Kitsap County Transportation Company
Encyclopedia
The Kitsap County Transportation Company was an important steamboat and ferry company that operated on Puget Sound
. The company was originally founded in 1898 as the Hansen Transportation Company.
and put it on the mail route between Port Madison and Poulsbo
. Business proved good, and the business was able to acquire the Hattie Hansen, trading the Quickstep for machinery to build another steamboat, the Sentinel
. The Hansens then become involved in a rate war with the Moe Brothers
who were running the steamer Reliance on the Dogfish Bay route in against the Hansens' Sentinel.
– Brownsville
. With Gazzam in charge as president, the company officially changed its name, in March 1905, to the Kitsap County Transportation Company. The company's official emblem as painted on the ships' smokestacks, was a white band (called a “collar”) painted around the stack, with the letter “K” in black or red on each side.The company was capitalized at $200,000.
, Burton
, Falcon, Vashon II, Tolo, and Kitsap II.
In March 1905 KCTC bought Reliance for $20,000. In December 1906 the company purchased Burton
for $11,225. In June, 1909 the company bought Hyak
, paying $51,101.72. In April 1914 the company purchased Suquamish
for $23,807.73. In November 1915, KCTC bought Camano
from the Capt. H.B. Lovejoy's Island Transportation Company
for $15,000 and renamed the vessel Tolo.
Suquamish, sometimes referred to at the time as “Hyaks pup” was notable for being the first diesel-powered passenger vessel in the United States.
, valued for rate-paying purposes at $6,600, and a dock at Suquamish
, valued at $1,800. In 1927, Kitsap County Transportation Companyand Puget Sound Freight Lines (PSFL) formed a joint venture company called the Ferry Dock Company, which took out a long-term lease on the Grand Trunk Pacific dock
in Seattle, which was then in a rundown condition. The dock became the main terminal and for both lines. In 1929, the stockholders of KCTC and PSFL reached agreement with Wilbur B. Foshay (b.1887) to sell their companies, including the Ferry Dock Company, to Foshay, who was then assembling a utility and transportation business empire. Foshay however was financially ruined in the October 1929 stock market crash
and the transaction never went through.
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...
. The company was originally founded in 1898 as the Hansen Transportation Company.
Hansen Transportation
The Kitsap County Transportation Company grew out of a business known as the Hansen Transportation Company. The founder of Hansen Transportation was Capt J.J. Hansen who moved to Tacoma from Minnesota in 1888. In Minnesota, and later in Boxton, North Dakota, J.J. Hansen had been in the business of selling farm equipment. J.J. Hansen had two sons who joined him in the steamboat business, Captains Henry A. Hansen and Ole L. Hansen (1875-1940), as well as a son-in-law, Capt. Alf Hostmark. The business was formally organized in 1898, but started earlier. Hansen Transportation initially acquired the steamer QuickstepQuickstep (steamboat)
Quickstep was a steamboat that operated from 1877 to 1897 in coastal, inland waters and rivers of the Pacific Northwest. This vessel should not be confused with a number of other vessels with the same name, some of which operated in the same area about the same time.- Career:Quickstep was built at...
and put it on the mail route between Port Madison and Poulsbo
Poulsbo, Washington
Poulsbo is a city on Liberty Bay in Kitsap County, Washington, United States. It is the fourth largest city in Kitsap County and one of the main suburbs of Seattle in the Kitsap area. The population was 9,200 at the 2010 census....
. Business proved good, and the business was able to acquire the Hattie Hansen, trading the Quickstep for machinery to build another steamboat, the Sentinel
Sentinel (steamboat)
Sentinel was a small wooden propeller-driven steamship of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet.-Career:Sentinel was built in 1898 for the Hunt Brothers, who ran a family steamboat business on Puget Sound. The Hunts ran the vessel to stops on Bay Island in southern Puget Sound, and also on a run to...
. The Hansens then become involved in a rate war with the Moe Brothers
Moe Brothers
Moe Brothers was a shipping firm that operated in Puget Sound and also a logging firm that operated in Kitsap County. The company was based in Poulsbo, Washington.-Business:...
who were running the steamer Reliance on the Dogfish Bay route in against the Hansens' Sentinel.
Formation
The rate war was settled when Kitsap County businessman Warren I. "Colonel" Gazzam (b.1863) bought Reliance. Gazzam also had some business allies acquire a major stake in the Hansen company. Gazzam arranged to have Reliance left on the Dogfish Bay route, while transferring Sentinel to a longer route, Harper – Colby – West Bainbridge IslandBainbridge Island, Washington
Bainbridge Island is a city in Kitsap County, Washington, United States, and the name of the island in Puget Sound on which the city is situated...
– Brownsville
Brownsville, Washington
Brownsville is an unincorporated community in Kitsap County, Washington, United States. It is located north of Bremerton and due east of Silverdale and on the north side of Burke Bay on the Kitsap Peninsula....
. With Gazzam in charge as president, the company officially changed its name, in March 1905, to the Kitsap County Transportation Company. The company's official emblem as painted on the ships' smokestacks, was a white band (called a “collar”) painted around the stack, with the letter “K” in black or red on each side.The company was capitalized at $200,000.
Acquisitions
The Kitsap County Transportation Company acquired a number of steamboats, including Kitsap, HyakHyak (steamboat 1909)
Hyak was a wooden-hulled steamship that operated on Puget Sound from 1909 to 1941. This vessel should not be confused with the sternwheeler Hyak which ran on the extreme upper reach of the Columbia River at about the same time...
