It was a fun ride Sept. 1st there and back again on the Clinton-Mukilteo ferry with the Mutiny Bay Brass Band celebrating the WSDOT’s ferry system’s 75th anniversary. The ferry system will be referred to as WSF from here on in this story.
Our ferries were originally owned by a private company, Puget Sound Navigation Company, also known as the Black Ball Line. It operated 18 ferries and owned their docks. Its president was Captain Alexander Peabody, who happens to be the great-uncle of our friend and neighbor Betsy O’Neil. Take a look at this HistoryLink site for the background of Captain Peabody’s story: HistoryLink and Captain Peabody.
Peabody needed to increase the fare by 30 percent in 1948, stating it was no longer affordable to run the ferries. He asked that the state lease his ferries for “fair compensation” while it considered his request for a rate increase. The state of Washington refused to accommodate his request. Peabody shut the ferries down for nine days. The state scrambled to provide essential ferry services by cobbling together boats, planes and busses during the closure. Passengers pressured the state to take over running the ferries to avoid such a kerfuffle in the future. Eventually Peabody sold his fleet and docks to the state in 1951.
According to its website, WSF, “…a division of the Washington State Department of Transportation, is the largest ferry system in the U.S. and safely and efficiently carries tens of millions of people a year through some of the most majestic scenery in the world.”
Navigation of the Salish Sea dates back to when the Coast Salish people traveled its waters for 10,000 to 12,000 years. As colonization moved west, white settlers found new ways of navigation.
The privately owned Mosquito Fleet—which provided steam power by burning 25 cords of wood a day, provided ferry service to the mainland from Langley Harbor as early as 1910. Please click on this link to learn more: Whidbey Camano island maritime history.
A Seattle Now and Then article notes that ferry passage from Clinton to Mukilteo “…did so in 1916, connecting with equally tiny Clinton on the southern tip of Whidby (no “e” at the time) Island. The ferry ran two times daily, twice that on weekends. The fare was $1 for car and driver, a quarter per additional passenger. A North Island Ferry at Deception Pass was built in 1913, and abandoned after Deception Pass Bridge was completed in 1934.”
The Mukilteo Ferry dock, according to Seattle Now and Then: “…received major improvements when a brand-new, $187 million multimodal terminal opened on Dec. 29, 2020, following earlier significant upgrades in 1952 and 1980.” The new terminal reflects the culture and art of our Salish Sea people. The Mukilteo Ferry terminal is the location of the Treaty of Pt. Elliott in 1855, in which the Coast Salish people ceded–many reluctantly, and some opposed to the idea–over 5 million acres of their ancestral land to the U.S. Government.
The Mutiny Bay Blues Band, whose colorful characters led by David Stern perform brass and percussion street music are often asked to perform at public events, and were invited by WSF to perform for the anniversary celebration.
Playing from the ferry’s sun deck, visitors danced to the lively tunes of the band. It was a timeless moment where we were all part of a great energy.
