton, hosted by Mark E. Reed, Arthur Govey and Thomas O'Neill, traveled to the Crawford and Reid boatyard in Tacoma to participate in launching the hull of the new Shelton Transportation Co. steamship S. G. Simpson.

The party boarded the steamship Shelton at 7 a.m. and spent the next four hours on a pleasant run to Tacoma. Upon arrival, they traveled uptown for luncheon and sightseeing. By 2 p.m., they were gathered at the shipyard with other friends and steamboat men, inspecting the 117-foot hull and commenting on its splendid lines and unusually strong construction. Everything about the hull was first-class and just a little heavier and stronger than any other steamer ever built on the Sound, it being the intention of the builders to construct a boat that would be safe in every emergency. The hull had been designed by Captain Ed Gustafson, who had many years of steamboat experience and would become the boat's first skipper.

All being in readiness at 3 p.m., Miss Margaret O'Neill lofted a bottle of "Mum's Extra Dry," and as the word was given, the hull, carrying several of the visitors, gently moved down the "ways" and was christened S. G. Simpson in honor of Sol G. Simpson, founder of the Simpson Logging Co., who had died the previous year. The movement to the water was so smooth that it was barely noticed by those on the deck and "the vessel rested easily on its native element."

The entire affair passed off without a hitch or mishap and was most enjoyable to the Shelton people, who hoped soon to see the splendid steamer in their service. The party left Tacoma at 5 p.m. and arrived home at 10 p.m.

The boiler for the steamship had been built by Willamette Iron Works of Portland, under the direction of the U.S. government, and was on its way to Tacoma. Crawford and Reid had the materials on hand to begin building the boat's upper works, which would be arranged for the comfort and convenience of the traveling public. The upper cabins were to be furnished in the best style, and the S. G. Simpson was intended to be the best boat of its class on the Sound, with a speed close to 15 miles an hour. The builders expected to complete the boat within two months and that it would be in operation not later than December first.

The S. G. Simpson arrived in Shelton on Dec. 22 and began carrying passengers, freight and mail daily between Shelton and Olympia (a 90-minute trip) early in January 1908. Tacoma was added to the route in 1918. By 1922, with automobile travel becoming commonplace, the S. G. Simpson was carrying mostly freight between Shelton and Tacoma. In 1926, ownership was transferred to Puget Sound Freight Lines. In 1928, with its passenger cabin removed, the boat was operating as a tugboat called the E. G. English on the Skagit River. Around 1949, it was filled with gravel and sunk as a bank protector somewhere on the lower reaches of the river. When it turned out that the hull presented a hazard to shipping during low tides, it was dynamited and removed by the Army Corps of Engineers.

■ Jan Parker is a researcher for the Mason County Historical Museum. She can be reached at [email protected]. Membership in the Mason County Historical Society is $25 per year. For a limited time, new members will receive a free copy of the book "Shelton, the First Century Plus Ten."