, Burton
Burton (steamboat)
Burton was a steamboat built in 1905 in Tacoma, Washington and which was in service on Puget Sound until 1924.-Career:Burton was built for the Tacoma and Burton Navigation Company, whose principals had once been partners with the owners of a rival steamer Norwood on runs from Tacoma to points on...
, Falcon, Vashon II, Tolo, and Kitsap II.
In March 1905 KCTC bought Reliance for $20,000. In December 1906 the company purchased Burton
Burton (steamboat)
Burton was a steamboat built in 1905 in Tacoma, Washington and which was in service on Puget Sound until 1924.-Career:Burton was built for the Tacoma and Burton Navigation Company, whose principals had once been partners with the owners of a rival steamer Norwood on runs from Tacoma to points on...
for $11,225. In June, 1909 the company bought Hyak
Hyak (steamboat 1909)
Hyak was a wooden-hulled steamship that operated on Puget Sound from 1909 to 1941. This vessel should not be confused with the sternwheeler Hyak which ran on the extreme upper reach of the Columbia River at about the same time...
, paying $51,101.72. In April 1914 the company purchased Suquamish
Suquamish (motor vessel)
Suquamish, built in 1914, was the first diesel-engined passenger vessel in the United States. Much later Suquamish was converted to a commercial fishing vessel and was registered as a Canadian vessel under the name Terry.-Nomenclature:...
for $23,807.73. In November 1915, KCTC bought Camano
Camano (steamboat)
Camano was a steamboat built in 1906 at Coupeville, Washington which operated on Puget Sound from 1906 to 1917. Camano was later known as Tolo. As Tolo the vessel was sunk in 1917 as a result of a collision at sea. Four people died as a result.-Design and construction:Camano was built by Capt. H.B...
from the Capt. H.B. Lovejoy's Island Transportation Company
Island Transportation Company
The Island Transportation Company was a shipping company that was briefly operational in Puget Sound from 1889 to 1900.-Formation and operations:...
for $15,000 and renamed the vessel Tolo.
Suquamish, sometimes referred to at the time as “Hyaks pup” was notable for being the first diesel-powered passenger vessel in the United States.
Waterfront property
As of January 1, 1917, the company owned 2,200 feet of waterfront property at Brownsville, WashingtonBrownsville, Washington
Brownsville is an unincorporated community in Kitsap County, Washington, United States. It is located north of Bremerton and due east of Silverdale and on the north side of Burke Bay on the Kitsap Peninsula....
, valued for rate-paying purposes at $6,600, and a dock at Suquamish
Suquamish, Washington
Suquamish is a census-designated place in Kitsap County, Washington, United States. The population was 4,140 at the 2010 census. Located within the Port Madison Indian Reservation, it is the burial site of Chief Seattle.-Geography:...
, valued at $1,800. In 1927, Kitsap County Transportation Companyand Puget Sound Freight Lines (PSFL) formed a joint venture company called the Ferry Dock Company, which took out a long-term lease on the Grand Trunk Pacific dock
Grand Trunk Pacific dock
The Grand Trunk Pacific dock was a shipping pier in Seattle, Washington. The original pier was built in 1910 and was destroyed in a fire in 1914. The pier was then rebuilt and continued in existence until 1964, when it was dismantled...
in Seattle, which was then in a rundown condition. The dock became the main terminal and for both lines. In 1929, the stockholders of KCTC and PSFL reached agreement with Wilbur B. Foshay (b.1887) to sell their companies, including the Ferry Dock Company, to Foshay, who was then assembling a utility and transportation business empire. Foshay however was financially ruined in the October 1929 stock market crash
Wall Street Crash of 1929
The Wall Street Crash of 1929 , also known as the Great Crash, and the Stock Market Crash of 1929, was the most devastating stock market crash in the history of the United States, taking into consideration the full extent and duration of its fallout...
and the transaction never went through.
Routes
As of January 1, 1917, the company operated on the following routes originating from Pier 3 (now Pier 54) in Seattle:- Port Madison-Suquamish-PoulsboPort Madison-Suquamish-Poulsbo routeThe Port Madison-Suquamish-Poulsbo route was a shipping route that originated from Seattle, Washington. The route included stops at Port Madison, Suquamish, and Poulsbo, Washington. As of January 1, 1917, the Kitsap County Transportation Company was operating steamboats on the route...
; - Harper-Colby-ManchesterHarper-Colby-Manchester routeThe Harper-Colby-Manchester route was a shipping route that originated from Seattle, Washington. The route included stops at Colby, Suquamish, and Manchester, Washington. As of January 1, 1917, the Kitsap County Transportation Company was operating steamboats on the route.-References:* ]...
; - YWCA-Rolling BayYWCA-Rolling Bay RouteThe YWCA-Rolling Bay route was a shipping route that originated from Seattle, Washington. The route included stops on the east side of Bainbridge Island, Washington at the YWCA summer camp and at Rolling Bay.As of January 1, 1917, the Kitsap County Transportation Company was operating steamboats...
, and - Fletcher-Bay-Brownsville-ManzanitaFletcher-Bay-Brownsville-Manzanita routeThe Fletcher-Bay-Brownsville-Manzanita. was a shipping route that originated from Seattle, Washington. The route included stops at Fletcher Bay, Brownsville and at Manzanita....
.